Painting: Solomon Thurman, Inspired by History
3:28
Grades: 6 - 12
Video Description: Solomon Thurman was born in the old St. Mary’s Infirmary, a segregated hospital for African Americans in downtown St. Louis. He came from a musical family. His father was a well-regarded harmonica player who would play with lots of local performers, but Solomon says his talent came from a different source. “I was born with an interest in art,” he explains. “I didn’t know how to deal with it, but my father saw something in me to see that I needed training, and when I was 8-years old he enrolled me in The People’s Art Center.” Meet painter Solomon Thurman and see his works influenced by and celebrating African-American culture.
Type of Video: Profile*
Unique Video ID: AandA-SThurman**
Quick Ideas for Using the Video:
- For Discussion: In the video, Mr. Thurman discusses the “narrative” behind his paintings and why story is important to him when he paints. Have students discuss that concept.
- Activity Idea: Use the video in conjunction with an activity where students create an artwork based on a narrative or story they want to tell.
*Profile videos use a first-person/first-hand approach to highlight interesting people doing interesting things in the area of study.
**The unique Video ID can be used to quickly locate a single video in the ET collection. This search function is designed to let teachers assign students to watch a specific video and have only that video appear as a search result. Just click on Search and choose “By Video ID.” Then type in the Video ID as it appears above. Be sure to include the dash.
