Material Thinking: How to Develop a Student’s Artistic Voice

Abstract

The approach to education so far has placed the focus primarily on theory; practice becomes a secondary function which serves to drill in the theory. Theory-based approach may be suitable for subjects like Math and Science, which are fact-based, where knowledge is exact and explicit. However, Art is highly subjective, thus what would be the best approach to teach subjective knowledge? The traditional art class places high value on technical perfection where the goal is for the student to regurgitate exactly what they see, which is to copy reality. But with the invention of Photography, is this the goal of Art - to replicate exactly what one sees? Thus, what is the goal of Art Education now and what is the best way to teach Art to students?