Whether you consider your family artistic or not, consider these 100 Artists to study in your Homeschool. Of course it’s not possible to cover them all, but I hope this list will be a great resource for you as you put together you homeschool program. Choosing an artist a month to become familiar with would be a wonderful addition to any homeschool program and is one way to approach art in your homeschool.

This is by no means a complete list!  I’ve done my best to include the artists that really influenced art history and participated heavily in their movements. You don’t have to have any artistic talent or prior knowledge to study them with your children.

For a good artist study, simply read about them with your child and look at their art in a purposeful manner.  I’ve arranged the names the best I could either by era or genre. Many artists are influential in more than one genre and have produced so many works that it’s often difficult to assign them only one genre. So I added them where I felt their work is most prominent or for what they have been most often remembered for.

Sometimes, to get you started, I offer a little about them and their accomplishments. The dates they lived and their nationality may also be helpful to you. You can tie them into your program by geography, science, historical or other related topics of study. There may also be a link to a good lesson plan, book, resource or activity which I can recommend.

Early Artists

Medieval & Renaissance Artists-

I’d like to feature this wonderful Free Renaissance Printable from Harmony Fine Arts. It’s just a mini unit but enough to familiarize your child with a few artists and their works! Barb also has free art cards to help you get the conversation going. They can be used for any genre when doing picture study.

1. Giotto di Bondone [1266-1337: Italian ] –Medieval Art Lesson
2. Giovanni Bellini [1430-1516 : Italian ] Giovanni Bellini Resource
3. Michelangelo [1475-1564: Italian ] – Artist Study Resource  & Michelangelo by Diane Stanley

4. Leonardo DaVinci [1452-1519 : Italian ]- Ink blot Art Lesson
5. Raphael-(Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino) [ 1483-1520: Italian ] All about Raphael for Kids
6. Jan van Eyck [ 1390-1441: Belgian ]  Well Known for the Arnolfini Portrait
7. Albrecht Durer  [ 1471-1528 : German]- Artist Study 
8. Pieter Bruegel the Elder [ 1528-1569  : Dutch ]- Bruegel Artist Study Resource
9. Giuseppe Arcimboldo [1527-1593 : Italian ] Painter best known for imaginative portraits composed of fruit, flowers, and fish.
10. El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos) [1541- 1614 : Greek/ Spanish ] Known for being a Mannerist painter. El Greco -Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Artists is great biographical book series and includes this famous painter of the Spanish Renaissance. 

[tweetthis]”I hold the imitation of color to be the greatest difficulty of art.” — El Greco, from notes of the painter in one of his commentaries.[/tweetthis] 11. Sandro Botticelli [1445-1510 : Italian ] 12.Hans Holbein the Younger [1497-1543 : German ]

Baroque Artists-

I think this is a hard time period to study, myself. It was a more difficult style to find good resources for children. I thought this character analysis was a bit fun and a nice light hearted approach that could be a lot of fun for this era. Perhaps you might like to tie in a bit of Baroque music to accompany your art study with tea time on a Friday afternoon.

13.Diego Velázquez [1599-1660: Spanish]-I, Juan de Pareja is a fabulous read for a middle schooler or it can tackled as a read aloud.
14. Johannes Vermeer [ 1632-1675: Dutch ]-Vermeer Artist Study
15. Annibale Carracci [1560-1609 : Italian ]- Try to Create Your Own Caricatures
16. Peter Paul Rubens [ 1577-1640: Flemish ] 17. Rembrandt van Rijn [1606- 1669 : Dutch ]Rembrandt and the Boy Who Drew Dogs: A story about Rembrandt van Rijn

Neoclassical-

These artists were heavily influenced by Greek and Roman art and history. They would be great to study even when covering ancient history because they often depicted historical events from Roman and Greek history. If you’re looking for Ancient Art projects to accompany your Ancient History program, look no further and check out my Art Around the Ancient World Series.
18. John Singleton Copley [1738-1815: American ] 19. Jaque-Louis David [1748-1825 French ] 20. Benjamin West [1738-1820 : American ] – Artist Unit Study
21. Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres [1780-1867: France ] 22. Joshua Reynolds [1723-1792 English ]

