Why we make art and why it is taught

208 Pages·3.059 MB·English

by  Richard D Hickman

second edition
We should welcome and inwardly digest this excellent book that
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examines the necessity for art as a basic human need.
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Why We MAke
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Antony gormley, artist, London M
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second edition
Why We MAke
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And Why it is tAught
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And Why it is tAught
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By RichARd hickMAn A
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governments around the world spend millions on art and cultural
institutions, evidence of a basic human need for what the author refers r
to as ‘creating aesthetic significance.’ yet what function or purpose
does art satisfy in today’s society? in this thorough and accessible text, t
hickman rejects the current vogue for social and cultural accounts
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of the nature of art-making in favour of a largely psychological n
approach aimed at addressing contemporary developmental issues d

in art education. Bringing to bear current ideas about evolutionary W
psychology, this second edition will be an important resource for all h
y
interested in arts education.
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Richard hickman is Reader in Art education at the university s

of cambridge. t
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ISBN 978-1-84150-378-3
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9 781841 503783
intellect | www.intellectbooks.com By RichARd hickMAn
Why We Make Art
and why it is taught
Cover: Untitled Acrylic on Board 30x60 cm. Gareth Watkins, 1999.
Gareth was Artist in Residence at Homerton College Cambridge during 1999;
he took his own life in the following year.
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First published in the UK in 2010 by Intellect,
The Mill, Parnall Road, Fishponds, Bristol, BS16 3JG, UK
First published in the USA in 2010 by Intellect, The University of Chicago Press,
1427 E. 60th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
Copyright ©2010 Intellect Ltd
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or otherwise, without written permission.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Cover design: Holly Rose
Copy-editor: Rebecca Vaughan-Williams
Typesetting: John Teehan
ISBN 978-1-84150-378-3 / EISBN 978-1-84150-440-7
Printed and bound by Gutenberg Press, Malta.
Contents
Preface to second edition ............................................................................................1
Foreword .....................................................................................................................5
Antony Gormley
Section One: Art and Art Education .............................................................................7
Art ..................................................................................................................7
Art in education ...........................................................................................10
The place of ‘knowing and understanding’ art ......................................12
Developmental issues in art education .................................................14
Learning in art .......................................................................................32
Concepts and art learning .....................................................................33
Aims, rationales and desirable outcomes ............................................40
Concluding remarks for Section One............................................................57
Notes and references for Section One ........................................................58

Section Two: Conversations and reflections – some ‘mini case-studies’ ...................69
Introduction ................................................................................................69
Some autobiographical reflections .............................................................69
People talking about their art making .........................................................77
Concluding remarks for Section Two .........................................................101
Notes and references for Section Two. ......................................................103
Section Three: Issues in art and learning ................................................................105
Introduction ...............................................................................................105
The artistic personality ..............................................................................105
Creating aesthetic significance ..................................................................110
Notes on imagination and expression ........................................................113
Identity .......................................................................................................116
A few words on creativity ...........................................................................117
Art and schooling .......................................................................................120
Concluding remarks for Section Three .......................................................129
Notes and references for Section Three ....................................................129
Section Four: Concluding chapter ............................................................................135
Introduction ...............................................................................................135
Art as a fundamental human urge .............................................................135
Concept learning re-visited ........................................................................139
The art curriculum ....................................................................................144
On drawing ...........................................................................................147
The appreciation of visual form ...........................................................149
Assessing school art ............................................................................152
The art room as a model for schools and schooling ..................................156
Concluding remarks ...................................................................................157
Notes and references for Section Four ......................................................163
References ..............................................................................................................169
Appendix I: Coding system for determining levels of understanding in art ......179

Appendix II: General Educational Aims and the Role of Art in Education ........181
Appendix III: Barrett’s ‘worthwhile outcomes...’ ..............................................185
Appendix IV: Prompt Questions ........................................................................187
Appendix V: Questionnaire on aims for art & design in education ..................189
Subject Index and Name Index ................................................................................191
Tables and Illustrations
List of Tables
Table 1. Stages in Artistic Development .....................................................................27
Table 2. A developmental model for art learning ......................................................40
List of Illustrations
Untitled by Gareth Watkins. ...................................................................................cover
Figure 1a. Celebration by Miki .....................................................................................17
Figure 1b. Market Stalls by Mami. ...............................................................................17
Figure 2a. A Prehistoric Sc ene by RD Hickman, age 11 ............................................76
Figure 2b. Pteranodon by RD Hickman, age 11. ........................................................76
Figure 2c. (My Shirt is Alive With) Several Clambering Doggies of
Inappropriate Hue by RD Hickman, age 43 ................................................................76
Figure 3a. Fierce dragons ............................................................................................79
Figure 3b. Chipper Had a Dog ....................................................................................79
Figure 4. Kudu Batik, by Joseph* .................................................................................80
Figure 5. Stephen Duncalf: Desk with Lamp ..............................................................82
Figure 6. Alex Butler: Around the Heights (still from video) ..................................85
Figure 7. Anthony Green: The 40th Wedding Anniversary ......................................95
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Why We Make Art, and why it is taught
Figure 8. John Laven: Rust .........................................................................................96
Figure 9. Libby Tribe: Slate.........................................................................................99
Figure 10. John Fardell: Desert Island Teacher........................................................124
Figure 11. Unkown: Graffiti .....................................................................................134
Figure 12. Paolo Ucello: St. George and the Dragon ...............................................150
Figure 13. Alexi Hickman: Meaningful Scribbles (aged 2) .....................................161
Figure 14a. Alexi Hickman: Grater..........................................................................161
Figure 14b. Alexi Hickman: Toys .............................................................................162
Figure 14c. Alexi Hickman: Unibond ......................................................................162
*As with other young respondents, I have used a pseudonym here.

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Acknowledgements
I would like to put on record my gratitude to the University of Cambridge Faculty of
Education and Homerton College for giving me time and space.
Many people have given practical, emotional and intellectual help with this book. I
want to highlight the following people without whom the book could not have been
written: Firstly, my wife Anastasia for her constant support… also to Dr Anne Sinkinson
for her helpful and perceptive observations on the initial draft and to Dr. Ros McLellan
for her extremely efficient and thorough analysis of questionnaires.
I would also like to thank my PGCE students, who, year on year continue to amaze me
with their commitment to, and enthusiasm for, art in education.
Of course, to all the people I interviewed, especially those who later took the trouble
to e-mail or write to me with their thoughts on art making, I am greatly indebted.

R.H.
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