Thursday, February 12, 2015

Criteria For What Counts as Art

By what criteria should the NEA, or National Endowment of the Arts, determine what counts as "Art"?  

According to United States senators, the NEA should determine what is art and what isn't based on these criteria:
  • To support the survival of the best of all forms that reflect the American heritage in its full range of cultural and ethnic diversity and to provide national leadership on behalf of the art
  • Should not be offensive across the board
  • Something the whole nation can appreciate and admire
  • Something that causes a positive aesthetic response when viewing it 
While I agree with the overall principle the US senators were trying to implement, I believe that the NEA should determine what is art based on these criteria as well:
  •  Does the work affect all people? 
    • The affect could be either positive or negative
  • Does it provoke an emotion?
  • Can we learn something from this particular piece?
  • How can we incorporate what we have learned from viewing the piece into our daily lives?
  • Approach the piece from both contextualist and formalist viewpoints 

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Engaging Students in Using the Language of Aesthetics

One way I think that we can engage students to use the language of aesthetics more often is by having more open discussions about each others artwork.  One way I believe that we can do this is by talking about our process on our works throughout the course of the unit.  I would have students discuss their initial ideations and discuss the reasons why they chose to do what they did, what mediums they think they will use, etc.  When they finalize the concept they want to carry out, they will have another open discussion about their work half-way through the process and receive critical feedback from their peers and the teacher.  With that new knowledge, they can improve or refine what they are working on.  At the end of the unit, we would have a class critique and discuss topics such as use of materials, effectiveness of the piece, successes and failures, etc.  I believe that incorporating aesthetics into the art classroom is essential in order to receive a well-balanced education on the world of art and for students to engage with both their peers' artwork and their own.  

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Concerns Going Into Practicum Teaching

As the days creep closer to me becoming a practicum art teacher, I am both excited and nervous for this new experience in my life.  Some of my worries include not being prepared to handle unexpected situations, not being completely prepared for class, and forgetting important material and information when teaching the students.  

I am a "planner" by nature, but I know there's always a chance that something unexpected will happen.  Based on my personal concerns, I know that I will have to be prepared ahead of time in order to avoid last-minute time crunches to finish material in order to teach class.  As I have grown and matured throughout my college career, I have learned to be more independent and that sometimes you need to step out of your comfort zone in order to get what you want in life, and for me that happens to be becoming an art teacher.  Even though I have these concerns going in, I know in the long run it will only help me improve my teaching and how I interact with children.