There is something disappointing about life. It is messy and out of control. It seems the more one tries to put life in order, the more ordering there is to do. The more one seeks explanations, the more confusing things become. Life's an impossible task. Maybe one should just give up. Or, then again, one might as well keep trying. It's this…

Many artists visit national parks to draw, paint and take photographs of some of the most amazing scenery on earth. Raw nature is one of the greatest inspirations to an artist, and artists can be credited for helping inspire the government to create the National Park System. This article features Thomas Moran (1837-1926), one of the artists who…

They say first impressions can be deceiving. The difficulty of getting to know someone increases when that person is mostly fictional. Whatever the author writes is all readers can know. Whatever they read about the character is all they have to go on. Now take it another step back, and imagine a portrait drawing, painting or print of that…

Ed Willis Barnett had quite a military training: he attended the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, (1917 to 1920) and served in both World Wars. He was also an accomplished fencer, and earned a position on the 1928 U.S. Olympic fencing team. That year the summer Olympics were held in Amsterdam, so he traveled to Europe for the…

Provides information on Maltby Sykes, the painter, addressing issues such as his assignment during World War II, being an apprentice to Diego Rivera, and his relationship with George C. Miller. Discusses both the painting and the sketch titled "Hills." Includes activities in geography, visual art, history, and mathematics. (CMK)

Discusses the content and technique used by Ralston Crawford in his painting "Under the Third Avenue El (The Brewery)." Provides background information on the life of Crawford as well as learning activities in various subject areas such as language arts, social studies, and mathematics (CMK)

Provides information on china painting, focusing on Kurt Weiser, who paints on ceramics using china paints. Discusses his techniques and describes his work titled "Woman with Mongoose." Includes accompanying projects for art history, visual arts, language arts, natural science, and science or mathematics. (CMK)

Discusses the life and artwork of Roger Brown and describes the imagery and content of his work entitled "Celebration of the Uncultivated -- A Garden of the World." Provides a reprint of the painting and activities in visual and language arts, the social science, natural science, and geometry. (CMK)

Focuses on the painting done by John Sloan called "Grand Central Station" and provides background information on the subject matter and the artist. Includes projects in social studies, language arts, mathematics, and visual arts appropriate for upper-elementary through high school students. (CMK)

Discusses the life and artwork of Charles Burchfield, particularly focusing on his depiction of nature, watercolor techniques, and use of symbolism in his artwork entitled "Arctic Owl and Winter Moon." Provides lessons for philosophy, visual arts, music, natural science, language arts, and astronomy. (CMK)

Highlights the life of Leonard Koscianski, an artist who focuses on revealing the inner life of the human heart and mind in his artwork. Includes four lesson plans for grades ranging from 2 through 12: philosophy, psychology, language arts, and visual arts. Provides a copy and background about Koscianski's painting "Red Fish." (CMK)

Presents background information on the life and career of George Luks. Describes one of his paintings called "Tea Party" that pokes fun at the upper classes while paying homage to humanity. Includes activities in literature, social studies, science, mathematics, history, and visual arts. (CMK)

Summarizes the victories and hardships in the life of Charles White, an African-American artist who overcame racism in a time embedded with it. Provides a copy of White's drawing "Children Games # 1" along with six lesson plans for grades ranging from 2 through 12. Includes subjects such as visual arts and social studies. (CMK)

Discusses the life of Clifton Pearson focusing on his education and addresses the process he uses for creating his artwork. Explores one artwork from his "Celebrated Figures Series." Includes activities in science, language arts, social studies and history, and visual arts. (CMK)

Presents information on the concept of synesthetes. Focuses on the artwork of Grace Hartigan and her work of art, "On a Tar Roof," an illustration of the poem, "Flashes," by James Schuyler. Includes activities in language arts, visual arts, social studies and history, and science. (CMK)