To teach art history, Helen D. Hume recommends that students connect with their own chosen works of art before studying the time periods of art history. Thousands of years of human expression through visual works of art offer teachers many historical time periods to choose from, including prehistoric art through post-Modernism. Teachers use specific works by a variety of artists to demonstrate the concepts of art history.
Instructions
Art History Concepts
1. Students must learn key vocabulary words in order to read and understand art history texts. Teach concepts such as art, art history, creativity, expression, design, observation, pattern, figure, two-dimensional, three-dimensional and representation.
2. Choose a teaching method such as a textbook reading, an art history video, or a PowerPoint presentation (including art images) to introduce the types of two-dimensional and three-dimensional art, including painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture and new media.
3. Show students examples of art works that illustrate the elements of design: line, color, texture, value and shape (or form). For example, the Renaissance sculpture "David" by Michelangelo demonstrates how a sculptor builds a recognizable human form using the principle of shape.
4. Assign students to choose works of art to study in an art history reflection journal. Students use the five elements of design to describe in words what they observe in each work of art. Encourage students to add more works to their collection as the class moves through history and discusses each time period of art history.
5. Teach students the key elements of periods in art history, including prehistoric, ancient, Middle Ages, Classical, Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Romantic, Realistic, Impressionistic, Modern and post-Modern. For example, in a study of French Impressionists, the teacher might assign each student to research the life of one artist, such as Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, Edouard Manet or Pierre-Auguste Renoir. The students compile a digital or paper record of images of the artist's works and share their reports with the class. Students compare and contrast the images of each Impressionist and decide which artist is the best representative of Impressionist themes.
6. During the study of each time period, add more concepts and vocabulary to class discussions. Hold students accountable for using new vocabulary to describe works of art in their ongoing reflection journals.
7. Give students an illustrated timeline to organize each period of art history. The timeline might include the names of artists and their works as well as the year each work was created to demonstrate how art evolved. Like graphic organizers, illustrated timelines help students remember concepts in their existing schema (or files in long-term memory) of history.
