Examples of learning opportunities offered by the Museum.

ANTH/LLAS 3029: The Caribbean
Dr. Noga Shemer’s anthropology class visited Ancestors of the Passage, an installation by Puerto Rican-American artist Imna Arroyo that addresses the transatlantic slave trade. The group of forty students came to the museum in two shifts, with half the class watching a thirty-minute film while the other half discussed Arroyo’s work in the museum with Benton staff. The class visit examined representations of slavery, colonialism, and their legacies through a comparison of multiple media.

ENG 1701: Creative Writing
Creative writing instructor Pegi Shea asked her students to write ekphrastic poems inspired by original works of art displayed in the Benton. The group spent time writing in the museum as part of a self-guided class visit.

GERM 1169: Contemporary Germany in Europe
Dr. Shane Peterson selected four prints by German artist Käthe Köllwitz for an Object Study Session at the Benton. Before coming to class, students listened to a podcast about the artist. At the museum, students spent time describing, analyzing, and interpreting the prints with a worksheet, which became the basis for discussion.

ILCS 1145: Elementary Italian I
Graduate assistant Jeanne Bonner brought her Italian language class for a focused discussion of the painting Saint Sebastian (c. 1630). Using the Critical Lookingframework, students analyzed the artwork and considered topics such as its site(s) of display, its potential meaning for viewers in seventeenth-century Italy, the painting’s status as a copy, and the significance of Saint Sebastian today. The visit concluded with a lesson in ItalianIns

Image Credits: Konishi Hirosada (Japanese, active 1826-1863, died c. 1865), Actors Nakamura Utaemon IV as Danshichi no Mohei and Nakayama Nanshi II as Iwaiburo Tomi, 1851. Woodblock print. The George Lincoln Collection of Japanese Woodcuts.

The Balcony Gallery and Study Gallery are available for short-term exhibitions that support UConn courses. Benton staff work with faculty to select objects, which can be displayed for sustained engagement by students and the UConn community. Recent collaborators include the African American Cultural Center, School of Nursing, and the Department of Art & Art History. Contact Amanda Douberley, Assistant Curator/Academic Liaison, at least one semester prior to the desired exhibition date.

Image Credits: Giulio Cesare Procaccini (Italian, 1574-1625), Study of Arms. Sanguine on laid paper. Gift
of Friends of the Museum.

We welcome class meetings in the Benton galleries that engage temporary exhibitions as well as the permanent collection.  Faculty may schedule a self-guided visit, or work with museum staff to facilitate discussion and craft related assignments.  For sample lesson plans and activities, visit our Instructor Toolkit page.

Use the request form to schedule your class visit, which is required for groups of more than ten people (including self-guided class visits).  Advance notice of at least two weeks is recommended to ensure availability of gallery space and personnel.  Contact Amanda Douberley, Assistant Curator/Academic Liaison, for more information.

Image Credits: Martin Johnson Heade (American, 1819-1904), Rye Beach, New Hampshire, 1863. Oil on canvas. The Louise Crombie Beach Memorial Fund.