Allan Rohan Crite was a visionary and versatile artist; he was also a community leader, mentor, and tireless recorder of the people and places of Black Boston

The Boston Athenaeum created a K-12 summer professional development workshop in partnership with the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and a digital learning guide and curricular materials related to the art of Allan Rohan Crite.

While Crite’s art can be seen in many high-profile institutions such as the Smithsonian, as well as across the first floor of the Boston Athenaeum, he has not always gotten the full credit he deserves for his long and varied career and his legacy as an artist, storyteller (griot) and mentor. This workshop and accompanying learning materials will ensure that Boston educators and beyond have access to these vibrant visual sources as well as the tools to help tell the story of a changing Black community and neighborhoods in the 20th century through today.  Library of Congress collections add context to the historical changes happening in Boston and the U.S. and supplement what is observed in Crite’s oil paintings, watercolors and prints.  Library of Congress TPS inquiry methods are integral to supporting teachers who may not often use artworks with their students, especially those teaching outside of fine arts classrooms. The Athenaeum’s project demonstrates how to expand out from the artwork to a fuller understanding of the artist and his world.