Approach Geography and History from a little different viewpoint this year!
Use the links below; books on art and artists; encyclopedias;
on-line artist information; globes; maps; atlases; online mapping services;
the public library, and anything else you can think of, to travel through time
and around the world through the eyes and lives of famous artists.

Here are some good Places to L@@K while you are on the Quest:
Some of these links are good for several different catagories.


The Artist Index
Alphabetical List of Artist
World Art Treasures


Glossary of Art Styles


Web Museum


Ask Eric - Arts
The Incredible Art Department
Enter the @rt Room
Explore Art
Kinder Art
Arts Edge


How Far Is It?
Yakko's World
E-Conflict World Encyclopedia


Sassafrass Grove History Page

PARENTS - Things to think about while you and your kids are on your quest:

All that art:
Look for biographies of artists available through the public libraries...these can give you a pretty good idea of who had it good and who had it high on the stress levels. By studying the times and occurances in the places the artist lived in, you can get a pretty good handle on what was influencing their lives at the time too; i.e. wars, plagues, prosperity, Monarch's favour, - things like that.

Visit local artists and exhibits - They will probably be glad to see you and answer questions about what they do.

Talk with your kids about what might motivate or limit an artist:

Motivation:
Ask your kids to think about what they like to do, draw or look at, and have them think about why they have the focus they do...then they can speculate on how the artist's interests are depicted in their choice of subject - i.e. - some artists were driven to express their love of G_D in their work and subsequently did strictly religious paintings; others were awed by the beauty of nature and painted vast numbers of landscapes; still others were driven by the need for money and painted anything they could sell; and some were "hired" by a King or Queen to paint strictly for the court; some were obsessed with one person and did copious amounts of work featuring the object of their focus.

Limitations:
Have the kids think about what sorts of things keep them from doing some of the things they think they would like to do - age, parental law (that's a good topic starter..8^), Public law, lack of knowledge, public opinion, lack of funds, willpower, etc. ...then they can consider what sorts of barriers the artist may have faced in his/her time - Religious persecution, moral standards clash, poverty, inability to travel, mental state, family status and the like.

It will be fun,
especially if your kids are like mine - constantly drawing, painting, constructing or rearranging something.
You may even get your kids thinking about how they can enhance their own lives through art.

The possibilities are endless,
so any path you choose is bound to lead to a lot of thinking. These sorts of things are important to consider when we look at other people, artists or 'peers'.

Have a great time traveling the world, experiencing history and getting to know the artists!
ON WITH THE QUEST!