I wanted to take a moment to pass on some thoughts from a colleague of mine – Stacey Cann – who is a tireless advocate for the importance of art education. Stacey has been a driving force at Harcourt House Artist-Run Centre for a number of years now, and has developed some great art-ed programs there, including the Art Bus Tours, which are beginning right away. (yes, this is a very broad hint to check it out!)
Here’s a great guest article Stacey recently wrote for the blog Prairie Seen; I think it touches on a number of really important ideas with respect to the impact of art education in society as a whole. Most pertinent (to my mind anyway) is Stacey’s observations regarding the impact of art education on practising artists: the didactic information supplied in galleries, the endless (and sometimes endlessly obscure) artist statements provided at exhibitions and elsewhere, and many more … in short, the role of art education in situating the work artists do.
Some great food for thought here – I’d love to hear your comments the ideas she presents.
Enjoy!