MoMA/Grove Art Teaching Resources
Designed by The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), these resources for educators offer an exploration into the history of modern art, drawing on works in a variety of media from the museum's rich collection and articles in Grove Art Online. The units explore artistic developments and movements in their social and historical contexts and are tailored to school curricula, with particular application to visual art, history, and language arts. The first eight units are organized chronologically around the theme of Modern Art and Ideas, while three final units focus on photography, Louis I. Kahn, and Pablo Picasso. Each unit is divided into a series of lessons; these include suggestions for writing, research, and art-making activities that encourage students to make connections among the visual arts and other disciplines. Lessons also include a few suggestions for further reading in Grove Art Online. Once in Grove Art, you are welcome to expand your investigation by seeking out more information on the artist or movement discussed in the lesson. You may also wish to ask your students to use Grove Art to pursue their own further research.
Unit 1: 1882–1900
- Lesson One: Painting Modern Life
- Lesson Two: Rise of the Modern City
- Lesson Three: Portraiture
- Lesson Four: Popular Culture
- Lesson Five: Landscape
Unit 2: 1893–1913
Unit 3: 1907–1914
- Lesson One: Painting Modern Life
- Lesson Two: Rise of the Modern World
- Lesson Three: Art and Movement
Unit 4: 1914–1928
- Lesson One: New Visions of the World
- Lesson Two: Constructing Things
- Lesson Three: Ideal Living
- Lesson Four: Ideal Objects
- Lesson Five: Ideal Performance
Unit 5: 1913–1936
- Lesson One: Transforming Everyday Objects
- Lesson Two: Revealing Process
- Lesson Three: Portraiture
- Lesson Four: Landscapes: Real and Imagined
Unit 6: Art Between the Wars
- Lesson One: Identity
- Lesson Two: Modern Movements
- Lesson Three: Action/Reaction: Art and Politics
- Lesson Four: Modern Landscapes
- Art Between the Wars: For Further consideration
Unit 7: 1950–1969
- Lesson One: Revolutions in Painting
- Lesson Two: Color and Environment
- Lesson Three: Transforming Everyday Objects
- Lesson Four: Art and Politics
- Lesson Five: Artist’s Choice: People
- 1950–1969: For Further Consideration
Unit 8: 1962–1974
- Lesson One: Serial Forms/Material Difference
- Lesson Two: Language Arts
- Lesson Three: Constructing Space
- Lesson Four: Public Interventions
- Lesson Five: Performance into Art
- 1962–1974: For Further Consideration
Photography: Picturing People
- Lesson One: Posed
- Lesson Two: Unposed
- Lesson Three: Politicians
- Lesson Four: Constructing Stories
- Lesson Five: The Photographic Record
- Photography: For Further Consideration
Artist’s Work/Artist’s Voice: Louis I. Kahn
- Lesson One: What is Architecture?
- Lesson Two: The Power of Drawing
- Lesson Three: The Process of Design
- Lesson Four: Form and Function
- Lesson Five: The Spirituality of Matter
- Lesson Six: Designs for Urban Life
- Louis I. Kahn: For Further Consideration
Artist’s Work/Artist’s Voice: Picasso
- Lesson One: Self-Portrait of the Artist
- Lesson Two: The Artist at Work
- Lesson Three: Portraiture
- Lesson Four: Painting Modern Life
- Lesson Five: Art and War
- Lesson Six: Innovations in Media