The United States has a visually stunning history of documenting its natural lands. In the late 1800s, Hudson River School painters captured national parks in the west (National Park Service, 2017). Ansel Adams is famously known for his rich black-and-white photographs of Yosemite and other national parks from the 1920s. In the 1930s, the Works…

Instructors who teach introductory art studio courses face the task of covering large quantities of diverse content in a short amount of time. Developing material and technical knowledge requires time-consuming practice. Yet these courses are essential for launching a relational studio practice embedded in critical thinking. The awkward leap from…

Art educators can be reluctant to study graffiti with their students, commonly citing that the practice of graffiti art is rooted in illegal vandalism. While this is true for a large amount of graffiti, today, graffiti art is also often completely legal in the form of murals, commissioned pieces, works in galleries, billboards, logo designs, and…

This instructional article focuses on the impact of Alex Garant's art and how it can spark exciting commentary in the classroom. The article features an interview with Alex Garant, information regarding several of Garant's contemporary works, understandings and questions in alignment with the new National Visual Art Standards, and web-based…

Place-based education incorporates local communities into school curriculum, recognizing the importance of local traditions, communities, and ecosystems, and emphasizing content that has reference to community life and local ecology. One elementary art teacher worked to connect place to her own artistic identity and to her work teaching elementary…

Adolescents face complex dilemmas such as challenging issues of identity and self-concept, and struggles with building and maintaining relationships. These issues must be embraced in the art classroom. This Instructional Resource will focus on the concept of brand--connecting visual art, marketing, and psychology--and center on ideas found in the…

In this article, Miguel Aguilar describes the process of mental preparation he performs before beginning a new graffiti mural. This may include reviewing recent sketches and his lists of color palettes. Aguilar mind maps ideas he wants to connect, thinking about intentions or the goal he wants to accomplish. Aguilar further states "this…

Many of the paintings of 20th-century American artist Philip C. Curtis defy clear classification. Curtis's artworks often show dreamlike and fantastical qualities and are therefore frequently pigeonholed as Surrealistic. While this classification is not completely erroneous, it fails to acknowledge some subtle differences between Curtis's artwork…

Presents a lesson plan uses Edward Hopper's painting entitled "November, Washington Square." The lesson illustrates, for students in grades K-3, the ways an artist interprets the city in which he or she lives. Includes suggestions for classroom activities. (AEM)

Creates a lesson plan using Mark Tobey's painting, "Flow of the Night," to illustrate to students in grades 10-12 that artists may interpret their environments in a variety of ways, from the subjective to the abstract. Includes suggestions for classroom activities. (AEM)

This art activity introduces students in grades four-six to the popular 18th-century capriccio painting of Canaletto, one of the greatest painters of views of Venice, Italy. (RM)

Students in grades 10-12 are introduced to a romantic-realist approach to landscape painting using masterpiece by Robert S. Duncanson. The activity helps students consider the decisions artists make in choosing how they will interpret nature. (RM)

Author described the life and times of the San Francisco Art Institute and reviewed the forces that made San Francisco a city of more than ordinary awareness of the arts in its civic and civil existence. (Editor/RK)

Thomas Cole's painting, "The Architect's Dream," is used to illustrate a middle school lesson on how artists interpret cityscapes. Includes suggestions for classroom activities. (AEM)