 
Annotated Web Site Listings
This listing of recommended web sites is divided into three sections: Looking at Art; On-line Galleries and
Contemporary Art Images; Other Resources. Each site listing is annotated with useful information to help you
determine its appropriateness to your needs and to assist you in navigating the site to find what you are
looking for.
LOOKING AT ART
www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/art2
Pacific Bell Knowledge Network Explorer—Lessons and Learning Resources
“Eyes on Art: A Learning to Look Curriculum”
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The “Eyes on Art” curriculum includes seven exercises designed to acquaint students with looking at art,
along with suggestions for teachers on introducing their students to the viewing process. |
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Look in the Teacher’s Guide to find general strategies for looking at art, including
suggestions for valuing student expressions and experiences, creating a community of seers, using a clear strategy for viewing art,
helping students acquire background knowledge, and developing aesthetic experiences. |
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One of the seven exercises, entitled “Double Visions,” includes a list of 39 “Seeing Questions” developed by Professor Craig Roland. The questions guide students in describing, analyzing, interpreting, evaluating,
and relating to works of art. |
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Another exercise, “Your True View,” specifically relates to contemporary art and includes a list of 11
questions and suggestions to help guide students through the viewing process.
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www.camh.org
Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, Texas
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Tips for looking at contemporary art can be found on the “New to Contemporary Art? Some Ideas to Get
You Started” page in the teacher resource section.
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The site also includes a list of “Resource Kits” with lesson plans that can easily be adapted for CI:99/00.
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www.artsednet.getty.edu
ArtsEdNet: Getty Education Institute for the Arts
Many of the hundreds of lesson plans on this site could be adapted for CI:99/00. The following three fit
particularly well:
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“Interacting with a Contemporary Artist”
www.artsednet.getty.edu/ArtsEdNet/Resources/Aeia/contemp-lp.html
Lesson plan developed for students who had the opportunity to interview an artist whose work they viewed
at a contemporary exhibition. Leads students to formulate questions for artists as they view their original
work. Could be adapted for use with the web cast/teleconferencing/chat room ideas. |
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“Experiencing Original Works of Art in a Museum”
www.artsednet.getty.edu/ArtsEdNet/Resources/Sampler/h.h.html
Students compare the experience of viewing original works of art with viewing reproductions. They also
explore the context of the museum. Lesson includes three sections: activities for before, during, and after
the museum visit. |
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“Many Ways of Seeing”
www.artsednet.getty.edu/ArtsEdNet/Resources/Sampler/c. html Includes six lessons that investigate ideas of theme, originality, interpretation of visual language,
symbolism, and fine vs. folk art. Lesson 5, “Universal Meanings,” deals with how art transcends time,
culture, and traditional symbol structures. |
www.artsnetmn.org
Arts Net Minnesota
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This site provides lesson plans, interdisciplinary lesson activities, discussion questions, vocabulary words, and images organized into four themes: Environment, Inner Worlds, Identity, and What is Art?
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In the “What is Art?” activity, students look at 10 images and decide if they are definitely, maybe, or definitely not art. Students are then given background information on each piece and are asked to reconsider whether or not the objects are art. Students examine why they may have changed their opinions.
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www.artsconnected.org
ArtsConnectEd: The Minneapolis Institute of Arts and Walker Art Center
This site contains over 200 lesson plans, many of which can be adapted for use with the 1999 Carnegie International. The following lesson plans include activities that can be used to introduce students to contemporary art.
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“Blind
Description”
One or two students verbally describe a work of art to their blindfolded classmates. When the description is complete, students remove their blindfolds and discuss the accuracy of the description. Through this activity, students learn about the processes needed to make informed judgments and explore the nature of contemporary art. |
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“Art Ads”
Students write two ads describing a work of art. One ad is written before the students have access to any background information on the work or the artist. The other ad is written after the students gain background information. Students compare the two ads, exploring how having background information changed their observations and impressions of the artwork. |
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“Art Should Be…”
Students explore the diverse functions of art. The teacher completes the statement “art should be…,” with words such as spiritual, aesthetic, magical, amusing, decorative, educational, etc., and asks students to raise their hands if they agree. Students are then given cards with one of the words used to complete the statement. They are asked to match the function written on the card with a work of art that best exemplifies that particular function. As there are no correct answers, students may discuss how art can serve multiple functions for different audiences. |
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“Who? What? Where?”
Students write two short stories that incorporate elements of two artworks—one representational and one abstract. Discuss how mood or structure replaces setting and character in many abstract works. |
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“What Does Abstract Mean to Me?”
Students write a persuasive essay to convince their classmates that their favorite work in an exhibition is the best. Discuss elements of the artwork that influenced their perceptions. |
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“What Is Modern Art?”
Students are asked to separate a variety of postcards into two categories, modern (can substitute with contemporary) or historical. Discuss how the students determined which category to place the cards in and which images were difficult to categorize. |
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“It’s
Not a…”
This activity takes place in the museum. Students divide into two teams. Each team selects one work of art and develops clues that help the other team locate the work they selected in the galleries. |
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“International Exhibition”
Students in groups of four or five are asked to choose one work in the exhibition that would best represent the museum in an international exhibition. Students develop arguments for their selections, and a vote is held after each group presents their case. |
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“Point/Counterpoint”
Students are asked to decide whether or not the museum should retain a work of art for their permanent collection. In developing arguments, students will describe, analyze, and interpret the artwork. |
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“Group Poem”
Students carefully study one artwork and think of three words that describe or interpret it. The students’ list of words is compiled to form a group poem. |
ON-LINE GALLERIES AND IMAGES OF CONTEMPORARY ART
www.thinker.org
Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco
Database includes over 70,000 images of European paintings, American paintings, works on paper, African art, European porcelain, European glass, and ancient art.
www.nga.gov
National Gallery of Art
Search for images by artist, title, or medium. Images of contemporary art can be found in the 20th-Century
Paintings (www.nga.gov/collection/gallery/20cent.htm) the Sculpture Garden (www.nga.gov/feature/sculptgarden/splash.htm) sections.
www.nmaa.si.edu
National Museum of American Art
Contains over 3000 images searchable by artist and subject.
www.artchive.com
Mark Harden’s Artchive
Contains more than 2000 images by over 200 artists, searchable by artists’ names and genres. Includes background information on artists, plus sections containing art reviews, theory and criticism, on-line exhibitions, and links to other useful art sites.
www.artnetgallery.com
ArtNetGallery
Contains images of contemporary art from around the world. Go to the “Visit the Gallery” page to choose artists by name, country of birth, or media.
www.artnewyork.com
artnewyork.com
Find images of work by contemporary artists on this “site that reflects current trends in the contemporary art world and culture.”
www.artincontext.org
Art In Context
Search for images by time period, country, and style in this “reference library for the publication and dissemination of information about contemporary artists and where to find them.”
www.artsednet.getty.edu
ArtsEdNet: Getty Education Institute for the Arts
Search the Image Gallery for images by artist, title, or date. Includes work from BCE through 1997.
www.dia.org
The Detroit Institute of the Arts
Contains digital images from the 20th Century; African, Oceanic, and New World Art; American Art; Ancient Art; Asian Art (Korean only); European Art; and Graphic Arts galleries.
OTHER RESOURCES
www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org/srp.html
This is the Kennedy Center’s ArtsEdge student research page, designed for use by teachers and students. A useful guide for the page lists links in the following categories: cultures, people, themes, and times and seasons from Colonial America to the 1940s).
www.artseek.com
Art Seek offers links to arts-related organizations around the world. Find lists of retail galleries, Internet galleries, museums, arts publications, organizations, art suppliers, and more.
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