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Art History
20th/21st Century Art

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Websites

Destination Modern Art profile Photos
This interactive site from the Museum of Modern Art in New York features a variety of interactive demonstrations and activities.
Source: Museum of Modern Art Intended Audience: Students Reading Level: Elementary School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Audio Interviews profile Audio
e. e. cummings on what makes an artist. Watson and Crick on the discovery of DNA. Any Warhol speaks on how he selected his portrait subjects. Artists, poets, writers, actors, politicians, and other key figures of the 20th century are featured in audio interviews at this site from the BBC. In addition to the interviews, you will also find biographies.
Source: BBC Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Women of Our Time profile Photos
The 20th century was a time of incredible challenges and advances for women. This interactive exhibit from the National Portrait Gallery features photographs and biographical information of some of the century's most prominent women. In addition to the online gallery, you can also learn about the ways photography can document life and learn about a variety of photographers and their styles of portraiture.
Source: National Portrait Gallery Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle/High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

The Legacy Project profile Photos
Exploring the impact of historical tragedies of the 20th century though art and scholarship is the foundation of this site. Virtual exhibits include: Frank Stella, The Polish Village Series, Echoes of Guernica, and 49 of 2870 - A Memory of September 11. There is also a visual arts library with contemporary works from artists around the world searchable by artist, world event, decade, artist's country of origin, and theme. The site also features a searchable filmography curated by Josh Siegel of the The Museum of Modern Art, a searchable Literary Sampler with writings from around the world, and a Virtual Symposium with ongoing discussions of remembrance issues in cultures around the world.
Source: Legacy Project Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: Yes

America in the 1930s profile Photos
Travel back to the 1930s and view the period through its films, radio programs, literature, journalism, museums, exhibitions, architecture, art, and other forms of cultural expression.
Source: University of Virginia Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Movements profile Photos
Explore modern art at this site from the Guggenheim Museum organized by movement. You can learn about Dada, Futurism, Expressionism, Pop Art, Minimalism, Surrealism, and more. You will find essays exploring the movements and images of works held by the Guggenheim along with profiles of the artists.
Source: Guggenheim Museum Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: Yes

pbsGuernica: Testimony of War profile Photos
Proving the adage that a picture is worth a thousand words, Picasso's masterpiece Guernica powerfully captures the horror of war. This site traces the history of the painting, the Spanish Civil war, the bombing of Guernica, and also examines the role of art in politics.
Source: PBS Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: Yes Searchable: No

The Last Expression: Art and Auschwitz profile Photos
Using essays, biographies, interviews, and art this site explores the role, function and meaning of art in Nazi concentration camps during WWII with a special focus on Auschwitz.
Source: Northwestern University Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Posters: American Style profile Photos
Posters have provided some of the country's most powerful cultural messages. This site from the Smithsonian Museum of American Art provides images of some of the great graphic images made in the United States over the past century and looks at the process of using visual imagery for communicating patriotic, commercial and propaganda messages. A special section of the site explores the historical events that inspired selected posters.
Source: Smithsonian Museum of American Art Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: Yes

Modernism profile Photos
Take a look at some examples of architecture and design from the Arts and Crafts Movement, Bauhaus, Art Nouveau, and Art Deco at this site from the Minneapolis Institute of Art.
Source: Minneapolis Institute of Art Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Henri Matisse: The Fauves profile Photos
Characterized by landscapes with unnaturally bright colors and distorted forms, the Fauve period only lasted four years. This site from the National Gallery of Art looks at the movement, with a focus on the work of Matisse. You will also find works by Georges Braque, André Derain, Maurice de Vlaminck, and Albert Marquet.
Source: National Gallery of Art Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

