Plasticine clay is a bendable material that is easily manipulated by students of all ages. It is a great material to work with because it does not dry out from day to day, so high-school students can work on an extended project. They do not have to worry about the clay drying and cracking, and the entire work of art does not have to be completed…

During each of the holiday seasons, the author tries to come up with a lesson that will incorporate art history and have a holiday theme. One recent winter-holiday season, the author was thumbing through a catalog and saw a picture of note cards that had famous artists' stockings hanging on a mantel. This triggered an idea for the author's…

Discusses an art exhibit, "The Age of Armor," presented by the Higgins Armory Museum (Worcester, Massachusetts). Includes the itinerary for the exhibit. Provides background information on armor as an artform and examples of armor. (CMK)

Focuses on works of art that are serpentine, which means the artist either depicts snakes or use snake-like designs. Explains that the four examples given are to motivate students to search for more examples. Discusses different ways to help students learn about serpentine designs by observing real snakes. (CMK)

Discusses spirals in nature, man-made objects, and art. Focuses on art that incorporates the spiral, including works by M. C. Escher and Frank Lloyd Wright, an African headdress, and a burial urn. Describes activities to help students make spirals of their own, such as constructing a coil clay pot. (CMK)

States that Prague, the capital of the Czech-Republic, is a virtual art museum because of the number of architectural styles and other artworks throughout the city. Explores the various architectural styles that are present in the city from the Gothic monasteries and churches to examples of contemporary styles. (CMK)

Focuses on the exhibition titled "American Modern, 1925-1940: Design for a New Age" that documents the efforts and achievements of the United States in the area of design arts. States that the exhibition features more than 150 objects, including furniture, posters, and radios, by leading designers of the early and mid century. (CMK)

Provides a history of typography and discusses the effects of technology. Describes an art project in which high school students designed contemporary typographic specimen sheets. Explains that the students created their own broadsheets using Macintosh computers and QuarkXPress desktop publishing. (CMK)