Take a Class
Why take an online class at the Barnes?
- Our online classes are conducted live, which means you can engage with your instructor and with fellow students.
- We use state-of-the-art technology that allows you to zoom in closely and see details that can’t be experienced in person—down to the individual brushstroke.
- Topics change continually and are taught by experts from all over the world.
- Can’t attend a live session? Online classes are recorded for access later. Learn more about Barnes classes.
Gift a Barnes Class
Give the gift of lifelong learning with art history classes taught by Barnes experts.
Leslie Bowen’s Favorites: Then and Now
Join Leslie Bowen, a longtime Barnes instructor, for a personal look at the Barnes collection.
Matisse and Color
This course examines how Matisse created a new way of using color known as fauvism. Instructor: Michael Williamson
Timeless/Timely: Marking Change in Impressionism and Its Afterlives
See how artists in the late 19th century were able to mark—and make—change in their work. Instructor: Miriam Ashkin Stanton
Photography and Painting
Explore how painting was irrevocably changed by the invention of photography. Instructor: Michael Williamson
El Greco: Renaissance Mystic and Modernity’s Vanguardist
Learn how the Renaissance painter was inspired by mysticism and how his work found favor with impressionists and modern artists. Instructor: Sheila Barker
Learning to See
Learn how artists use visual media to communicate their unique experience of the world. Instructor: Kaelin Jewell
Charles Demuth: The Erotic Watercolors
Examine works by Demuth that explore his identity as an openly gay artist. Instructor: Ty Vanover
Mysticism, Spirituality, and Modern Art
Learn how spiritual ideas and mystical experiences influenced painters in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Instructor: Roksana Filipowska
The Elements of Art
Learn basic aesthetic principles and discover art’s communicative power by studying works in the Barnes collection. Instructor: Michael Williamson
Collection Concentration: Paul Cézanne
Study Cézanne’s influence on European modernism and trace the development of his visual language. Instructor: William Perthes
The Traditions of Art
Learn how modern artists adapted earlier traditions in developing new visual languages. Instructor: Kaelin Jewell
The Art and Architecture of the Islamic World
An introduction to Islamic art and architecture, focusing on key objects and their social and political contexts. Instructor: Emily Neumeier
Horace Pippin’s Modernism
Reexamine Pippin’s art and legacy in the context of the galleries in which he once studied. Instructor: Alison Boyd
The Techniques of Color in Modern Painting
Explore the materials and approaches that made impressionism, post-impressionism, fauvism, and early modernism such groundbreaking movements. Instructor: Al Gury
Decoding Barnes’s Ensembles
Get a better understanding of why Dr. Albert Barnes arranged his collection in such an unconventional way. Instructor: Kaelin Jewell
Post-Impressionism in the Barnes
Learn about the radical generation of artists that emerged from the dissolution of the impressionist group. Instructor: Christa DiMarco
The Impressionists: Friends and Family
This course is a deep dive into the history and activities of the impressionist group and the deep bonds of its members. Instructor: Caterina Y. Pierre
The Bauhaus: Unity of the Arts
Delve into the Bauhaus school and movement and explore how we are still unpacking its remarkable legacy. Instructor: Matthew Palczynski
Flower Power: Symbolism and Science in the Barnes Collection
In celebration of spring, take a closer look at floral works in the collection, considering the aesthetics and symbolism of nature in art. Instructor: Amy Gillette
Art and Splendor in Ancient Rome
Explore the major achievements of the Roman world by looking closely at key examples of architecture, painting, and sculpture. Instructor: Kaelin Jewell
Art of the Great Migration
Examine important works by African American artists who migrated from south to north after the Reconstruction era. Instructor: Michael Williamson
The French Revolution and the Arts
Study the cultural, social, and visual changes that occurred during and after the French Revolution. Instructor: André Dombrowski
Close-Looking Immersion: Cézanne’s Ginger Jar
This new series of single-session immersions provides opportunities to study and discuss individual works. In this session, we’ll examine Cézanne’s Ginger Jar.
Paintings from an Artist’s Perspective
This class explores visual imagination from an artist’s point of view, revealing how a painter transforms ideas into physical works of art. Instructor: Stuart Shils
Dutch Art in the Time of Rembrandt and Vermeer: A Look at the “Non-Golden Age”
Examine the masters of the Dutch Golden Age while also considering the social and political issues of the time. Instructor: Ashley West
The Classical Tradition in Modern Art
Learn how some modern artists looked to classical myths, artifacts, and ideas for inspiration. Instructor: Naina Saligram
Artists As Cultivators
This course, taught by the curators of the PAFA exhibition, examines how artists use nature to explore issues of American identity. Instructors: Anna O. Marley, Leah Triplett Harrington
Close-Looking Immersion: Picasso’s Acrobat and Young Harlequin
This new series of single-session immersions provides opportunities to study and discuss individual works. In this session, we’ll examine Picasso’s Acrobat and Young Harlequin.
Works on Paper in the Barnes Collection
Explore the Barnes collection’s rich array of works on paper, including images in ink, graphite, watercolor, tempera, pastel, and gouache. Instructor: Christine Stoughton
Portraiture at the Barnes: From the 15th Century to Modernism
Uncover the wide range of expression that portraits at the Barnes offer. Instructor: Laura L. Watts
The Japanese American Century: Noguchi, Nakashima, and Asawa
Examine the critical contributions Japanese American artists made to the 20th-century art world. Instructor: Joseph Tokumasu Field
Exploring Pictorial Space
Take a closer look at the ways artists create the illusion of depth in paintings and other works of two-dimensional art. Instructor: Michael Williamson
Close-Looking Immersion: Matisse’s Red Madras Headdress
This new series of single-session immersions focuses on individual works in the collection. In this session, we’ll examine Matisse’s Red Madras Headdress.
Mary Cassatt at Work
Explore Cassatt's methods, materials, and contributions to modernism with the curators of the PMA exhibition. Instructors: Laurel Garber, Jennifer Thompson.
The Barnes–de Mazia Certificate Program
This special track offers an immersion in the Barnes Method and an introduction to other interpretive approaches.
Horticulture Certificate Program
Our three-year certificate program covers horticultural science, methods, and design.