Research Guides: Art: Courses and OER Textbooks

Courses, Readers, and OER Textbooks

Canvas Courses, Readers & OER Textbooks

Open Educational Resources for Art, Design, and Teaching

Canvas shells, openly licensed textbooks, and supplemental tools useful for community college faculty and students

This page groups Canvas course shells, openly licensed textbooks/readers, and supplemental materials across multiple art disciplines (Art Appreciation, Art History, Design, Drawing, Photography, Ceramics, Printmaking, and more). Licensing statements are included when available—please respect each item's license when reusing or adapting materials.

Art Appreciation

Canvas shells, textbooks, and supplemental OER modules to support introductory art appreciation courses.

ART& 100 — Art Appreciation (WACTC OER course)

OER Canvas course shared by SBCTC (2020). Includes modules, assignments, quizzes, and discussions. CC BY. Tip: log into your Canvas faculty account before accessing any shared Canvas shells.

Access Canvas Shell for ART& 100 — Art Appreciation (WACTC OER course). Canvas faculty login required.

Art Appreciation (OER Canvas course — CanvasNet)

Shared on CanvasNet (2019). Organized into 11 modules with readings, integrated videos, quizzes, and journal prompts. Some ancillary practice tests included. Licensed CC BY-NC-SA.

Access Canvas Shell for Art Appreciation (CanvasNet). Canvas faculty login required.

Art Appreciation (OER Canvas course) — Northeast Alabama Community College

Canvas course created by an instructor at Northeast Alabama Community College (May 2019). 15 modules (Elements of Art; Application of Art), quizzes, flashcards, lecture videos, and review pages. CC BY-SA.

Access Canvas Shell for Art Appreciation (Northeast Alabama Community College). Canvas faculty login required.

A World Perspective of Art Appreciation (textbook)

Deborah & Zoe Gustlin, Evergreen Valley College (2019). Inclusive, globally representative ARTH/ARTH 100 textbook with 15 chapters. Available online as PDF and downloadable zip. CC BY-NC-SA. (Tip: use the site's Downloads button for file formats.)

View OER Textbook A World Perspective of Art Appreciation, by Gustlin and Gustlin.

Art Appreciation (Lumen Learning)

Lumen Learning mastery course organized into 6 modules with readings and videos. Course-level license CC BY, though some components may carry additional licenses.

Access Lumen Course Art Appreciation.

Introduction to Art: Design, Context, and Meaning (open textbook)

Comprehensive open textbook authored by multiple faculty; ~11 chapters, >400 images, 'test yourself' questions, and translations available. CC BY-SA. Formats include PDF and accessible PDFs.

View OER Textbook Introduction to Art: Design, Context, and Meaning.

Art Appreciation - East Tennessee State University (OER course)

OER readings, powerpoints, and assignments created by Marie Porterfield Barry (2019). 24 lessons total. PDF and Word versions, with additional PowerPoint and assignment files. CC BY NC SA.

View Course Materials Art Appreciation - East Tennessee State University.

Art Appreciation — Supplemental Tools & Modules

OER modules, thematic units, and course sites that complement Art Appreciation instruction.

Art and Music since 1945 (Ohio State University)

Course website with biographies, sample syllabus, and assignments. Useful for linking modern art to music and cultural context. CC BY.

View Course Website Art and Music since 1945 from Ohio State University.

Looking at Art (Smarthistory)

Smarthistory modules on why art matters, elements of art, and composition—includes videos and primary sources. CC BY-NC-SA.

View Smarthistory Module: Looking at Art

Look at this! (Smarthistory)

Thematic Smarthistory modules organized by tools and themes; readings, videos, and primary sources. CC BY-NC-SA.

View Smarthistory Module: Look at this!

Understanding Museums (Smarthistory)

Smarthistory modules about museums, interpretive strategies, and primary sources—useful for museum-based assignments and virtual visits. CC BY-NC-SA.

View Smarthistory Module: Understanding Museums

Art History

Canvas shells, OER textbooks, and curated resources for survey and thematic art history courses.

Art History Survey: Renaissance to 1800s (Canvas)

Canvas course shared by Briana Simmons (Santa Monica College, 2020). Survey of European visual arts from Renaissance through 1800s. Uses OER readings and videos. CC BY.

Access Canvas Shell Art History Survey: Renaissance to 1800s. Canvas faculty login required.

