The Circus,1930, oil on Masonite, 30” x 40”
1.Have students define what a circus is and what it looks like, before showing this picture. Then ask them to compare and contrast their definition of a circus with this oil painting. Do they match? If not, why do they think the artist chose to name this “The Circus?” Do they see the comparison even if they do not completely match?
2.Tell them that this painting is supposed to represent social justice. Define that phrase, and ask them if they see anything, at first glance, that looks like “social justice?” Have them look at the painting for one minute silently while thinking about that. Ask them if, knowing that this was painted in 1930, changes their minds about there being any undertones (or parts of it that speak) to social justice?
3. Explain that the painting is set in front of the old Talbot County Courthouse, which is significant because it is supposed to be a place of justice and equal rights. The White man standing in the middle, the “ringmaster,” is the artist's husband. The Black man with him looks as if he is offering him something to drink. Rose, the artist, and her husband were known for entertaining all people from the community. The crowd of on-lookers is noticeably segregated. The crowd is watching what appears to be a roundabout of carts and carriages filled with Black and White children. At the bottom the car has both White and Black children in it together. Those are Ruth Star Rose, the artist’s children, with Black children. The fact that the cars are in a circle symbolizes that perhaps things are starting to improve. In the 1930s the fact that Black and White children were playing together would have been considered inappropriate and would have been socially prohibited.
4. You could show signs that say “Blacks Only” and “Whites Only” from that time-period and have students discuss how things are different now. You could also have them do a writing exercise about this. They could do a basic compare and contrast of how things are different now, or they could ‘time travel’ from the current time back in time to 1930 and be observing the situation on the grounds of the Talbot County Courthouse where the party was happening. They could make observations about what they saw and how different, or similar, it is to what they experience in ‘their time.’
5.Have the students think about the ways that this painting worked to show equality in a visual way, and discuss other ways that graphic artists and photographers could place things to show equality. Then have the students locate images in magazines and newspapers that promote racial equality. Have the students write about where they found the images and how equality was being portrayed in the images. They could also create a collage of those images if they wanted and if there was time.
MD State Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1/CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.4.1/CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.5.1/CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.6.1/CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.7.1/CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.8.1
Art: Cr2:E:3:3-5:2/Cr2:E:6-8:2