An Artist Who Paints Trees and People

ARTICLE READING

Read the article aloud on your own or repeat each paragraph after your teacher.

Sor Sen is an artist from Nigeria. He makes paintings that show how trees and people are similar. His latest art show is called "Earthlings and Others."

Sen got his idea for these paintings from his grandfather's home. It was in a village with many trees. His grandfather took care of the trees like they were people.

In his paintings, Sen shows trees and people together in interesting ways. Sometimes a tree looks like a mother holding a baby. He wants to show that trees and people both go through changes, like how trees lose leaves and people have different feelings.

Sen has shown his art in many countries. He says that making art in Nigeria can be hard because art supplies are expensive. But he also thinks Nigeria gives artists many ideas for their work.

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VOCABULARY

Repeat each word, definition, and example sentence after your teacher.

similar (형용사, 비슷한)

• Having characteristics in common
  • Sen shows how trees and people are similar. 센은 나무와 사람이 어떻게 비슷한지 보여줍니다.

idea (명사, 아이디어)

• A thought or suggestion
  • Sen got his idea from his grandfather's home. 센은 그의 할아버지의 집에서 아이디어를 얻었습니다.

interesting (형용사, 흥미로운)

• Attracting attention or curiosity
  • Sen shows trees and people together in interesting ways. 센은 나무와 사람을 흥미로운 방식으로 함께 보여줍니다.

change (명사, 변화)

• The process of becoming different
  • Trees and people both go through changes. 나무와 사람은 모두 변화를 겪습니다.

expensive (형용사, 비싼)

• Costing a lot of money
  • Art supplies in Nigeria are expensive. 나이지리아에서 미술 용품은 비쌉니다.

supply (명사, 공급품)

• Materials or goods needed for a particular purpose
  • Art supplies can be hard to get in Nigeria. 나이지리아에서는 미술 공급품을 구하기 어려울 수 있습니다.

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DISCUSSION

Have a discussion based on the following questions:

1. What's something in nature that reminds you of people? Why?
2. If you could paint a picture of yourself as a tree, what would it look like?
3. How do you think art can help us understand nature better?
4. Why do you think Sen's grandfather treated trees like people?
5. What kinds of changes do you think trees and people both experience?

FURTHER DISCUSSION

Have a discussion based on the following questions:

1. Can you think of a time when you felt connected to nature? What happened?
2. How might drawing or painting trees make you feel differently about them?
3. If you could make art about any part of nature, what would you choose and why?
4. Why do you think some artists like to paint scenes from nature?
5. How do you think seeing art about nature might change how people treat the environment?

source: Global Voices