History Field Trip: Metropolitan Museum of Art

Student Tour Guide Presentations

Project Assignments

Whether or not you are able to join us on our trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art on June 11th, every student will still be able to get a taste of the museum through these projects, and hopefully it will inspire you to visit in the future, perhaps with other friends who did not go, to see these amazing pieces of history for yourselves.

For this assignment, you must research one of the following pieces and write a two-page-minimum about it, being sure to thoroughly answer the questions below. But it’s not an essay. What I actually want you to do is write a script you would read as a tour guide taking visitors to see the piece, with an expertise on the piece you are discussing and an effort to show them interesting things about the work of art. It does not need to be overly formal, but it should be well-prepared and detailed. In the space below, I have provided a variety of links to video and text resources for each, so the research is pretty much done for you. Also, don’t skip the name of the piece as well! Clicking on the name of the piece will take you to the catalog page for the piece on the Met website, which has some of the most important basic information. Watch or read everything there, and base your tour guide script on that.

Every student, whether or not they are going on the trip, will be assigned a particular work of art. You will be able to find your assignment in the Met Exhibit Project Assignments. Students who go on the trip will be presenting at the museum in front of the actual work of art. Students who are not going on the trip will take turns presenting in class accompanied by images on the smart board.

For your tour guide script, you will need to cover each of the following questions, although it does not need to be in this order. Take these questions as a guide rather than a fixed rule. You can go beyond this as well.

Subject Explanation: What is being depicted or represented in this piece? Simply put; what are we looking at? What is interesting or unique about this piece?

Historical Context: When and where was this made? What purpose did it serve? What time period is this from, and what was going on in general at that time? What is the larger cultural world within which this piece was created, and how does that help us gain a deeper understanding of and appreciation for the piece? How was it connected to the history of the time? What role did it play in its original context?

Artistic Analysis: What should we note about how the piece was created? What significant features does it have? Is there anything noteworthy about the history of the piece itself? What is interesting or special about the way it was made? You can mention any other important information here.

Depending on the piece, you may find you want to spend more time on one category than another, depending on what is most relevant, but be sure to touch on all three. Also, for some of the pieces, I gave specific notes below, so make sure to consider those as well.

Writing Format

You should have a brief introduction and conclusion for your tour, but the three main body paragraphs should address the three categories above. I should be able to read each paragraph of your text and see each category addressed separately.