Picturing America

Great art speaks powerfully, inspires fresh thinking, and connects us to our past

Grant Wood, The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, 1931 Image credit

Picturing America, an exciting new initiative from the National Endowment for the Humanities, brings great American art into classrooms and libraries nationwide.

Through this innovative program, students and citizens gain a deeper appreciation of our country’s history and character through the study and understanding of its art. The nation’s artistic heritage—our paintings, sculpture, architecture, fine crafts, and photography—offers unique insights into the character, ideals, and aspirations of our country.

Teachers and libraries can apply for a set of 40 high-quality reproductions of notable American art for their public and private schools, libraries, and communities. Collectively, the masterpieces in Picturing America, used in conjunction with the Teachers Resource Book and program website, help students experience the humanity of history and enhance the teaching and understanding of America’s past in a fresh and engaging way.

Nineteen Maryland schools participated in the pilot program in 2008. One teacher commented:

This program has been wonderful! We have been sharing the posters between classes and grade levels and are enjoying the fact that they are so sturdy and nicely packaged, which makes them easier to move around. I used the posters as a great starting point for class discussions in history. I think that they added a great depth to discussion and made some periods and people come to life. They say a picture is worth a thousand words and the kids really enjoyed studying the pictures and learning something new from art.

Visit the Picturing America website to apply. Application deadline is October 31, 2008.

Teachers and Librarians! Apply for a We the People Bookshelf as a complement to Picturing America.

And, be sure to visit EDSITEment to get free, high quality, web-based teacher lesson plans and student interactives on a wide range of humanities and social studies subjects--including a year long focus on the images in Picturing America!