Education at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery

SCHOOL TOURS
Introduce Your Students to Art in a Special Way	Did you know that the Albright-Knox Art Gallery is known all over the world as an outstanding center of modern and contemporary art? And it’s right here in Western New York! Introduce the Gallery to your students in a special way with one of our interactive guided tours. Benefits for Students Art is a language that everyone can understand with a little guidance. Our interactive tours will help your students learn to trust their own creative thinking and to connect what they have learned to other aspects of their lives. Benefits for Educators Each tour experience at the Gallery satisfies New York State Learning Standards in the visual arts and in the curriculum area indicated.
Please select the tour you would like and contact Anna Becht, Tour Coordinator, at 716.270.8276 to schedule your tour.
Basic Introductory Tours	The ABCs of Art Suggested Pre-visit Activity Kindergarten– Grade 2 Reading has the ABCs. Art has line, color, shape, and texture. These elements are basic to the visual world that a child must learn to interpret to become visually literate. Experiencing these elements in his or her own environment, as well as in works of art, is an important aspect of a child’s early education and will, according to some studies, help develop reading readiness. During this forty-five minute tour, students will learn these basic building blocks of art and sharpen their observation skills, while being introduced to the differences between painting, sculpture, and other media. Since most are visiting the museum for the first time, they will also be introduced to the Albright-Knox Art Gallery as both a museum and an important part of the Western New York community. Read Me a Picture Suggested Pre-visit Activity Grades 3–5 As your students are becoming more proficient readers, this hour-long tour builds on the Kindergarten– Grade 2 visit, further sharpening their observation skills and their ability to verbalize responses to works of art, elements necessary for both literacy and critical thinking. Close observation of works of art can reveal an artist’s intention and help the viewer to interpret meaning in ways similar to interpreting literature. Students will be encouraged to approach works of art based on their own background and experience, play games to practice their observation skills, and see how diverse artists use different approaches to express themselves. They will be introduced to the information that can be obtained from a museum label as well as different genres of art, such as portraits, landscape, still life, and complete abstraction. Modern Art for a Modern World Suggested Pre-visit Activity Grades 6–8 At this age, students are learning that history can enhance their understanding of the present, both in their individual lives as well as in their communities and the world at large. Art is a reflection of that history, and through observing and discussing works of art, students learn not only about the artist and the work itself, but also about the historical or cultural context in which it was created. This tour focuses on the art of different countries and eras right up to our contemporary world. Students will compare and contrast the many ways works of art reflect the time and place in which they were created and see for themselves how contemporary work reflects our own times. Putting It All Together Suggested Pre-visit Activity Grades 9–12 Students in these grades should be able to express their thoughts and feelings about works of art and explore more sophisticated questions such as: Why is it art? Why is it in the museum? Is art always beautiful or can work that makes you feel uncomfortable be art too? They will use different questioning techniques designed to help them start exploring on their own in museums, and learn a little about how museums select and install the artwork on view.
If you are interested in our more in-depth program, Once is Not Enough, please contact 716.270.8226 for more information. This program fills very quickly and space is limited. Please call early to avoid disappointment.
Art and the Curriculum	Sing Me a Picture: Music Grades 3 – 6 Just as color is in music, rhythm is in art. Art can be inspired by music, and paintings can sing. Students on this tour will explore the relationships between art and music in a variety of ways. Every Picture is a Story: English Language Arts Grades 3 – 12 Art tells many different kinds of stories: about the artist, about the time in which it was made, how it was made, and even the personal stories of the people looking at it! Art Lab: Math and Science Grades 3 – 12 Not every artwork relates to math and science, but you might be surprised at how much an artist has to know about these subjects in order to create a work of art. This tour will explore works in the Gallery that operate in the junctions between math, science, art, and our perceptions. The Art of Making Art: Art/Technology Grades 3 – 12 Why choose paint over ink or wood over stone? What about rubber, plastic, or lipstick? The materials and techniques an artist chooses to use to create a particular work of art can provide insight into the intentions and ideas behind the work. Modern Art for a Modern World: Social Studies Grades 6 – 12 For the last 150 years, art has changed more dramatically than ever before. This tour will explore the science, history, and social conditions of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and how they influenced artists and their work. What “ism” Is It?: Art/Art History Grades 9 – 12 Impressionism? Cubism? Abstract Expressionism? What does it all mean? This tour introduces students to many of the major art movements of the twentieth century and how they are reflected in art of the twenty-first century. The Artist’s Intention: Art/Art History Grades 9 – 12 What was the artist thinking? Why does a work of art look the way it does? Focusing on just a few selected artworks, your students will work in small groups to explore, in-depth, what is beneath the surface in modern and contemporary art.
Specialized Tours	What’s Up?: Traveling Exhibition Grades 3 – 12 Each year, the Albright-Knox Art Gallery features a series of traveling exhibitions. When these specialized exhibitions are on view, they are available to you and your students. Matter at Hand Coordinated by a registered art therapist, Matter at Hand is a free program that services visitors with special needs. The program offers a tour and a hands-on art activity to special education classes of all ages. To schedule this tour, please call 716.270.8249. Home-Schoolers Tour Kindergarten – Grade 12 This tour, facilitated by an Education department staff member, can take a variety of forms based on the individual needs of a home-school group. For more information, or to schedule this tour, please call 716.270.8283. Olmsted and the Art of Design in partnership with the Olmsted Conservancy Grades 4 – 6 This program consists of two related, interactive, one-hour tours. One takes place at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, where students are encouraged to "step into" works of art and explore design concepts. The other tour introduces students to Frederick Law Olmsted’s principles of design at Delaware Park and is followed by a related hands-on activity where students will create a three-dimensional model and design their own park. This tour has an additional fee and can be scheduled by calling Olmsted Parks Conservancy at 716.838.1249. A Picture’s Worth – A Thousand Words in partnership with Just Buffalo Literary Center Grades 4 – 12 This unique program pairs Gallery docents with professional writers to create an imaginative environment for students of creative writing. The docent begins with an interactive tour of several artworks and then the writer guides students in their written responses to the art, which are then shared with the group. This tour has an additional fee and can be scheduled by calling Just Buffalo Literary Center at 716.832.5400.
Scheduling Information	Tour Times Tours are available Wednesday through Friday beginning at 10 a.m. Tours for students in kindergarten through grade two are forty-five minutes in length. All other tours are one hour. Reservations For more information and to schedule a tour, please call 716.270.8226 or email grouptours@albrightknox.org, unless otherwise noted. Fees for Un-guided Groups Please note the recent change to fees: • $2 per student, ages 13 and under • $6 per student, ages 14 - 18 • $2 per chaperone (one chaperone is required for every ten students — additional chaperones pay regular adult admission.) Groups must have a minimum of ten students, and the maximum number of students we can accept at one time is 120. The same fees apply to unguided groups. To make your visit more enjoyable as an unguided group, please call 716.270.8226 prior to your visit.
Attention Teachers: Space is limited and time slots fill quickly. Please call in advance to schedule your school’s tour to avoid disappointment.
Important Things to Remember	There are no luncheon facilities of any kind at the Gallery for school groups. If there are specific works of art you would like your group to see, please ask the tour coordinator — artworks are not always on view, but, if possible, we will accommodate your request. Lesson plans and downloadable images for numerous works of art in the Gallery’s permanent collection can be found in Collection Highlights.

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