Examine the concepts of continuity and change as seen through the work of craft artists. Learn how the artists push the limits of their materials and subject matter, but do so within the longstanding traditions of craft.

See if you can tell a fake from a genuine van Gogh with this interactive, and hear more about how one team of computer scientists did it. Learn how computers can identify and compare brush strokes to help experts spot the fakes.

Analyze images and text in print advertisements for persuasive and propaganda techniques, examine the design of an advertising campaign for a commonplace object and then design a campaign for a fictitious political figure.

Examine the contributions of stonemasons as skilled artisans in the creation of the Parthenon. Follow a single marble block on its journey from a quarry to the Parthenon construction site.

Explore the steps that a master Japanese swordsmith takes today to craft the katana, the legendary samurai sword. Examine the science and the art involved in this process.

Analyze images and text in print advertisements for persuasive and propaganda techniques, examine the design of an advertising campaign for a commonplace object and then design a campaign for a fictitious political figure.

• Art Zone

invites children of all ages to design a virtual mobile; create a collage, painting, or a geometric sculpture online; design and texturize 3-dimensional shapes (and see how artists create these effects without a computer); create a "pixel face"; and orchestrate an array of colorful shapes and patterns online.

• 2D Design Notes