National Gallery of Art
National Gallery of Art: Johannes Vermeer's "Woman Holding a Balance"
A complete analysis of this famous Baroque painting. The artist's technique, composition, and intentions are fully broken down for you. Really helps you to understand the painting and appreciate it more. Includes an artist biography and...
Museum Network (UK)
The Museum Network Uk: Talking Objects
What do the objects around you tell people about you? This resource takes a look at the question and offers some common themes and pieces of artwork. Teacher resources are available.
Other
Poway Unified School District: How to Analyze Art
This tutorial will lead you through the steps on how to view and understand art. Great for all ages.
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
Sf Mo Ma: Country Dog Gentlemen Travel to Extraordinary Worlds
Two characters from "Country Dog Gentlemen" lead you on explorations of artwork by Frida Kahlo, Jackson Pollock, and Sargent Johnson. Accompanying interactive invites you to create your own masterpiece inspired by these artists and to...
ArtsNow
Arts Now Learning: Mona Mesa: What Is Your Opinion? [Pdf]
In this instructional activity, 1st graders look at a print of "Mona Lisa" by Leonardo DaVinci and talk about what they see, searching for visual clues to help them form an opinion. They discuss the importance of portrait paintings...
ArtsNow
Arts Now Learning: Module K: Shapes
In this series of STEAM activities, students will discover the concepts of geometry through shape exploration and the creation of choreographic sequences. Another activity in this module will allow students to identify shapes by applying...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: Martin Puryear's "Ladder for Booker T. Washington"
In this lesson plan, students will consider "Martin Puryear's Ladder for Booker T. Washington." The plan includes worksheets and other student materials that can be found under the resource tab.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: Picture Lincoln
In this lesson plan, young scholars will consider "Picture Lincoln." The plan includes worksheets and other student materials that can be found under the resource tab.
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
Sfmoma: Who Says It's Art?
A lesson that introduces your students to ready-made art and gets them discussing such topics as "What is Art?"
Institute for Dynamic Educational Advancement
Web Exhibits: Pigments Through the Ages: Look Closer: Visible and Beyond
Illustrated explanation of the analytical work that art historians and curators perform using visible light and imaging technologies.
Incredible Art Department
The Incredible Art Department: Looking at Art: Seeing Questions
A collection of questions to use with students for analyzing and critiquing art.
Other
Abc: Narrative Art
Art analysis can lead to a better understanding of the artist's intentions. This lesson plan teaches ways to "read" a painting and find meaning in a narrative work of art.
Eduweb
Eduweb: A. Pintura, Art Detective: The Case of Grandpa's Painting
Play the role of a 1940s-era detective and discover the artist of a mystery painting by examining its style, composition, use of color, and subject. Involves comparing and contrasting the work of Raphael, Titian, Millet, Van Gogh,...
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian American Art Museum: Director's Choice
The director of the Smithsonian American Art Museum applies her analytical skills in explaining the formal and aesthetic qualities of her favorite American masterworks from the Smithsonian's collection of American art.
New York Times
New York Times: The One and Only Jackson Pollock
An informative slideshow about the life, work, and significance of Jackson Pollock narrated by art critic Michael Kimmelman of the "New York Times." Great insight coupled with great images.
The National Gallery (UK)
National Gallery, London: Titian, Bacchus and Ariadne
An articulate audio analysis of Titian's painting 'Bacchus and Ariadne.' Interesting historical information about the painting is revealed.
The National Gallery (UK)
National Gallery, London: Turner, the Fighting Temeraire
Listen to why this painting by Turner is so difficult to clean and conserve.
Other
The Frick Collection: Ingres
A careful study of a portrait painting of the Comtesse d'Haussonville that illuminates the important qualities of Ingres's faultless neoclassical style.
South Carolina Educational Television
Etv: Artopia: Painting Critic: Race Horses at Longchamp by Edgar Degas
Explains how Edgar Degas painted impressions of things he saw in his painting, Race Horses at Longchamp. Also describes the content of the painting and gives a short biography of the artist. Students can answer questions about the...
Huntington Library
Huntington Library: Portrait, Please! [Pdf]
In this instructional activity, students are guided in how to interpret a portrait and in how to plan a portrait that is a drawing or a photograph.
National Gallery of Art
National Gallery of Art: Henri Matisse
An in-depth look at how Matisse used color and at how contemporary theories about optics and color influenced his work. The essay describes how a group of artists along with Matisse--Van Gogh, Gauguin, and Seurat among them--became tired...
Goshen College
Goshen College: Art Aesthetics and Art Criticism Handouts
Marvin Bartel, Ed.D., provides useful handouts for critiquing artwork and for assessing students' abilities to write and discuss art intelligently.
Other
Dayton Art Institute an African Slit Gong
Art and music are very much related. In fact, the African culture often times designed fun looking instruments like the gong on this website. Includes directions on how to make your own gong.
Other
Dayton Art Institute: An American Painting
American painter Charles Sheeler uses simple shapes to create his painting "Stacks in Celebration." See if you can find the shapes and then follow the lesson plan to create a similar painting of your own.