Romanticism-

Romanticism was a reaction to Neoclassicism and reason. These artists felt that feeling, instinct and intuition were just as important in art as reason. As you cover the artists of several genres, you might like to use this artist resource for lap booking.
23. Francisco Goya [1746-1828 : Spanish ] 24. William Blake [1757-1827: English] 25. Eugene Delacroix [1798-1863 : French] 26. Casper David Friedrich [ 1774-1840: German ] 27. Theodore Gericault [1791-1824 : French ] 28. Joseph Mallord William Turner [ 1775- 1851 : English] 29. Katsushika Hokusai [1760-1749 : Japanese ]- Make Waves Like Hokusai

Realism-

Realism occurred mainly in France in the mid to late 1800’s. These artists felt that Romanticism was only a escape. Realism focused on depicting what real life was like. I’ve also included a few artists that did historical, scientific and realistic paintings in this group.

30. John James Audubon [1785- 1851 : American Ornithologist ]  The Boy Who Drew Birds Activities
31. Winslow Homer [1836-1910 : American ]- Online Lesson Plan on Homer
32. Frederic Remington [1861-1909: American ] –How the West Was Drawn: Frederic Remington’s Art
33. George Catlin [ 1796-1872 : American]- Catlin Artist Study Resource
34. Gustav Courbet [ 1819- 1877 : French ] 35. Charles Russell [1864-1926 : American ] – How to Draw a Horse
36. Thomas  Eakins [1844-1916 : American ] 37. Jean- Francois Millet [1814- 1875 : French ]

Impressionists and Post Impressionists-

For this genre I’d like to feature Tricia Hodges of Hodgepodge’s Free Chalk Pastel Lesson for Monet’s Bridge if you become a subscriber- which you will love to do anyway to get so many ideas and examples for using chalk pastels.
38. Claude Monett [1840-1926 : France ]- Lily Pad Art Lesson Tutorial and Linnea in Monet’s Garden
39. Berthe Morisot [1841-1895: French ] 40. Vincent van Gogh [ 1853-1890 : Dutch ] – Paint Like van Gogh
41. Edgar Degas [1834-1917 : French ]  – How to Draw a Ballerina

42. Mary Cassatt [1844-1926: American ]- Paper Mache Hats ( Color Harmonies ) & Unit Study Resource
43. Pierre-Auguste Renoir [1841-1919 : French ]- Artist Study
44. Paul Cezanne [ 1839-1906: French ] – Still Life Lesson
45. Alfred Sisley [ 1839-1899 : French ] 46. Edouard Manet [ 1832-1883 : French ]

Pointillism-

Uses primary colors to achieve a range of color by painting with tiny dots. Focuses on the scientific theories of color. i’d love for you to use my FREE Color Harmonies Workbook Pages
47. Georges Seurat [1859-1891 : French ] – Lesson on Introducing Color and Pointillism
48. Camille Pissarro [1830-1903 : French ] 49. Henri-Edmond Cross [1856-1910 : French] 50. Paul Signac [1863-1935 : French ]

Modern Artists

For this genre I want to point you to Jimmie’s Collage where she gives you a simple and concise method for teaching artist study the Charlotte Mason way. Artist studies do not need to be complicated and can take just a small amount of time and reap wonderful rewards. Have your child read about the artist. Select one or two popular works from the artist. After your child has studied it well they should be able to tell back or “narrate” what is in that art piece. For older children you can assign an artist and they can study them independently.

Cubism-

51. Georges Braque [1882-1963 : French ] 52. Juan Gris [1887-1927 : Spanish ] 53. Fernand Leger [1881-1955 : French ] 54. Pablo Picasso [ 1881-1973 : Spanish ]- Artist Study Resource & Picasso Heads
55. Marc Chagall [ 1887-1985 : Jewish ] –
56. Piet Mondrian- Geometric Style Like Mondrian for Kids–  Mondrian ushered in an even more abstract experiment with Neoplasticism.

