Nobody’s perfect. Discover the stories behind legendary heroes and despicable villains. Art, Language Arts, and Social Studies selected TEKS for K–12, available to all audiences.

Explore our online collection to conduct your own Hero or Villain tour!

Lesson Plans and Activities

Hero or Villain? Lesson Plan

Cardboard Swords Lesson Plan

Resources

What makes a hero?

Questions to consider on your digital tour:

• What defines a hero? What defines a villain? How do you identify them in an artwork?
• In what ways are heroes flawed?
• What role does gender play in the world of heroes and villains?
• In what ways might villains be misunderstood?
• Who is the hero in this work of art? Who is the villain?
• If you were in this work of art, what heroic or villainous characteristics would you have?
• What challenges do heroes and villains face?
• What choices can an artist make to depict a hero or villain?
• What different types of tools do heroes and villains use to achieve their goals?

Start Your Digital Tour Here!

Tour Stop #1: Him-a-Hero by Roger Shimomura 

• Diagram of characters in Him-a-Hero

Tour Stop #2: Head of Medusa by Gabrielle Dumontet

Tour Stop #3: Mary Magdalene by Master of the Parrot

• Information sheet on Mary Magdalene
• More artworks and information on Mary Magdalene from the Khan Academy

Tour Stop #4: Theseus Fighting the Minotaur by Antoine-Louis Barye

• Information sheet on Theseus Fighting the Minotaur 

Explore more works in our collection here!