This course for those 50 and over will connect, engage, and inspire adult learners at OLLI and lifelong learning sites across the country by exploring America’s stories through highly interactive, artwork-driven videoconferences. Leveraging the Museum’s tremendous digitized collection, online assets, and strong scholarship, lifelong learning site participants and Smithsonian American Art Museum study group leaders will work together to uncover and discuss a variety of topics explored by artists throughout American history.

The Smithsonian American Art Museum has long offered interactive distance learning. Since 2000, the Museum has connected with learners of all ages, focusing especially on lifelong learning sites during summers since 2013.

American Art Museum study group leaders are a corps of seasoned volunteer videoconference presenters deeply familiar with the Museum’s collections and how to facilitate conversations about artworks. Their professional experiences, paired with Museum-provided training, have prepared them to be responsive to participants’ interests and facile leaders of artwork-based discussions. Meetings will be held on Mondays and Wednesdays from 3:30-5pm (September 9th, 16th, 25th, and 30th).