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Courses

Course

Classical Sounds of Christmas

Tuesday, December 12, 2023 - 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. ET

From sleigh bells and sugarplums to the mystical beauties of the Nativity, every December our senses are filled with the music of Christmas. In a 2-session celebration of the festive season, popular speaker and concert pianist Rachel Franklin explores how classical Western composers created a canon of both secular and sacred experiences that are now deeply rooted in our collective seasonal expectations.


Course

Three Pillars of Chinese Culture: Architecture, Film, and Ideology

Tuesday, December 19, 2023 - 6:45 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. ET

Chinese culture has a long, rich history. In this series, historian Justin M. Jacobs delves into the sweeping changes enacted in the realms of gender, language, education, and architecture during the Mao years.


Course

Write Into Art: Creative Writing Inspired by Visual Art

Tuesday, January 9, 2024 - 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET

Discover how visual art can inspire creative writing and how writing can offer a powerful way to experience art. Join Mary Hall Surface, the founding instructor of the National Gallery of Art’s popular Writing Salon, for five online workshops that spotlight a diverse range of visual art chosen to inspire writers of all experience levels to deepen their process and practice. This writing session is inspired by Judith Leyster’ Self-Portrait.


Course

Introduction to Music Theory with Conductor Ernest Johnson

Tuesday, January 9, 2024 - 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET

If you’ve always wanted to learn the language and elements of musical notation and composition, this interactive online course led by music educator and conductor Ernest Johnson offers the perfect opportunity. Johnson guides exercises and assignments geared to developing the foundation every musician needs: the aural and visual understanding of pitch, rhythm, harmony, and form.


Course

Write Into Art: Creative Writing Inspired by Visual Art

Tuesday, January 16, 2024 - 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET

Discover how visual art can inspire creative writing and how writing can offer a powerful way to experience art. Join Mary Hall Surface, the founding instructor of the National Gallery of Art’s popular Writing Salon, for five online workshops that spotlight a diverse range of visual art chosen to inspire writers of all experience levels to deepen their process and practice. This writing session is inspired by Hale Woodruff’s Georgia Landscape.


Course

Write Into Art: Creative Writing Inspired by Visual Art

Tuesday, January 23, 2024 - 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET

Discover how visual art can inspire creative writing and how writing can offer a powerful way to experience art. Join Mary Hall Surface, the founding instructor of the National Gallery of Art’s popular Writing Salon, for five online workshops that spotlight a diverse range of visual art chosen to inspire writers of all experience levels to deepen their process and practice. This writing session is inspired by Hughie Lee-Smith's Confrontation.


Course

Classical Sounds of the Cinema: Magnificent Movie Music

Wednesday, January 24, 2024 - 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. ET

Since the beginning of the talkies, directors have turned to classical music for their soundtracks. Whether it’s Beethoven, Mozart, Rachmaninoff, Richard Strauss, Mascagni, Puccini, or Bach, opuses of almost every famous composer have added emotional depth to hundreds of films. With clips, commentary, and piano demonstrations, concert pianist and movie fanatic Rachel Franklin delves into the magic of some of the greatest film music ever composed (even when it was unintentional).


Course

Visual Literacy: How To Look at Art

Monday, January 29, 2024 - 12:00 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. ET

The ability to derive meaning from what we see is an essential skill in a culture saturated with images. Once you understand this visual language, reading images, particularly art, is not only simpler but infinitely more gratifying. Using works from the history of art and from popular culture, art historian Nancy G. Heller focuses on how art communicates, how to analyze and interpret it, and how we can see it as a cultural product that reveals something about the society that produced it. (World Art History Certificate core course, 1 credit)


Course

Write Into Art: Creative Writing Inspired by Visual Art

Tuesday, January 30, 2024 - 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET

Discover how visual art can inspire creative writing and how writing can offer a powerful way to experience art. Join Mary Hall Surface, the founding instructor of the National Gallery of Art’s popular Writing Salon, for five online workshops that spotlight a diverse range of visual art chosen to inspire writers of all experience levels to deepen their process and practice. This writing session is inspired by Mary Cassatt’s The Boating Party.


Course

Franz Josef Haydn: First of the Great Classical Masters

Tuesday, January 30, 2024 - 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. ET

Franz Josef Haydn (1732­–1809) proved that music could be both serious and joyful—at the same time. In an engaging series, classical music and opera expert Saul Lilienstein demonstrates the range of Haydn’s innovative genius in almost every field of musical endeavor. Each session is highlighted by music recordings and video performances of Haydn’s great works.


Lecture/Seminar

Botanical Gardens: A World Tour

Sunday, February 4, 2024 - 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET

Indulge in a colorful midwinter escape as horticultural experts lead a series of three virtual visits that highlight the beauty of notable botanical gardens in settings as far-flung as Morocco, New Zealand, Israel, Belgium, and the East Coast of the United States. In vibrant visuals they explore how each garden has taken a unique approach to design and interpretation as they celebrate plant collections, conservation, education, and the distinctive environments and landscapes in which they bloom. This session focuses on gardens located in Morocco and Israel.