Fauvists, Primitivism and Art Nouveau

These artists are some of my favorites. I love the color and over all expression in this time period. This resource on the Fauvists is simple and concise and you may like to use it.
57. Paul Gauguin – Artist Study Resource
58. Henri Matisse- Scissor Style Like Matisse & Matisse Inspired Cut Outs
59. Henri Rousseau [ 1844-1910 : French ] – Rousseau for Kids
60. Georgia O’Keeffe [1887-1986 : American ]- Up Close Flowers- Teaching Gradient Color with Markers
61. Gustav Klimt [1862-1918 : Austrian ] Exploring Klimt & Tree of Life Project
62. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec [1864-1901 : French]- Renoir and Toulouse Comparaison Lesson

American Folk Artists and Regionalists-

63. Norman Rockwell [ 1894-1978 : American] – Tell a Story like Rockwell ( Art Element Lesson)
64. Grandma Moses [ 1860-1961 : American ] – Folk Art Lesson
65. Grant Wood [ 1891-1942 : American ] (Iowa)- How I Teach Art to My Homeschool Co-op
66. John Stuart Curry [1897-1946 : American ] (Kansas)- Tornado Art Tutorial
67. Thomas Hart Benton [1889- 1975 : American ] – (Missouri)
68. Walter Anderson  [ 1903-1965: American ] (Louisiana) – A great book about him is  The Secret World of Walter Anderson (Candlewick Biographies)

Surrealists-

69. Frida Kahlo [1907-1954 : Mexican ]- Frida Kahlo Artist Study
70. Salvador Dali [1904-1989 : Spanish ]- Melting Clocks
71. Meret Oppenheim [1913-1983 : Swiss] 72. Yves Tanguy [1900-1955 : French ] 73. Renee Margritte [1898-1967 : Belgian ] 74. Joan Miro [1893-1983 : Spanish ]-Miro Inspired Drawings
75. Max Ernst [1891-1976 : German ] 76. Paul Klee [1879-1940 : Swiss ]- Math in Art Inspired by Klee

Abstract Expressionism and Pop Artists-

77. Jackson Pollock [1912-1956: American ]- Pollock Painting and museum tips and Jackson Pollock Art for kids
78. Wassily Kandinsky [1866-1944 : Russian ]-  Kandinsky Inspired Circle Art  & Kandinsky Citric Fizz
79. Clifford Still [1904-1980 : American ]-
80. Mark Rothko [1903-1970 : Russian ]- Mark Rothko Color Study
81. Andy Warhol [1928-1987 : American ]- Quick Modern Art Project & Coke Pop Art
82. Roy Lichtenstien [1923-1997 : American ]- Roy Lichtenstien Foundation
83. Jasper Johns [ 1930 : American ] 84. Robert Rauschenberg [1925 : American ] 85. Claes Oldenburg [ 1929: American ] – Hamburgers- Layers and Texture
86. George Segal [1924-2000 : American]- Inspired by Segal Hand Casts

Optical  & More  Contemporary Artists

The list of contemporary artists  is so great that it’s hard to pick just a few to study. For this genre I really feel the best way to expose our children is to take them to an art museum where they can see great works in real life and up close. Here are a few great lessons for teaching optical art: Optical Art Spheres and Cones  & Optical Floating Spheres

 

87. M.C. Escher [1898-1972 : Dutch ] Free Gecko  Template Download & Escher Tessellation
88. Richard Anuszkiewicz [1930. American ]-
89. Victor Vasarely [1908-1997 : Hungarian ] 90. Bridget Riley [ 1931. English ]- Black and White Art Party
91. Chuck Close [1940. American ] Photorealistic painter and photographer.-  Simple Chuck Close Portraits
92. Dale Chihuly [ 1941. American ] Best Known for Glass Sculpture.- Chihuly Inspired Art and Chihuly Inspired Sculpture
93. Louise Nevelson [1899- 1988 : American ] 94. Wayne Thiebaud- Cakes and Teaching Value
95. Jacob Lawrence [1917-2000:  American ]- Great Artist Study Resource
96. Edward Hopper [ 1882- 1967  American] – Best known for Nighthawks. A good book for him isEdward Hopper: Painter of Light and Shadow
97. Charles Harper [ 1922-2007 American  ] Potato Birds
98. Charles Demuth [1883-1935 : American ]- Cool Color Number Five Art Project 
99. Horace Pippin [1888-1946 : American ] 100. Diego Rivera [ 1886-1957 : Mexican ] Mural Painter.

What artist would you add to my list?

Ready for more 100 Things? Oh yea. There’s more where this came from over at iHomeschool Network 100 Things! (Starts 12/8)