I am in the process of creating a rentable kit for schools that will help prepare students for a visit to a museum.  As part of this, I was thinking about including some information for teachers regarding how best to prepare their students for some of the experiences they might have at a museum, including seeing nudes in art work.  Our museum has, in its outdoors court yard, a statue which includes both a nude woman and a nude boy.  This statue never fails to get a response from our visiting school groups as they enter the building.

My question is twofold:

1.  What sort of information would you provide to a teacher to help him or her talk to students about nudes in art? 

2. Given the limited time for museum programs, how do you quickly (but intelligently) respond to student reactions to nudes?  (I have noticed that these reactions vary considerably depending on the age of the children.  The youngest always seem concerned for the nudes.  We even had a little girl place her own sweater over the shoulders of a sculpture!  Older children either think it's "gross" or very funny and are highly distracted either way.)

Thanks,


Deana R. Flanders
Programs Coordinator
The Bennington Museum
75 Main Street
Bennington, VT 05201
(802) 447-1571
www.benningtonmuseum.org

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