Visual Culture Curriculum

Running Head: VISUAL CULTURE CURRICULUM

Curriculum Change to teach Visual Culture

Sarah Greer

Northern Illinois University

Z1689155

Comprehensive Exam

Professor Freedman

Summer 2019
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Visual Culture Reform in Art Curriculum

Teaching visual culture has been growing in popularity and relevance within art

education over Discipline Based Art Education (DBAE). Visual culture is a more diverse form of

teaching while also being regarded as more interdisciplinary than DBAE. DBAE is a more linear

approach to teaching art and aims to validate the importance of art as a subject. DBAE

emphasizes art history, aesthetics, art criticism, and art production. Heise (2004) stated that

DBAE was criticized early on in the 1980’s as not being inclusive “in that [DBAE] only focused

on fine arts from a narrow perspective” (p. 42). While the DBAE model can produce exemplary

work from students, the visual culture approach taps into more student interest while being more

inclusive. Visual culture holds an emphasis on process and to learn how to interact with a visual

world. Freedman (2003) states that in the past, art was considered “an elite and isolated form of

human production” and that instead, art is now “increasingly realized as a part of daily life” (p.

1). Art is no longer for the social elite. Art is for all and art teachers should reflect that shift

within teaching art.

A major problem that the visual culture teaching method addresses is inclusivity of

multiculturalism in the classroom. Freedman (2003) explains that “people with different

backgrounds and interests do not have the same foundations for interpretation and will

experience the same visual culture in different ways” (pp. 36-8). With each experience differing,

this is a point to argue against a formalist approach. Since we each do not experience visual

culture the same, aesthetics will differ from person to person, and from culture to culture.

Teaching in the visual culture method allows for individualization for each student. The topic of

art becomes more relevant and engaging to the individual versus a smaller niche. Visual culture

changes over time and differs in each culture and experience. Teaching the varying dimensions
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of visual culture is essential, and Freedman argues that the traditional formalist aesthetic does not

allow for varying viewpoints to be explored. Visual culture is a contemporary approach to

contemporary shifts in our culture.

Curriculum Change

Good morning. My goal is to address this committee to change curriculum based on a

visual culture approach in order to increase the attraction of art elective courses to potential

students. As stated in the above section, Visual Culture Reform in Art Curriculum, teaching

with a visual culture method is not only widely accepted within the art education community, but

this method is beneficial and sparks individual student interests. Our student body is both

culturally and socioeconomically diverse, thus, teaching via a visual culture approach is crucial

to the success of our students and school.

We currently have four art courses that emphasize instruction in formalist and technical

methods: Drawing, Painting, Ceramics, and Sculpture. My proposal to change the curriculum

and the updated course titles are outlined below:

Course Changes

We currently hold four art classes: Drawing, Painting, Ceramics, and Sculpture.

Instructing students how to construct and manipulate these four mediums will still be present in

the new curriculum yet will no longer be the emphasis of these classes. The four course topics to

replace the previously listed courses are as follows:

1) Digital Media – The Visual Culture of Graphic Design and Digital Expression

2) 2D Art – Contemporary Applications to Traditional Media

3) 3D Art – Forming and Constructing Visual Culture

4) Developing Visual Culture – Creating Art Based on Individualized Interest

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Digital Media – The Visual Culture of Graphic Design and Digital Expression

Media: Use of Computer Lab, mobile tablets, art tablets, button maker, and screen-printing

materials

Software: Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe In-Design, Adobe Fireworks, Adobe

Premier, JellyCam, and Scratch

Digital arts are expanding rapidly within the visual art world. Graphic design skills are

useful in multiple career fields and all students frequent the digital art realm to some degree,

largely via social media. This course focuses on the SAMR Model, current areas of graphic

design, video animations, videogames, and website design. This course is built to introduce

students to global these of digital art while building on previous interest and knowledge about

digital art. Discussions and activities relating to graphic design production will also be integrated

in this course.

Students will research and construct art

based on the SAMR Model: substitution,

augmentation, modification, and redefinition.

These four categories, as illustrated in Figure 1,

serve as a guide to understand how new

technologies and new media can assist in creating Figure 1 SAMR Graphic by Jonathan Brubaker
http://techtipsedu.blogspot.com/2013/11/samr-model-
metaphor-mistakes.html
art. Many students are familiar with mobile devices

and “these devices are personal, universal, and closely linked to identity” (Traxler, 2010, p. 152).

All students may use their own personal mobile devices or classroom mobile tablets for portable

lessons. Images taken with these mobile devices will be used in lessons involving Adobe

Photoshop, Illustrator, and In-Design. Romrell, Kidder, and Wood (2014) discuss that mobile
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devices and computer software have allowed “for the creation of tasks that could not have been

done without the use of the technology” (p. 4). This digital media course is outlined around the

creation of new media and will allow students to explore the new media they are in connection

with in the digital age.

