They help make the past connect to our own experience. Meaningful learning is directly connected to understanding the self and others. Through significant art history experiences, students may also become more aware of themselves in relation to the family, the community, the country, and the world. In the process we will also discover that art history can be one of the most exciting ways to investigate the cultures of the world and their histories. . . As artworks from around the world serve as vehicles to understanding, art historical studies can help students begin to develop as students of the world.
Students learn that America's art is diverse and has many ethnic, cultural, and religious roots.
Students learn that the art of the Western world has changed in many ways and for many reasons from ancient times to the present. Students learn to recognize artworks as manifestations of values held in different cultures and at different times. In elementary and secondary schools, art history provides natural correlations to social studies, as art reflects the culture in which it is produced. Concepts of culture, historical events, chronological sequence, geography, and the use of time lines and maps are shared by both disciplines. Style refers to the distinguishing characteristics of a work of art that identify it as typical of an individual artist, culture, school, movement, or time period.