Altruism is recognized as "a cultural behavior, well beyond instinctive behavior, and even beyond adaptive social behaviors with respect to evolutionary processes" (Wilson, 1998, p. 29) Yet, if artmaking is a cultural behavior it is one that does not appear at first "to contribute to the survival of the species" (Wilson, 1998,…

Martin Heidegger's seminal essay, "The Origin of the Work of Art", captures much of what is original and enduring in his philosophical offering. Although his essay takes as its subject the relationship between art, the work of art and the artist; Heidegger's inquiry covers conceptual ground that is particularly pertinent to…

Popular wisdom has it that collaboration is "the new black" in the arts and arts education. Collaboration is viewed as the basis for the making of new and novel artefacts in contemporary cultures, while also being repeatedly used as a catchword in the development of curriculum. Yet, collaboration as praxis entails complex and…

This paper engages with Guattari's query about, how to make a classroom operate like a work of art? Guattari's question is not intended to be prescriptive or dogmatic. Rather, his thinking engenders a way of thinking about art as an affective event that has the capacity to invent new relations and new ways of learning. In the first section, we…

Affect often arises unexpectedly within the process of making art (along with other creative activities). In this article I argue for affect as a necessary and constructive dynamic within educational processes specifically for art and design. After a consideration of its recent neglect within art education, I revisit the notion of affect with…

"Structures of Participation" concerns a recent media arts project, the University of Local Knowledge (ULK). ULK is simultaneously a critique of established academic institutions and disciplines and a system for self-organized learning among the residents of Knowle West, an area of south Bristol (UK). Beginning in 2009, the Knowle West…

The present paper explores the idea that learning, both in and out of school, is a cultural act, and that school and its cultural-heritage environment stamp their own characteristics on pupils. This implies that pupils gradually, with the help of teachers and other relevant adults from their close social environment, develop and adjust their…

This article explores contemporary forms of creative practices and their survival under siege from what Stuart Hall (2011) describes as the neoliberal revolution, in the context of the tightly policed education system in the United Kingdom. The fragility and importance of the democratic struggle is discussed with reference to Chantal Mouffe's work…

In this article, I examine strategies for teaching students to make socially conscious art using a variety of media that emphasizes installation work. I present issues of social justice in the contemporary art world and include concerns of censorship that artists sometimes confront. I offer examples of team taught coordinated studies programs…

Using visual resources from everyday life in art lessons can enrich students' knowledge about the creation of visual images, artifacts, and sites, and develop their critical understanding about the cultural impact of these images and their effects on people's lives. Through examining an exhibition in the windows of Selfridges department store in…

In this paper we tell a story about how we partnered with a Chicago high school in order to turn the school inside out by displaying larger-than-life teacher portraits and statements at street level throughout the community. This paper explores how public art and activism can help teachers and students develop notions of civic literacy and…

In this paper, I use Nielsen's (2005) scholARTistry (as cited in Siegesmund & Cahnmann-Taylor, 2008), interweaving art and written text to interpret and challenge the widespread impact of Borders in school and society. With an artistic and scholarly eye, I argue that the Border needs to be removed, not only the physical wall, but also the…

This article examines how creativity and the arts can assist teachers who teach from a social justice perspective, and how knowledge built through meaningful experiences of difference can make a difference. Just as imagining is central to visual arts practice, so too is the capacity to imagine a necessity for social justice. The authors ask what…

How does life drawing impact on a group of 14-16-year-old female art and design students and their perception of body image? In contemporary Western society, we are bombarded with advertising, social media and celebrity culture on a daily basis, often with a focus on body image. This article questions whether, due to this visual assault, young…

In the quest for anti-oppressive research practices grounded in a commitment to social justice, arts-based research holds promise for scholars in a wide range of disciplines and fields of study, including education. In this article, I discuss the possibilities and challenges of social justice-informed arts-based research, drawing on data from a…