2D Art – Contemporary Applications to Traditional Media

Media: Graphite, Charcoal, Ink, Oil Pastel, Printmaking, Collage, Watercolor, Acrylic Painting,

and Oil Painting

Students will explore cultural histories and visual culture that they identify with and will

be encouraged to continue to form those identities. This course is aimed to continue two-

dimensional tradition within art education but will focus predominantly on contemporary art and

visual culture. This course will expand on previously taught media exploration. Through

experimentation and study of a wide variety of two-dimensional contemporary art forms,

students will determine what art mediums they identify with and wish to continue practicing

with. With the opportunity to explore in a variety of two-dimensional media and to create work

of their own choosing, students will build on previous knowledge while working to discover new

techniques and visual interests.

Subject matter will include sequential art; students will be encouraged to discuss and

explore sequential art they consume. Students will also be introduced to global sequential works

to expand their knowledge on sequential art. Discussions and activities focusing on popular

culture will span from comic books to Instagram. Discussions about sequential art will be

encouraged and students will develop artwork based on types of visual culture they consume.

Duncan, Smith, and Levitz (2016) cited this statement from Waugh’s (1947) research: “between

the ages of six and eleven 95 percent [sic] of boys and 91 percent of girls buy comic books for a
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steady reading diet. Between twelve and seventeen, the figure falls to 87 percent of boys and 81

percent of girls” (p. xvii). Duncan, Smith, and Levitz (2016) state that these statistics, while

older, are relevant today because this means that comic books have been involved in the lives of

almost everyone living today (p. xvii). Visual culture consumption such as comic books will be

pivotal in the success in the engagement of students in the art classroom.

3D Art – Forming and Constructing Visual Culture

Media: Ceramic Wheel-Throwing, Ceramic Hand-Building, Paper Mache, Metals, Plaster,

Assemblage, and Textiles

Students will explore, discuss, and develop solely three-dimensional work in this course.

Three-dimensional media is an often-neglected area within art classrooms; this bias will be a

frequent topic discussed in this course. The Guerrilla Girls (1998) believe that quilting is an

overlooked yet important art medium within history (pp. 54-5). The Guerrilla Girls describe the

importance and need for more inclusion of arts such as quilting, particularly of African American

quilt-making:

Harriet [Powers] probably learned traditional quilting in a plantation workshop where

slave women (and sometimes men) produced all the clothing and fabric the estate needed.
But the cutout, appliqued figures are reminiscent of the textiles of West Africa, where
Harriet’s ancestors came from. Before Picasso and Matisse incorporated African motifs
into their art, African American quilters were doing the same thing. Why don’t we know
more about them? (p. 55)

This question from the Guerrilla Girls will be applied to other mediums within this course as

well. Textiles are often considered women’s craft along with porcelain plate collections. Textiles

and ceramic-ware are important mediums to be skilled in and are equally, if not more important,

to discuss and create within the art classroom.

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This course will expand on the previous ceramic and sculpture courses to encourage a

well-rounded education on three-dimensional media. This course will equally emphasize

discussions directed around three-dimensional artwork within visual culture.

Developing Visual Culture – Creating Art Based on Individualized Interest

Media: All media available; this includes media not explored in any other classes taught

This course’s main objective is to dive into individual preferences in visual culture and to

explore individual interests and talents. Students will continue to develop work, discuss visual

culture within the classroom, and conduct research on their visual culture interests. Efland,

Freedman, and Stuhr (1996) ask this important question: “how can the classroom art teacher

hope to find out who the underrepresented artists are and what have they accomplished without

such support?” (p. 13). This question is important for students to answer to continuous

engagement within their chosen field(s).

Closing Thoughts

A major advantage to a teaching visual culture approach is that course content and

discussions can be adjusted to the cultural and socioeconomic needs of the student population.

To focus on the interest of all students will continue to enhance the professional integrity of the

school. As for parental notifications and involvement, weekly newsletters will serve to continue

communication with the art program and student families. As course content is addressed via

these newsletters, continued discussion and engagement at home will be encouraged, thus,

furthering the encouragement of individual knowledge and interests.

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References

Duncan, R., Smith, M. J., & Levitz, P. (2016). The power of comics history, form and culture.
London: Bloomsbury Academic, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.

Efland, A., Freedman, K. J., & Stuhr, P. L. (1996). Postmodern art education: An approach to
curriculum. Reston, VA: National Art Education Association.

Freedman, K. (2003). Teaching visual culture: Curriculum, aesthetics and the social life of art.
New York: Teachers College Press.

Guerrilla Girls. (1998). The Guerrilla Girls’ Bedside Companion to the History of Western Art.
New York, NY: Penguin books.

Heise, D. (2004). Is Visual Culture Becoming Our Canon of Art? Art education, 57(5), 41-46.
Retrieved from http://www.ulib.niu.edu:2535/stable/3194103

Romrell, D., Kidder, L., & Wood, E. (2014). The SAMR model as a framework for evaluating
mLearning. Online Learning, 18(2). doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.24059/olj.v18i2.435

Traxler, J. (2010). Students and mobile devices. Research in learning technology, 18(2), 149-
160. doi:10.1080/09687769.2010.492847

Waugh, C. (1947). The comics. New York: Macmillan.