Classroom Management

A Brand New Way to Find Inspiring Content for Your Classroom

Do you know why Michelangelo snuck around at night to secretly carve his name in his Pieta sculpture? Do you think a painting could really foretell the death of an artist’s best friend? Do you know how a simple painting of a life buoy was able to undermine 10 years of John Constable’s work?

These are some incredible hooks for art history, and they are part of a great learning tool brought to you by a company called Artips. Once or twice a week, stories, images, and links about art are delivered to your e-mail inbox, and they rarely disappoint.

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These anecdotes cover 600 years of art history, from Michelangelo to Roy Lichtenstein and just about everyone in between. And though the artists are well-known, the stories are not. The Artips authors craft engaging and informative tales that will probably teach you a few things; more importantly, they will be a tool that can engage your students and teach them a little bit about art history. And if it doesn’t work, you’re able to tell them that with a rating system that lets you describe the story with a “better than usual” or a “worse than usual” rating.

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You don’t even have to be an art history nerd to enjoy these! (I mean, I am, but you don’t HAVE to be). I like to project the images on the wall for my students to look at while I read the stories of the day. I generally give my kids a quick rundown about the artist–if it’s someone with whom they are not familiar–then tell them the story in the Artips e-mail and share with them what I’ve learned. If you want to explore the art in-depth, there are often links to articles, videos, podcasts, and other information that can tell you even more about the work and the artist.

When you visit the Artips website and subscribe with your email, you’ll get these incredible stories delivered right to your inbox. Just like many of the sites students learn about in the AOE Integrating Art History Class, Artips is an amazing resource that serves as a quick, easy and engaging tool to bring more art history into your classroom.

 

What are your best anecdotes to share with students about art history?

What are your quickest and easiest ways to incorporate art history?

 

Magazine articles and podcasts are opinions of professional education contributors and do not necessarily represent the position of the Art of Education University (AOEU) or its academic offerings. Contributors use terms in the way they are most often talked about in the scope of their educational experiences.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Timothy Bogatz

Tim Bogatz is AOEU’s Content & PD Event Manager and a former AOEU Writer and high school art educator. He focuses on creativity development, problem-solving, and higher-order thinking skills in the art room.

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