3 Great Websites for Learning About Art

The visual arts play an important role in all our lives, whether we are consciously aware of it or not. Everything around us, from the programs we watch on TV to the adverts we see plastered around our urban environments, is a form of visual art and is inspired by all the art that has come before it. Art has a unique ability to break down social and cultural boundaries, to create unified, shared experiences, and to give a voice to those who would otherwise feel powerless.

Given the crucial role that art plays in so many aspects of our day-to-day lives, it is a shame that, as a society, we place such little emphasis on learning about and understanding it, in all its forms. Fortunately, thanks to the internet, there are now numerous free resources available online for those who would like to learn more about the art world and about individual artists. In this article, we take a look at four of the best websites out there for teaching yourself about art and artists.

Explore and Learn – MET

They explore and learn program was developed by the Metropolitan Museum of Art with the aim of making art education freely available to all who desired it. Since launching the program, the museum has regularly updated the free courses, adding new information and materials as appropriate. Most of the courses draw inspiration from the exhibitions which are currently on display.

There are a number of interactive presentations available, covering a broad range of art, artists, and cultures. There is also material aimed specifically at children. Another fantastic feature of this site is the Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, which almost forms an entirely separate site in its own right. It allows viewers to search using a world map and to organize results according to specific categories and time periods.

Fine Art America

Fine Art America is an excellent website for learning about emerging and less well-known artists who are just beginning their art careers. The site features an extensive database of the work of thousands of independent artists. The ‘Discover’ section of Fineartamerica.com allows viewers to browse through thousands of art collections, each carefully curated, filled with the best hand-picked pieces by the site’s staff, according to the space they are most suitable for, be it bedrooms, office spaces, or anywhere else.

Museum of Modern Art

The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) is home to a number of excellent resources for those who would like to learn more about the ever-evolving field of modern art. The MOMA website contains a wide range of different multimedia elements, including video, audio, and online workshops, each of which allows users to explore the world of modern art and some of its key artists. Many of the resources are just as experimental in their nature as the art style which they teach about. The MOMA site is also a way to browse through some of the most popular exhibits on display without having to travel to New York.

It is never too late to start learning about art. The websites listed above are just a selection of the many excellent resources out there.

Thank you all for visiting the blog today. Jen