schools

Guided tours and workshops for schools give teachers and students the keys to reading and understanding the language of contemporary art, allowing everyone to enjoy works of art from one of the most important collections in the world in a constructive and stimulating way.

Approaching contemporary art requires attention and independent thinking. It teaches us to establish connections between things and discover unexpected perspectives on the past and present. For this reason, our guided tours offer many interdisciplinary connections. Contemporary art tells us about many aspects of the world in which we live: sharing the outing with teachers of different subjects leads to lateral and surprising interpretations of the exhibitions.

Practical information
Booking is compulsory. The admission ticket is free for accompanying teachers and students under 20 years old.

All activities for schools can be booked in Italian, English, French, Spanish, German and Italian Sign Language.

All activities are also available for distance learning.

Find out more
edcuation@palazzograssi.it

Kindergarten activities include brief moments of play and interaction with the artworks, where children are accompanied in the active exploration of the exhibitions. Activities are framed in two phases: observation and narration. Children are invited to dwell on the images, analyzing their details and shapes, while practicing their verbal skills in descriptions. They familiarize then with the images while learning how to sharpen their gaze in identifying key elements of the artwork.

What is an artwork made of?
Creative exercises about shapes, colors, and words: the artworks of Marlene Dumas suggest unusual points of view, made accessible to the children via diverse activities such as collage, watercolor painting, and collective storytelling.

Palazzo Grassi, 2h / 80€ per class
Until 8 January 2023
Book here

Primary school activities, on the other hand, engage children in observing the artworks, raising questions and stimulating narration. Art becomes a springboard for imagining stories and developing critical, expository and speculative skills. Children become familiar with the language of painting, the history of the artwork and the artist. They are also involved in an exercise of imagination, by making up a story about one of the paintings.

Oh bother!
Marlene Dumas portrays children, often with sullen and suspicious expressions, engaged in mysterious activities; they lead the class in observing and building a story by identifying emotions and giving them a name.

Palazzo Grassi, 2h / 80€ per class
Until 8 January 2023
Book here

The activities for secondary school students offer the opportunitỳ to experience the museum as a space for sharing and free expression. The aim is to address a critical and careful look to the works, to discuss current events, personal experiences and contemporary and artistic contexts.

MARLENE DUMAS. OPEN-END
Complete tour| Marlene Dumas
This is a complete tour of the exhibition, based on a dialogic mode and modelled on the interactions of the students. The technique, working methods and historical context in which Marlene Dumas works will be addressed in depth, and some theoretical and critical lines that characterise her practice will be outlined. Classes are invited to interact, observe and bring thoughts related to the works and their context, in a mutual exchange with the museum facilitator.

Palazzo Grassi, visit 1h30 / 70€ per group
Until 8 January 2023
Book here

Express tour| Marlene Dumas
This tour works as an initial introduction and contextualisation of the exhibition, enabling the visitors to appreciate it independently. The explanation provides the necessary tools for a free investigation, without being tied to an obligatory route.

Punta della Dogana, 50-minute visit / €50 per group
Until 27 November 2022
​​​​​​​Book here

Among us | Marlene Dumas
The exhibition of Marlene Dumas provides a number of possibilities for investigation, which in turn bear specific meanings and issues. Dumas' painting, in particular, is not only a fundamental element in the development of the histories of the arts, but also an opportunity to ponder about political and contemporary issues: body, language, gaze, racism and the family. Each class will then produce an original output. Discussion and dialogue will thus initiate a creative process within the group.

Palazzo Grassi, tour+activity 2h / 90€ per class
Until 8 January 2023
​​​​​​​Book here

ACTIVITIES that can be taken to both exhibitions ​​​​​​​
CLIL CONTENT AND LANGUAGE INTEGRATED LEARNING
The students bring their knowledge and language skills into play in relation to contemporary art themes: a visit to the exhibitions is an opportunity to learn specific vocabulary and test their expressive skills in the context of the museum. The activity involves each group focusing on a different semantic field and, in relation to the works, producing texts of various kinds, whether narrative, poetic or descriptive.

Palazzo Grassi or Punta della Dogana, 2h / 90€ per class
in English, French, Ferman and Italian for foreigners
Book here

The visit to the exhibition is the starting point for a series of meetings, which will be held on a regular and ongoing basis, and will be a stimulus to generate new content - texts, photos, audio and video - in a free and creative way. The material will enrich the website teens.palazzograssi.it, which allows young visitors to discover the artists and their works through the interpretation provided by their peers.

The museum therefore proposes to teenagers aged 15 to 19 years old to participate in an educational process in the museum, according to different themes and tracks, which change from year to year, depending on the current exhibitions.

The project can be recognised as a Pathway for Transversal Skills and Orientation (PCTO).

For more information and to participate: education@palazzograssi.it

For the school year 2022/2023, the following alternatives are proposed:

May the art be with you
Starting with a visit to one of the two current exhibitions, the classes, accompanied by the museum's educational staff and their teachers, work at school, at home and in the museum to create content of various kinds - texts, photos, audio and video - that tell their unique point of view on the artist. They will thus develop not only critical and theoretical skills, but also technical and design skills in the use of contemporary artistic languages.

Palazzo Grassi or Punta della Dogana / €130 per class
minimum 3 - maximum 5 meetings

Investigation on the Contemporary
In this activity, the exhibition becomes a starting point for triggering a critical discussion on contemporary themes, focusing on philosophical and political issues. The approach includes a phase of analysis of the works and their supporting texts. These will lead to the production of a personal text by the students. The aim of the project is to engage students in an analytical attitude, weaving relationships between artistic objects and theoretical discourses.

Palazzo Grassi or Punta della Dogana / €130 per class
minimum 3 - maximum 5 meetings

Architectural Drawing
The PCTO includes an introductory lesson on architectural surveying, a visit to the museum and two meetings in the city, during which the classes are invited to make drawings and onsite surveys, around a chosen theme. The activity will be an opportunity to develop technical and graphic skills of observation, measurement and drawing, supported by the study of the historical and artistic context of the architectural elements.

Palazzo Grassi / €130 per class
minimum 3 - maximum 5 meetings

TEENS CURATORS
12 teenagers selected through a call for applications will work alongside the museum's Education Services staff for a period of 10 weeks. They will train their gaze and practise their mediation skills, to generate an exhibition itinerary that reflects the sensitivities and viewpoints of the under-20s.
The project is accessed through a call for applications.

The activities take place on Wednesday afternoons at Palazzo Grassi, from 15.00 to 17.00, from 19 October 2022 to 29 March 2023. Final event in April 2023.

Discover the educational activities proposed to schools, at the Bourse de Commerce, the new Pinault Collection space in Paris.

Discover more