What is American about American Art?

FAIN: AP-50020-10

Appalachian State University (Boone, NC 28608-0001)
Michael Louis Krenn (Project Director: October 2009 to September 2011)

One two-day regional conference at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, for fifty K-12 educators to integrate American art into core courses.

This project will assist K-12 teachers to more fully, effectively, and imaginatively use the Picturing America images in the teaching of their daily core curriculum. The basic assumption guiding this project is that one cannot fully understand American history without an appreciation of the nation's art. Conversely, one cannot completely grasp the significance of American art without a more thorough knowledge of the historical context in which the works of art were created. This project will employ experts in the fields of American history, art, and literature; master teachers from the local schools; and representatives from local and regional art museums to present an intellectually rigorous and interdisciplinary learning experience during a two-day conference in March 2011. Specific panels will focus on the American environment; American women, the American west, and African Americans.