The Group of Seven profile Photos
This group of Canadian artists included J.E.H. MacDonald, Lawren Harris, A.Y. Jackson, Arthur Lismer, Franklin Carmichael, F.H. Varley, and Frank Johnston. This site provides profiles of the artists and images of some of their works.
Source: McMichael Canadian Art Collection Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Norton Simon Museum of Art: 20th Century Art profile Photos
You'll find works by Ansel Adams, John Altoon, Josef Albers, Georges Braque, Lyonel Feininger, Juan Gris, Alexei Jawlensky, Vasily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Henri Matisse, Amedeo Modigliani, Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder, and Andy Warhol at this site. Sections of each object can be enlarged up to four times and each item is accompanied by a detailed description.
Source: Norton Simon Museum of Art Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Eye Contact: Modern American Portrait Drawing profile Photos
Explore the rocky path of portrait drawing from the 1880s to the 1980s at this site from Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. The exhibit includes works by Mary Cassatt, Milton Avery, Thomas Hart Benton, Edward Hopper, Roy Lichtenstein, Joseph Stella, Jacob Lawrence, and Andy Warhol.
Source: Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle/High School Teacher Section: Yes Searchable: No

Ashcan Artists and Their New York profile Photos
Led by artist and teacher Robert Henri, this group of artists painted the gritty urban reality of life on the street in New York City in the early 1900s. This site from the Smithsonian Museum of American Art looks at these artists and the historical context of their work. You'll find works by Robert Henri, George Bellows, William Glackens, George Luks, Everett Shinn, and John Sloan along with brief profiles of the artists.
Source: Smithsonian Museum of American Art Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Expressionism profile Photos
Emote, emote, emote was the battle cry of this movement. This site from The Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College features works by artists like Oskar Kokoschka, Alexej von Jawlensky, Paul Klee, and Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. You will also find artist profiles and detailed descriptions of the works.
Source: Allen Memorial Art Museum Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

International Dada Archive profile Photos
This site from the University of Iowa Libraries provides information about the Dada movement and the Dada writers and artists, as well as links to other Internet resources.
Source: University of Iowa Libraries Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

WWW Pop Art profile Photos
This site contains brief profiles of pop art artists like Keith Haring, Christo, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Gerhard Richter, and David Hockney.
Source: Pop Art Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Art Safari
Explore animals in art at this site from the Museumof Modern Art.

Destination Modern Art
Take an interactive trip through the world of modern art at this site for kids from the Museum of Modern Art.

NGAkids: Frank Stella, Jarama II
An interactive, kid-friendly introduction to the art of Frank Stella. Source: National Gallery of Art

NGAkids: Kandinsky, Improvisation 31 (Sea Battle)
An interactive, kid-friendly introduction to Kandinsky's Improvisation 31 (Sea Battle) Source: National Gallery of Art



Online Video

art:21 - Art in the 21st Century
This series from PBS explores contemporary visual arts and artists in the United States. Source: PBS

World of Art: Works in Progress
Each program in this art appreciation series is devoted to a contemporary artist who takes one or more works of art from start to finish. Source: Annnberg Media

Art of the Western World
This nine-part instructional series looks at art masterpieces of the Western world and their cultural and historical settings. Source: Annnberg Media


Lesson Plans

Modern Teachers
This site from the Museumof Modern art features a collection of lesson plans, images, and guides focused on modern art.

Representations of American Culture, 1760-1960: Art and Literature
Collection of 10 units of study.
Source:
Yale-New Haven Teacher Institute

Edward Hopper's House by the Railroad: From Painting to Poem - Gr. 6-8
After a close reading and comparison of Edward Hopper's painting House by the Railroad and Edward Hirsch's poem about the painting, students explore the types of emotion generated by each work in the viewer or reader and examine how the painter and poet each achieved these responses. Source: EdSitement

Jacob Lawrence’s Migration Series: Removing the Mask - Gr. 6-8
In this lesson, students analyze Jacob Lawrence’s The Migration of the Negro Panel no. 57 (1940-41), Helene Johnson’s Harlem Renaissance poem “Sonnet to a Negro in Harlem” (1927), and Paul Laurence Dunbar’s late-nineteenth-century poem “We Wear the Mask” (1896), considering how each work represents the life and changing roles of African Americans from the late nineteenth century to the Harlem Renaissance and The Great Migration.
Source: EdSitement