Art 100: Art History Survey, Prehistoric to Contemporary (Canvas)

Canvas course by Chelsea Taylor (San Diego CCD, 2020). Global thematic approach using a mix of OER and selections from the public domain. Course modules, lectures, and quizzes. Public domain license noted for some components.

Access Canvas Shell Art 100: Art History Survey, Prehistoric to Contemporary. Canvas faculty login required.

ARTHS-197 History: Baroque–20th Century Art (Canvas)

Canvas shell by Kristen Koblik (Contra Costa CCD, 2017). Uses a variety of OER and online readings, with modules, assignments, and quizzes. CC BY-NC-SA.

Access Canvas Shell ARTHS-197 History: Baroque–20th Century Art. Canvas faculty login required.

ARTHS-199: Contemporary Art History (Canvas)

Canvas shell (Kristen Koblik, 2017) focused on contemporary art; uses open-access readings and videos. CC BY-NC-SA.

Access Canvas Shell ARTHS-199: Contemporary Art History. Canvas faculty login required.

Art History Glossary (Canvas)

Canvas materials shared by Sheila Lynch (2020). Over 250 key terms (Prehistory–Middle Ages) with >100 images and attributions. CC BY-NC.

Access Canvas Glossary Art History Glossary. Canvas faculty login required.

Boundless Art History (Lumen Learning)

Lumen-hosted art history content organized by culture/period; instructor resources are available upon request. CC BY-SA.

Access Lumen Course Boundless Art History.

Art History — Texts & Supplemental Materials

Open textbooks, Smarthistory volumes, Met publications, and media for deeper study.

Approaches to Art History (Smarthistory)

Modules on the language, questions, and current issues in art history. CC BY-NC-SA.

View Smarthistory Module: Approaches to Art History

Smarthistory books

High-quality, freely available art history textbooks and guides (including AP resources and ancient Mediterranean guides). PDFs available. CC BY-NC-SA.

View Smarthistory OER Books

Art 205: Western Art from 18th to Mid-20th Century (OER)

Katherine Taylor, Whatcom Community College (2016). 11 modules + glossary; uses Smarthistory and Khan Academy materials. CC BY.

View Course Site / OER Materials Art 205: Western Art from 18th to Mid-20th Century.

Met Publications

Five decades of free Met publications—catalogs, guides, and bulletins useful as primary and secondary readings.

View Met Publications (Full-Text Online)

Open Arts Archive — Short films

Open-access art history short films provided by the Open University—useful for classroom screenings and flipped lessons.

View Open Arts Archive Short Films

Art History Teaching Resources (AHTR)

Peer-populated platform for art history teachers. Includes lesson plans, syllabi, assignments and rubrics. CC BY NC.

Visit Art History Teaching Resources (AHTR)

Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History

This resource from the Met (The Metropolitan Museum of Art) features art and global culture.

View Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History (The Met)

Khan Academy — Art history videos

Video lessons covering artists, movements, and works; free to view and link to (traditional copyright applies).

View Khan Academy Art History Videos

Two-Dimensional Design

Course shells and modules for foundational design studies and visual elements.

Fundamentals of Design — Sellerburg (Canvas)

Canvas shell shared by Susan Mackowiak (Ivy Tech, 2017). Introductory design theory, color dynamics, and projects. Course materials use Design Basics as textbook. Public domain license indicated for shared shell.

Access Canvas Shell Fundamentals of Design — Sellerburg. Canvas faculty login required.

Fundamentals of Design (GCF Global module)

Beginning graphic design tutorial with videos and illustrations for line, shape, form, texture, and balance. Freely viewable online (not openly licensed).

View GCF Global Design Tutorial on Fundamentals of Design.

The Elements of Art units (National Gallery of Art)

Lesson plans and worksheets for Color, Line, Shape, Form, and Texture—scalable for higher education use. Terms of use permit educational use with attribution.

View NGA Education Resources The Elements of Art units.

EMCC ART112 2-Dimensional Design (course materials)

Eastern Maine Community College, 2016. Syllabus, weekly assignments, and final for a two-dimensional design course. Word files. CC BY.

Download Course Materials EMCC ART112 2-Dimensional Design.

Drawing

Canvas shells and classic drawing texts useful for skill-building courses.

Drawing I (OER Canvas course)

Canvas course developed and shared by an instructor at Northeast Alabama Community College (2020). Uses low-cost tutorial/sketchbook and includes readings and assignments. CC BY-SA.

Access Canvas Shell Drawing I OER course. Canvas faculty login required.

