The decline of artistic expression in late childhood is an ongoing and well identified problem in the field of art education, yet it has been generally accepted as a natural occurrence and irreversible attribute of normative development. However, this foreclosure of artistic learning has serious implications to the concerns of emotional…

In this article, the author describes the Mississippi University for Women's studio art course that teaches students the ins and outs of mural making from inception and design to application of the final glaze. While students in other courses may spend the semester working toward a final exam or paper, this four-and-a-half-week summer course…

This visual arts project was initiated at the West Virginia University Laboratory School (Nursery School) several years ago and has assisted children in reproducing prints of famous artists. Using the principles of behaviorism in conjunction with developmentally appropriate practice has helped young children to extend their knowledge in the visual…

Cephalopods have a visual language that may be considered artful; they flash color-forms on their hides to communicate intents and emotions. Formalist inspired artists and their critic-expositors describe abstract pattern-painting as though it were a visual language equal to that of the cephalopod. In this article, the author argues that although…

In this article the author describes a project in which professors and preservice art educators from Northern Illinois University (NIU) collaborated with teens and members of the DeKalb Latino local community center to create a mural celebrating a traditional Aztec narrative. The mural project involved professors, university students, teenagers…

Several sections in this article begin with a foundational discussion of the connection between art and the general curriculum, including how the effectiveness of that curriculum may then be measured. Continuing with a working definition of "critical thinking", the author demonstrates how Rembrandt's work relates particularly well to the social…

This article is an example of the use of an autobiographical curriculum theory approach which centers on the production of multiple educational lifelines across time and subject. Reactions to and questions about a late Medieval painting at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC are used to raise issues concerning what it means to be taught…

Immigration is making this country and schools increasingly diverse. An unfortunate consequence of this condition is prejudice, discrimination, and lack of understanding. The challenge for educators is to create learning opportunities that will allow students to gain understanding and appreciation of the differences among the people who are in…

This is a qualitative examination of how the presentation mode of Renaissance painting--original artwork, printed reproduction, or digital reproduction--influences the critical responses of adolescents. In contrast to prior experimental research in this area, the findings of this study provide insights into the experiential dimensions of student's…

In this article, the author profiles Pierre-Auguste Renoir and describes Renoir's work of art, "Woman with Parrot". Renoir gained a reputation among peers for taking exceptional pleasure in painting, and his style was said to celebrate beauty and sensuality. He is recognized for showing significant empathy for the sitters in his portraits, and for…

This paper will examine an unresolved tension inherent in the question of art and argue for the idea of a singular rule as a natural resolution. In so doing, the structure of a singular rule will be fully outlined and its paradoxical constitution will be resolved. The tension I mention above unfolds both as a matter of history and as a product of…

In this article, the author shares tips on how to keep students interested in learning about still-life art lessons. She relates that her main goal was to formally introduce students to observational drawing and the element of value. She shares that to prevent her students from losing interest, she keeps her time short, keeps the project simple,…

In West Bengal, India, a traditional caste community of artists, called "patuas", paint colorful scrolls to accompany songs which they sing to relate historic, current, religious, and cultural events to their audiences. These itinerant painter/singers are part of a long lineage that has passed the tradition down for generations. In this…

In a time when adolescents are continually inundated by provocative multimedia campaigns that coax them to buy more, think less, and do so in a passive environment that provides little to no opportunities for them to reflect on who they are in the world, the author of this article offers one way to engage adolescents and their teachers with a…

Vietnam, with its cheap labor and lax copyright laws, is a counterfeiter's dream. Books are sold hot off the photocopier and Hollywood's latest blockbusters can be had on DVD's for about a dollar. But it is in art forgery that Vietnam excels. With a stable of neoclassically trained art students, who spend years learning to copy the masters, art…