Workshop Topics

Art in Three Dimensions: The Human Figure

Grades K–12

Proportion, volume, pose, gesture, expression—these elements can transform lifeless mounds of clay into expressive human figures. In the galleries, students analyze and sketch realistic and abstract figurative sculpture from a range of cultures and time periods. In the studio, they learn to translate armatures and clay into three-dimensional forms that occupy and gesture into space, and to explore personal expression through pose, texture, and detail.

Artists’ Choices: The Creative Process

Grades K–12

Finished works of art are the combined result of an artist’s conscious aesthetic choices, experimentation, and a bit of chance. Students will consider a variety of objects in the galleries, making observations about the impact of artists’ choices—composition, materials, and technique—on the work’s effect and possible interpretations. At each work of art, students will have the opportunity to experiment with different materials in a sketchbook provided by the museum.

Portraits

Grades K-12

Portraiture can capture both a physical likeness and less tangible aspects of identity, such as personality, character, and social status. Students observe and engage in interpretive discussions of a variety of painted portraits with an emphasis on pose, facial expression, clothing, and setting. They create their own real or imagined portraits while experimenting with composition, proportion, and color.

Geometry, Proportion, and Ratio: Connections between Art and Math

Grades K–12

Students discover interrelationships between art and mathematics as they recognize and analyze the use of geometry, proportion, ratio, pattern, and symmetry in landscape and abstract paintings, figurative sculpture, and architecture. They experiment with mathematical thinking in their own two-dimensional compositions and discover wider applications for their problem-solving skills. Topics and concepts reinforce classroom preparations for PSSA math subjects.

Impressionism: Experimenting with Color and Brushstroke

Grades 3 and up

Impressionist artists, including Monet, Renoir, Degas, and Cassatt experimented with color, brushstroke, and composition to capture their observations of daily experiences in ways that set their paintings apart from past art and conveyed modern life. Students analyze the technical innovations they discover in Impressionist paintings and practice using them in their own compositions in the studio. They also experiment with the techniques of such Post-Impressionist artists as Van Gogh, Cézanne, and Signac.

Create Your Own Myth

Grades 3 and up

Athena, Zeus, and Nike are among the towering mythological figures represented in the museum in ancient Greek art, casts of ancient sculpture and architecture, and classically inspired art from later periods. Students explore the roles of myths in different cultures and they create their own heroes and myths in drawings and clay relief sculpture. They discover the ways in which symbolism and physical characteristics convey personality and mythical powers.

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