Materials

• Slideshow of Renaissance and Medieval art. Ask the art teacher for help in acquiring these slides, or create an electronic slideshow from images from the Internet. The slides should be arranged in random order so that Medieval and Renaissance art are intermixed. Renaissance art by Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci should be stressed, especially the following works: The Last Supper, the Mona Lisa, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, and the sculpture David.
• Slide projector, or computer lab with LCD projector
• Worksheet with slide analysis chart – “Medieval and Renaissance Works of Art” (Attachment B)
• Textbook or preferred teacher resource that briefly explains how Medieval and Renaissance art differ

Instructional Activities

NOTE: The following Web resources may be helpful for locating art images:

• “Michelangelo Images.” <http://employees.oneonta.edu/farberas/arth/arth213/michelangelo_images.html>.
• “The Mona Lisa.” <http://www.louvre.fr/llv/activite/detail_parcours.jsp>.
• “Leonardo da Vinci.” <http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/leon/hd_leon.htm>.
• “WEB Gallery of Art.”<http://www.wga.hu/index.html>.
• “Art History Resources on the WEB.” <http://witcombe.sbc.edu/ARTHrenaissanceitaly.html#general> <http://witcombe.sbc.edu/ARTHrenaissanceeurope.html#general>.

1. Administer a teacher-prepared quiz on the A.R.T.I.S.T.I.C. mnemonic by instructing students to write out the mnemonic or by having multiple choice questions based on it.
   
   
2. Give a reading assignment from the textbook or other source that briefly explains the differences between Medieval and Renaissance Art. As a class, create a chart that lists the qualities of each based on the reading assignment.
   
   
3. Explain that students are now going to become “art analysis experts.” Their job is to analyze each piece of art based on the characteristics just studied (Medieval: flat, cartoon-like, and emotionless v. Renaissance: three-dimensional, life-like, emotional, detailed). After analyzing a work of art, students should determine whether the piece was Medieval or Renaissance. Stress the paintings/sculptures by Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci. An option is to have students write down their analyses for future assessments. Use the “Medieval and Renaissance Works of Art” chart at Attachment B.
   
   
4. For an alternative assignment, have students work in pairs in a computer lab to find examples of both Medieval and Renaissance art on the Internet. Have them save their images into an electronic presentation for a grade.
   
   
5. Assign a teacher-selected reading, worksheet, or other reinforcement activity.