FUSE Workshop Recap: Visiting the Art Institute of Chicago and 'Catalyst Ranch' Part 3

@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } <b style=""'American Gothic'
by Grant Wood (1930)
Moving on we found ourselves in front of Grant Wood's 'American Gothic' painting. We stood staring at the painting for a moment before Annie asked us all to turn around. Once the painting was behind us she asked us to tell her what we remembered seeing. The group replied by throwing out adjectives and simple descriptions' 'a man and a woman', 'farmers', 'unemotional...'
We turned back around and the discussion became about assumptions. The painting is so well known. We've all seen it on coffee mugs and T-shirts. We discussed our preconceived notions and how they affect our different perspectives. We spoke about how this image has so much meaning in American culture and yet how it is also looked at as a clich??.
Brendan then pulled out a pad of paper and drew 'IX' and he said, 'With one line make this a 6.' The group made a few attempts at a solution to the puzzle before Brendan finally drew an 'S' in front of the 'IX' making it spell 'SIX'. He never said a straight line and he never said that it was a roman numeral. We all made those assumptions on our own.

We headed toward the photo gallery and passed sculptures from vastly different eras and cultures.