VIDBE-Q 2025 Volume 70 Issue 2
Providing Prompts for Student Artwork
Strategy 3: 3-D models or Tactile Graphics
Artists may reference what they see or observe to create their artwork. To
support SVI, teachers can provide 3-D models or tactile graphics, which can
provide a haptic reference for the student before they begin to make their own
artwork. A 3-D model is a representation of a physical object while a tactile
graphic s a representation of a 2-D image with raised lines or surfaces
(Mukhiddinov & Kim, 2021). Tactile graphics can be created through special
printers such as the Picture in a Flash (PIAF), thermoforming, and embossers
(Mukhiddinov & Kim, 2021). To provide a 3-D model, teachers can let the
students have an actual item or provide 3-D printed replicas of items that would be
impractical or impossible to bring into the classroom. For example, a teacher might
provide a 3-D printed version of the Notre-Dame cathedral for students to explore
and a simplified tactile graphic of a stained-glass window from the cathedral
before engaging in a project inspired by the intricate stained glass rose windows
found in the architecture. Engaging in object exploration prior to artmaking can
help students to ground the experience. Figure 2 shows an example of a tactile
graphic of David Hockney's The Road to New York Through Sledmere.
