Take a walk in the jungle in Frederic Edwin Church’s painting “El Rio de Luz (The River of Light).” Church, who was a student of the great American painter Thomas Cole, traveled to the jungles of South America, where he made color sketches of the flowers, trees, and plants. Once he returned to his studio, he turned his sketches into large landscape paintings. Look closely—do you see the red-chested hummingbirds sitting on the tree branches? On view in the West Building, Main Floor, Gallery 67. http://www.nga.gov/cgi-bin/ploc?object=50299

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Be transported to the beach in this video from the Children’s Video Tour, featuring Georges Seurat’s 1886 painting “The Lighthouse at Honfleur.” Seurat was interested in color and light and how artists could make a painting appear to shimmer or sparkle. He experimented with placing individual strokes of complementary colors—red and green, yellow and blue, orange and purple—next to one another. When viewed at a distance, these colors would mix in the viewer’s eye. Seurat’s style eventually inspired the artistic movement of neo-impressionism.

Picasso: Guitars 1912-1914
The Museum of Modern Art, February 13-June 6, 2011

Produced by CK Studios, Inc.

© 2011 The Museum of Modern Art, New York

Abstract Expressionist New York
The Museum of Modern Art, October 3, 2010–April 11, 2011

Filmed by Plowshares Media
Images courtesy of Pollock-Krasner Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; and The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Music by Chris Parrello
Chris Parrello, Ian Young, Kevin Thomas, Ziv Ravitz
© 2010 The Museum of Modern Art

Abstract Expressionist New York
The Museum of Modern Art, October 3, 2010–April 11, 2011

Filmed by Plowshares Media

Images courtesy of Barnett Newman Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; and The Museum of Modern Art, New York

Music by Chris Parrello
Chris Parrello, Ian Young, Kevin Thomas, Ziv Ravitz

© 2010 The Museum of Modern Art

Abstract Expressionist New York
The Museum of Modern Art, October 3, 2010–April 11, 2011

Filmed by Plowshares Media

Images courtesy of Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; and The Museum of Modern Art, New York

Music by Chris Parrello
Chris Parrello, Ian Young, Kevin Thomas, Ziv Ravitz

© 2010 The Museum of Modern Art

Children can learn about Renoir, one of the young, avant-garde artists of 19th-century Paris, in this video from the Children’s Video Tour. In this painting, “Pont Neuf, Paris,” Renoir depicts the famous Parisian bridge bustling with life, with men wearing top hats, women carrying parasols, and soldiers with red caps and trousers. Can you spot the policeman in a blue uniform? On view in the West Building, Main Floor, Gallery 89. http://www.nga.gov/fcgi-bin/tinfo_f?object=52202

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Find the Children's Video Tour at http://www.nga.gov/education/timetravel/index.shtm

In this video from the Children’s Video Tour, explore Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s painting depicting the musical play “Chilpéric,” starring the famous actress Marcelle Lender. Toulouse-Lautrec loved going to the theater and often worked on theatrical productions by designing costumes, sets, and advertising posters. He lived near the Theatre des Variétés in Paris, where this performance took place. He was fascinated by the play’s star, and attended the production 20 times, making quick sketches in his notebook to capture the faces and movements of the performers.