USING ART MUSEUMS TO TEACH SCIENCE: GEOLOGY 101 IN AN ART GALLERY?

Combining interdiciplinary methodology and the use of museum collections engages students at all levels (K-12, college, and adult continuing education) to appreciate both art and geology. Introductory geology applies the concepts of basic chemistry, biology, physics, and mathematics. While teaching the fundamentals of rock and mineral identification, we have students physically test for hardness and streak, and even have them attempt to carve a piece of rock using a hand file. We challenge them to explore the relationship between the materials used in an artwork and the shape and design of that artwork. Students implement basic skills of observation and intuitive reasoning to identify rock types [without touching] and interpret why they may have been chosen by the artist, taking into consideration cultural significances, as well as the physical properties of rock or mineral, such as crystal orientation, “texture,” cleavage, hardness, streak, acid reaction, and color. By considering such questions as "How was it done?" and "Did the material have any influence on the final product?" students are confronted with different forms of art, the history and cultures behind them, and the cultural significance of objects, colors, and patterns.

In Cleveland, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History is right across the street from the Cleveland Museum of Art, creating a perfect setting to investigate geological specimens at one museum and then to apply that knowledge in a practical interpretation of the materials used to make art at another museum. Given the breadth of artworks that can be found (sculptures, pottery, jewelry, architectural fragments, pictographs, etc.) as well as the three dimensional nature of most art work, this project is best explored onsite at an art museum; however it could also work as a virtual fieldtrip [see the online catalog at www.clevelandart.org], or in a classroom with acquired or loaned objects. Either way, by combining the use of museum collections and interdisciplinary teaching methods, instructors can easily implement different types of learning and link separate concepts, such as those required for state standards.