Picturing Freedom: Selma-to-Montgomery March, 1965 - Gr. 6-8
In this lesson students learn about the impact of photography in the Civil Rights Movement by analyzing James Karales's photograph of the Selma to Montgomery March in 1965, reading about the march, and imagining themselves as a marcher in Karales's photograph.
Source: EdSitement

Romare Bearden’s The Dove - A Meeting of Vision and Sound -Gr. 6-8
By examining the art of Romare Bearden, students will learn to appreciate the artistic and intellectual achievement of Black artists in America in the first half of the 20th century. By listening to music, students will see how art and music intersect to tell us a story. They will relate that story to their own lives.
Source: EdSitement

Creative Voices of Harlem - Gr. K-4
In this lesson, students learn about the artists of the Harlem Renaissance. Source: ArtsEdge

A Tribute to Miró - Gr. 5-8
Students create a modern artist's painting in the style of Spanish artist Joan Miró (1893-1983). Students explore how horizontal, vertical and curved lines can be combined with basic geometric and natural shapes to create an original painting. Source: ArtsEdge

Alexander Calder, Master of Balance - Gr. 5-8
Students will gain a deeper understanding of levers and their functions by viewing the mobiles of Alexander Calder. Source: ArtsEdge

Migrant Workers Through the Lens of Dorothea Lange - Gr. 5-8
Students learn about migrant workers and the impact of the Great Depression, through Dorothea Lange's photography. Source: ArtsEdge

Five Artists of the Mexican Revolution - Gr. 9-12
Students will explore how major artistic personalities in the Mexican Revolution influenced the Mexican art of the time. Source: ArtsEdge

N.C. Wyeth: The Art of Illustration - Gr. 9-12
Students learn about N.C. Wyeth and illustration, and examine a number of works by the artist. Source: ArtEdge

The Art of the Wyeths - Gr. 9-12
This unit includes research and studio lessons focusing on the illustrations of N.C. Wyeth, the watercolor drybrush paintings of Andrew Wyeth, and the portraiture of James Wyeth. Source: ArtEdge

The New York School: Action and Abstraction - Gr. 9-12
Students will learn about the writers and artists of the Abstract Expressionism movement. Students will analyze imagery, style and technique in the poetry and visual art of the period. Source: ArtEdge

Who Am I?: Self-Portraits in Art and Writing
Students look carefully at self-portraits in the National Gallery of Art's collection by Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Judith Leyster, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and Andy Warhol. Source: National Gallery of Art

Student Guide: Dada
A printable introduction to the artistic strategies of Dada. Source: National Gallery of Art

Art Since 1950
A printable overview of mid to late twentieth-century art in the National Gallery's collections. Topics include abstract expressionism, pop art, minimalism, conceptualism, performance art, process art, neoexpressionist, and postmodernism. Includes teaching activities and classroom discussion ideas. Source: National Gallery of Art

The Art of Romare Bearden: A Resource for Teachers
The visual narratives and abstractions of this preeminent African-American artist explore the places where he lived and worked: the rural South, Pittsburgh, New York's Harlem, and the Caribbean island of Saint Martin. Includes printable (PDF) version and teaching activities. Source: National Gallery of Art

Children's Guide: The Art of Romare Bearden
A printable, children's guide from The Art of Romare Bearden exhibition (2003–2004). Includes images, background information, and looking activities. Source: National Gallery of Art

Picasso
Teaching program on the early works of modern Spanish painter Pablo Picasso; The Blue Period Source: National Gallery of Art

Inside Scoop
Printable, kid-friendly guides from the National Gallery of Art
Romare Bearden
Roy Lichtenstein
Henri Matisse
Joan Miró
Georgia O'Keeffe
Jackson Pollock
Frank Stella