Using exercises based on the stacked mattresses image from the tale of "The Princess and the Pea," combined with Ecker and Kaelin's Aesthetic Inquiry ladder schematic, will help art educators schematize their thinking and talking about art in the classroom. Whether by selecting phenomenology or another philosophical method for navigating…

This paper considers the artistic and literary movement called "Postmodernism." Noting that postmodernism is intellectually grounded in the premise that its discourse must expose positions of privilege and power relations in society, the paper asks of art education, How much has the postmodern condition, a thesis of cultural relativism…

In interactive media, it is the spaces between the text that are as important to read as the text itself. Visual literacy is a vital form of reading in an increasingly pictorial world. This paper examines the grammar of visual literacy by analyzing the discourse of a group of adolescents and the way they interpret multi-layered, seriated, and…

Based on over half a century's personal experience with the Australian community's poor understanding of art, this paper concludes that exposing thousands of secondary students to the subject "Art" over this period has had little or no effect on competency. Instances are documented. Possible reasons explored include: the common…

This document describes an art curriculum designed for elementary level students of Catholic schools. The curriculum aims to encourage student creativity and self expression as advocated by pre-Discipline Based Art Education (DBAE) art programs while presenting the subject matter emphasis of DBAE programs. Lesson suggestions are given for each of…

Arguing that the visual arts serve as the focus for potential aesthetic experience in the discipline of art education, this paper describes the influence of the sensory elements of aesthetic experience in nature and other art forms on the work of three artists--Kandinsky, Van Gogh, and Picasso--and suggests that teachers can enrich students'…

Art education research is examined to indicate the importance of having an adequate research base to make informed educational decisions. To examine the ways in which research proceeds from sociopolitical assumptions and, in turn, shapes perceptions of the field and guides actions, the following are discussed: (1) art education research trends;…

This paper focuses on some of the issues from a study that questioned the validity of the proposal advanced by the influential North American curriculum movement referred to as "Discipline-Based Art Education" (DBAE); that the methods and understanding of artists, art critics, aestheticians, and art historians can be represented in a…

This publication, sponsored by the U.S. Society of Education through Art (USSEA) as a forum of past presidents involving audience participation, aims to stimulate dialogue on the evolving theme of teaching multicultural issues and what affects student learning. Session participants were past presidents of the USSEA who prepared written statements…

Noting that those objects and images currently accepted in the world of fine art might not contain those things posterity will consider significant, this paper offers a practical workshop activity that creates a culture from each individual's imagination. The activity explores images influenced by others or by individual values that reflect a…

In the artistic process the artist verifies and exemplifies his or her perceptions and conception of their work. This paper discusses the model of the artistic process which describes the repertoire of perceptual clues that the artist develops. The rationale for the development of the model is for the art teacher to be able to explain in simple…

This paper presents the qualitative findings based on the analysis of open-ended responses from surveys completed by 59 incarcerated women who participated in an arts-based education program. ArtSpring focuses on promoting self-growth and effective life skills through art-making for underserved and institutionalized women and girls. Findings…

This paper traces some of the early 20th century roots of aesthetic formalism as they came to effect the development of art education theory and practice in this country up to the beginning of the Second World War. The paper focuses on American sources and on the writings and ideas of Benman Ross, Arthur Wesley Dow, J. Hambidge, Albert C. Barnes,…

Stages in the development of art expression in infants and toddlers are briefly described and illustrated in this paper. Following this overview, suggestions are made about ways to introduce infants and toddlers to various developmentally appropriate media and how to support the artistic efforts of very young children. Materials recommended…

The "new reality" of Australia's involvement with Asia has brought an added urgency to the call for curriculum inclusions that ensure appropriate and positive levels of Australian engagement with countries of the Asian region. This paper discusses the "Delors" report and considers its "Learning To Know, Learning To Do,…