Art history can be a lens through which students view cultural and societal shifts. By studying art's major movements and contributors, including shifts in ways of thinking as well as changes in style and method, students see how all art is connected and political. Students see that artists don't just create to make something beautiful, but to struggle over what it means to exist and to represent possible futures and pasts. From ancient sculpture to modern abstraction, teachers can use these art history apps and sites to show students how important art has shaped our world. They feature vast databases of imagery for reference and research, and many also offer curricular resources to help build lessons and engage students.
Powerful stories and media centralize African-American history
Bottom Line: While there aren't ready-to-go curricular materials, this modern, well-curated, and well-contextualized digital collection is sure to inspire compelling lessons.
Nifty app gives students up-close access to historical treasures
Bottom Line: This is an undeniably cool app that encourages connection and curiosity, but without teacher support, student learning will be superficial.
Well-curated art and history site inspires curious learning
Bottom Line: A beautifully presented one-stop shop for compellingly curated and contextualized art, history, and culture resources, but it's lacking educator supports.
History and art intersect on the Met's vast, reading-centric site
Bottom Line: This resource from the Metropolitan Museum of Art beautifully illustrates art's evolution and is great for research, but more interactivity would help balance out the text-heavy content.