The Elements of Drawing — John Ruskin (public domain)

Classic 1859 text with plates and instruction—public domain and useful as a historical drawing primer.

Read Public Domain Text The Elements of Drawing by John Ruskin on Project Gutenberg.

Graphic Design

Open textbooks and foundational resources for print production, layout, and digital design.

Graphic Design and Print Production Fundamentals (BCIT)

OER textbook from British Columbia Institute of Technology (2015). Covers design-to-production workflow, chapters with exercises and glossary. Formats: PDF, EPUB, OpenDocument. CC BY.

View OER Textbook Graphic Design and Print Production Fundamentals (BCIT).

Digital Foundations (Xtine Burrough & Michael Mandiberg)

Exercises and theory bridging Bauhaus fundamentals with open-source digital tools (GIMP, Inkscape, Processing). Online/PDF formats available. CC BY.

View Digital Foundations OER by Xtine Burrough & Michael Mandiberg.

Digital Photography

Canvas shells, textbooks, and multimedia resources for photographic technique and critical study.

Studio Product Photography (Canvas)

Canvas shell by Chauncey Rion Huffman (Pitt State, 2019). Introductory studio product photography techniques—PowerPoints, assignments, quiz, and resources. Instructor demonstration recommended. CC BY-SA.

Access Canvas Shell Studio Product Photography. Canvas faculty login required.

Digital Photography for Graphic Communication (textbook)

Reference text for a one-semester digital photography course—8 chapters; online and PDF formats. CC BY.

View OER Textbook Digital Photography for Graphic Communication.

Photo Exposure Video Playlist (YouTube)

OER video playlist covering exposure fundamentals—ISO, shutter, aperture (videos ~7–12 minutes). Last updated 2019. CC BY.

View YouTube Video Playlist Photo Exposure Fundamentals.

Digital Image Retouching: Evaluation Assignment

Assignment from CUNY LaGuardia Community College (2019) teaching retouching standards and market-ready expectations. CC BY.

View Evaluation Assignment Digital Image Retouching.

Photography and Truth (MIT OpenCourseWare)

Course materials exploring photographic interpretation and context; includes PDFs of slides and curated images. CC BY-NC-SA.

View MIT OpenCourseWare Photography and Truth course materials.

Software & Tools

Open-source software and utilities useful across photo and digital courses.

GIMP / Gimpshop (open-source)

Free image editing software (GIMP) and Photoshop-like distributions (Gimpshop) — widely used alternatives to proprietary tools for labs and student use.

Download GIMP / Gimpshop Free image editing software.

Ceramics

Canvas shells and OER materials for introductory ceramics practice and technique.

Ceramics I (Canvas)

Canvas shell developed and shared by an instructor at Northeast Alabama Community College (2020). Readings, assignments, quizzes. CC BY-SA.

Access Canvas Shell Ceramics I OER course. Canvas faculty login required.

Printmaking

Canvas shells for introductory printmaking techniques and projects.

Intro to Printmaking (Canvas)

Canvas shell shared by an instructor at Bucks County Community College (2019). Weekly modules include PowerPoint lecture slides and project assignments. Public domain license indicated.

Access Canvas Shell Intro to Printmaking course. Canvas faculty login required.

Art Portfolio

Guides and OER to support portfolio preparation and presentation.

ART 297 — Folio Preparation (Google Doc)

Potential OER Google Doc compiled by OER librarian Jennifer Snoek-Brown (2019). Weekly themed modules with linked resources to help students prepare portfolios.

View Folio Prep Google Doc ART 297 — Folio Preparation.

Art for Elementary Education

Open textbooks, curricula, and K–12 resources for future teachers and arts integration.

Arts Integration in Elementary Curriculum — 2nd Ed.

Open textbook (Dalton State College instructors, rev. 2018). Topics include arts integration across subject areas; accessible PDF and slide materials. CC BY-NC-SA.

View OER Textbook Arts Integration in Elementary Curriculum.

Introduction to Curriculum for Early Childhood Education

Open textbook from College of the Canyons (2019). Section on curriculum planning includes guidance relevant to art-integration for young children. CC BY.

View OER Textbook Introduction to Curriculum for Early Childhood Education.

J. Paul Getty Museum Curricula

K–12 art lessons, activities, and teacher guides. Materials are CC BY and suitable for classroom adaptation and direct student use.

View Getty Museum Curricula K-12 Art Lessons and Teacher Guides.

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