Art and Architecture Resources

Art

Art is not just about learning to draw, paint or sculpt. It is about visual literacy. Learning how to look and how to see is crucial to our appreciation and understanding of everything. Art is also an often-overlooked primary resource when learning history. For example, when I was teaching my sons about the Civil War, I opened a book of Winslow Homer's early paintings, and showed my kids what a soldier's campsite really looked like, painted by someone who had been standing right there. When we visited the Egyptian galleries at the Metropolitan Museum, we learned about children in that ancient culture by carefully "reading" the tomb paintings. If you want to know what games children played in the Middle Ages, look at the paintings of Breughel, who lived in that era. Learning how to see, and how to discover history through art, is only part of the fun. Art is also about experiencing creativity and expressing oneself. Here are some delightful websites that will help your children do just that.

Architecture

Architecture is art in visible and usable form. From a new condo block to an ancient cathedral, architecture is all around us.

Art Lessons and more

Laurie Spigel offers classes in art history for kids. See some Art from Laurie Spigel's Art Classes.

• Frick Collection programs for students. After-school and weekend programs for middle and high school students with an exceptional interest in the arts. Classes are free, but online registration is required.
• The Joan Mitchell Foundation Art Education Program offers free Saturday art classes taught by artist-teachers for students 8-18 years, in Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan in Soho and the Upper West Side. For details and an application you can download, go to JMF Art Education Program. All materials are supplied.
• Art Games
• Art Resources for kids and parents from Princeton University.
• Free Art Classes for Tweens & Teens at The Jewish Museum
  1109 Fifth Avenue at 92nd Street, Manhattan, (212) 423.3200. September 18-October 9, 2007, Tuesdays, 4:00-5:30 pm --Painting Impressions: Exploring Pissarro. Discover the world of Impressionist painting inspired by the exhibition Camille Pissarro: Impressions of City and Country. And learn about the art of plein-air painting (painting out-of-doors) through trips to Central Park. For ages 11 to 14. This series is free with museum admission, but there is limited availability and participants must register in advance by contacting the Scheduling Coordinator at (212) 423.3225 or schedulingcoordinator@thejm.org.
• Red Studio, a website for teens from the Museum of Modern Art, explores issues and questions raised by teens about modern art, today's working artists, and what goes on behind the scenes at a museum. E-cards, a contest, and more.
• ArtsEdge, a great resource from the Kennedy Center and Marco Polo.
• The Arts Standards from NYS Board of Education.
• Curriculum Resources from the Ggggenheim Museum.
• Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, by Betty Edwards. The author has some other great books and offers classes and workshops as well on her website.
• Incredible Art Dept. from Princeton Online -- art and history lessons for every culture and time period, with loads of free lesson plans and activities for every grade level.
• KinderArt.com. A great resource of ideas, articles, etc.
• Learning How to Draw offers free drawing lessons online.
• Cowdisley Group - free drawing and painting lessons online.
• Art Education. Free lesson plans etc. from Educational CyberPlayground.
• A Brush with Wildlife: Create a Composition with Carl Rungius. Animated lessons in art.
• Adobe Digital Kids Club has online tutorials and free software to download.
• ExploreArt, lessons about artists with related hands-on activities just right for kids.
• Make an Artist Book, a great art project.