Blog Post #3   Due Wednesday, April 22

Dear students,

By popular request, the topic of your last blog post this term will be music, movies or entertainment. Please write a short paragraph  ( about 5 sentences) about a really good movie, book or TV program you have seen or read recently; or, if you prefer, your favorite kind of music. Feel free to upload any audio or visual aids, as long as they are short! Again, remember to respond briefly to the postings of your classmates.

Blog#2

I like art very much, especially painting. I like many types of paint, such as oil painting, pastel painting, postercolor painting, computer painting, sketch and so on. Also, I prefer representational to abstract. It’s a little difficult for me to understand the abstract styles paintings. My favourite artist is Leonardo da Vinci. As we all know, he not only was one of the greatest artists, but he also is the most diversely talented person. I started to love his paintings when I first learned how to paint.  He had so many famous works, like “the Last Supper”, “Mona Lisa”, “the Virgin and Child with St. Anne”, “ the Vitruvian” and so on. It must be amazing if I have the opportunity to personally see his works in the museums. For now I only have been to Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venezia, and that the only place I have been besides America and China, it collects some paintings of Titian. It's a pity that I have not visited the Musei Vaticani, because of the dress code when I was in Rome. They told me it’s not allowed women wearing dresses and shorts to visit the Musei Vaticani.  I always want to see Michelangelo's wall paintings. If I have chance to visit there again, I definitely will wear pants. In addition, my favourite museum in New York is Metropolitan Museum of Art, I have visited there twice. But the museum is too big, it is impossible to see all in two times. So I bought a book about the museum, and mark some places I have to see for the next time.

To sum up, I love art and painting very much, and I would like be an illustrator in the future. However, people always ask me what does illustrator do? I always can't give an exactly answer. Because I haven't learn illustration in formal class yet. Also I think it contains many types and styles paint, but most of them are painted on the computers and papers. Some people also paint on the woods or other materials. Illustrations can be artistic images illustrating for example a text, poem, fashion, magazines, stamps or a book. I'll post some pictures of my favourite illustrators works and some Leonardo da Vinci's paintings. One of them is a illustration of the New York city.

1. Of course I like art. I had learn drawing when I was a child, and I think I am more talented on drawing. But my mom didn't want me use it as my major. She thought artist's life is difficult, and always be famous until their old or after death.
2. In my mind, each kind of art have their special merit. For me, I like representational more than abstract. Because I like the elaborate things. Representational is easy to understand than abstract. I think abstraction is good to decorate walls, because it is simple and give the room more stylish temperament.
3.Claude Monet is my favorite western painter. His was the founder of the french impressionist painting. His hazy landscape painting makes me feel like in a dream.  I also have a favorite Chinese painter. He's name is Chen Zhifo. He is expert in Chinese traditional realistic painting. 
4. My favorite museum in New York is MOMA. There exhibit many famous painting. Such as the "Starry Night" of Van Gogh; Monet's huge painting of water lilies; and many painting of Picasso.
5. I haven't visit museum in other city without New York.

Blog post #2 - due Wednesday, April 1

Dear students,

By popular request, today's topic will be art. Answer some or all of the following questions:

1. Do you like art?
2. What kind of art do you like ( or dislike)? Do you prefer representational or abstract?
3. Who is your favorite artist?
4. Which museum in New York is your favorite?
5. Which museums in other cities have you visited?
6. If possible, post a photo of a work of art that you like, for all of us to see.
7. Finally, please react to the photos and comments of your classmates, as you did before.

I hope you will enjoy thinking and writing about this topic!

Diana

Dear students:

Welcome to Diana's Level 7-8 Writing class blog!

Here is your first assignment, due before class on Monday, March 23:

At your request, your first blog post will be about exercise and health. This is one of my favorite topics, too. Please talk about this topic, and use the following questions as a guide:

1. What do you do to stay healthy?
2. Do you eat healthy foods? If so, what kinds?
3. Do you exercise?  Do you enjoy exercising?
4. If so, what kinds of exercise do you do?

Please write between 5 to 10 sentences on this topic. Then, please write a sentence or two reacting to your classmates' comments.