Possible Tour Themes

Learning to Look

Students will be introduced to the practice of looking at art in a museum, while building their observation skills and descriptive vocabulary. This lesson encourages students to look at, think about, and respond to how forms of visual expression convey ideas and feelings and help us make connections.

Animals in Art

Students will explore the many different ways and reasons animals are portrayed in art. By identifying and evaluating facial expression, gesture, and details, students will draw conclusions about the animals portrayed in the Center’s collections.

Art That Tells a Story

By examining the details, students will learn how works of art, like written text, can tell a story. Students will use descriptive language to make connections and find meaning. Students will examine concepts such as character, setting, main idea, point of view and the artist’s/author’s purpose. This lesson may be used to strengthen writing skills through the development of observation and descriptive language.

Britain in the Age of the American Revolution

Students will study a range of British paintings to explore how they reflect the daily life and artistic production of eighteenth-century Britain. Students will draw conclusions about the relationships between America and England at the time of the Revolutionary War by examining paintings of British cities, countryside, people, and industry.

Understanding the Architectural Experience This tour investigates paintings of buildings and the iconic architecture of the YCBA itself. Docents will introduce concepts of proportion‚ space‚ and volume‚ as well as design elements. Students will examine how the buildings relate to their inhabitants and their environments.

Satire and Caricature

Students will explore the use and function of humor in the visual arts. How do artists make us laugh? High school students are invited to view drawings‚ prints‚ and rare books in the YCBA Study Room. Please specify when you make your reservation.

Romanticism in British Art

Students will explore how artists from the Romantic period portray emotion, revolution‚ nature, and the artist as hero. Students will learn to recognize the variety of artistic styles and frequent literary references used by painters such as J. M. W. Turner‚ William Blake‚ and John Constable. High school students are invited to view drawings‚ prints‚ and rare books in the YCBA Study Room. Please specify when you make your reservation.

Shakespeare and the Visual Arts

This tour introduces students to depictions of Shakespeare’s plays. Students will view works made during Shakespeare’s lifetime. High school students are invited to view drawings‚ prints‚ and rare books in the YCBA Study Room. Please specify when you make your reservation.

Examining Empire

Students will explore the development of the British Empire and discuss its global effects. Through examining works of art painted by British artists in the colonies, students will examine the confluence of cultures.