Course

Write Into Art: Creative Writing Inspired by Visual Art

Tuesday, February 6, 2024 - 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET

Discover how visual art can inspire creative writing and how writing can offer a powerful way to experience art. Join Mary Hall Surface, the founding instructor of the National Gallery of Art’s popular Writing Salon, for five online workshops that spotlight a diverse range of visual art chosen to inspire writers of all experience levels to deepen their process and practice. This writing session is inspired by Berthe Morisot’s The Mother and Sister of the Artist.


Course

Russian Art: From Icons to the Avant Garde

Tuesday, February 6, 2024 - 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET

The evolution of Russian art is inextricably bound to the rich cultural exchanges between East and West. In a 4-part series, art historian Aneta Georgievska-Shine traces this fascinating blend of diverse visual languages and styles, from the late-medieval icons and frescos indebted to Byzantium to the great avant-garde experiments of the early part of the 20th century that developed alongside the currents of European modernism. (World Art History Certificate core course, 1 credit)


Course

The Japanese Empire: From Politics to Baseball

Wednesday, February 7, 2024 - 6:45 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. ET

Though it lasted for only 50 years, the Japanese empire forever changed the geopolitical balance in Asia and left a complex legacy that endures to this day. In a winter series, historian Justin M. Jacobs takes you on a thematic tour of five fascinating topics in the history of the Japanese empire. This session's focus will be on Japan’s feudal castles and its politics


Lecture/Seminar

Botanical Gardens: A World Tour

Sunday, February 11, 2024 - 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET

Indulge in a colorful midwinter escape as horticultural experts lead a series of three virtual visits that highlight the beauty of notable botanical gardens in settings as far-flung as Morocco, New Zealand, Israel, Belgium, and the East Coast of the United States. In vibrant visuals they explore how each garden has taken a unique approach to design and interpretation as they celebrate plant collections, conservation, education, and the distinctive environments and landscapes in which they bloom. This session focuses on gardens located in Belgium and Pennsylvania.


Course

The Japanese Empire: From Politics to Baseball

Wednesday, February 14, 2024 - 6:45 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. ET

Though it lasted for only 50 years, the Japanese empire forever changed the geopolitical balance in Asia and left a complex legacy that endures to this day. In a winter series, historian Justin M. Jacobs takes you on a thematic tour of five fascinating topics in the history of the Japanese empire. This session's focus will be on Japanese tourism


Lecture/Seminar

Botanical Gardens: A World Tour

Sunday, February 18, 2024 - 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET

Indulge in a colorful midwinter escape as horticultural experts lead a series of three virtual visits that highlight the beauty of notable botanical gardens in settings as far-flung as Morocco, New Zealand, Israel, Belgium, and the East Coast of the United States. In vibrant visuals they explore how each garden has taken a unique approach to design and interpretation as they celebrate plant collections, conservation, education, and the distinctive environments and landscapes in which they bloom. This session focuses on gardens located in New Zealand and Virginia.


Course

The Japanese Empire: From Politics to Baseball

Wednesday, February 21, 2024 - 6:45 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. ET

Though it lasted for only 50 years, the Japanese empire forever changed the geopolitical balance in Asia and left a complex legacy that endures to this day. In a winter series, historian Justin M. Jacobs takes you on a thematic tour of five fascinating topics in the history of the Japanese empire. This session's focus will be on Japanese baseball


Course

Exploring Ancient Anatolia: A Turkish Odyssey

Thursday, February 22, 2024 - 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. ET

Anatolia’s colorful history has left a windfall of riches—ancient ruins, ornate Byzantine churches, supremely elegant mosques, and splendid Ottoman palaces. In an illustrated series, Serif Yenen, a Turkish-born tour guide and author, highlights the heritage and splendor of ancient Turkey through an examination of some of its cultural gems.


Course

From Neoclassicism to Romanticism

Wednesday, February 28, 2024 - 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. ET

Is it possible that Neoclassicism, with its focus on order and the enduring values of Greece and Rome, can co-exist with Romanticism, with its emphasis on exotic scenes, and studies of sublime nature? Yes it can—and did—in the 18th- and 19th-century art world.  Art historian Joseph Paul Cassar explores the artistic and cultural highlights of Neoclassicism and Romanticism from the Enlightenment to the Age of Revolution and the movements’ lasting impact on Western artists. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)


Course

The Japanese Empire: From Politics to Baseball

Wednesday, February 28, 2024 - 6:45 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. ET

Though it lasted for only 50 years, the Japanese empire forever changed the geopolitical balance in Asia and left a complex legacy that endures to this day. In a winter series, historian Justin M. Jacobs takes you on a thematic tour of five fascinating topics in the history of the Japanese empire. This session's focus will be on the Tokyo Zoo


Course

The Japanese Empire: From Politics to Baseball

Wednesday, March 6, 2024 - 6:45 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. ET

Though it lasted for only 50 years, the Japanese empire forever changed the geopolitical balance in Asia and left a complex legacy that endures to this day. In a winter series, historian Justin M. Jacobs takes you on a thematic tour of five fascinating topics in the history of the Japanese empire. This session's focus will be on Japanese video games