Globalization and Me

Embracing Change in our Visual Culture

Carina M. Cooper-Rachow

April 19, 2016

Globalization and the understanding of change continuously impacts our everyday life
not only in regards to governments, economies, and industrial chains, but also in our local
communities and historical cultures. The visual culture of art education has also changed and
over time has redeveloped to reflect our global world. But what does that mean for our students?
For my product I focused on the impact that globalization has created on not only teachers, but
also students and their ability to embrace our visual culture. In the classroom it is important to
not only identify with our students and their ideas, but in our curriculum it must also reflect the
global connection students experience every day. As art teachers, we are experiencing many
changes within our community that dramatically reflect in our classrooms. Our communities are
experiencing change from a cultural stand point as more and more people are coming to our
cities and towns every day. Our students are exposed to so many more cultures and through this
type of link we are growing and creating our own global villages. The idea of [p]hysical and
conceptual boundaries that have helped establish and maintain distinctions are now giving way
to different configurations and intersections (Tavin & Hausman, 2004, p. 48), meaning that we
are no longer bound to idea of one location or one access point to and from somewhere. Our
physical boundaries are almost nonexistent due to technological advances with travel, and
conceptual boundaries are fogged by the development of social media and the internet. Today,
we have the opportunity to visit locations without physically having to be there by using virtual
tours or software such as Google Earth. Technology has also dramatically increased the ability
for global consumers to be in multiple locations and experience similar experiences across the
globe.

Our job is to not only to become a responsible global citizens and partake in the global
community, but also equip our students with the education to eventually become a part of our

global society. As artists we can see and become more aware of changes due to the visual
impacts we witness around us. Visual culture has great power to create enemies [b]ecause
enemies are socially constructed, an important first step is to examine how they are created
(Knight, 2009, p. 70), and as teachers our first step into teaching about the globalized visual
culture should consist of examining this concept with our students. In my artwork, there is a
globe surrounded by arrows flowing from all over the world, and these symbolize the global
impact we all have on each other from continent to continent. Through the ever powering growth
of technology and the ability to explore many other countries the world of art as we know it has
changed. The historical sense in art, although still visible is shifting to a new technological era,
and therefore the traditions of art are beginning to pour away in my image. This summer I will be
taking a trip to Greece, Italy, France, Barcelona, and although I am excited to visit all of the
marvelous art I cant help but wonder what my visit wouldve been like without the use of virtual
tours and Google Earth. Tavin & Hausman (2004) mentioned and discussed the understanding
that the physical and conceptual boundaries we experience are shifting and gaining a new form
of existence, so I cant help but wonder how my planning for this trip wouldve gone had I not
used the technology and the ability to cross those boundaries so to speak without even taking on
step on the ground.

In my painting, one will also notice a paint brush along the top, which symbolizes the act
of creating and developing our world but the tool in which we use will always reflect the history
of our world. Painting is a form of traditional art and I wanted to reflect that in this piece to show
that change and shift, but also to emphasize the desire for traditional forms. As a teacher, I think
it is important to not only emphasize and communicate with our students about the global shift,
but also show how these transitions came in the first place. Reflecting back to Knights (2009)

article, visual culture and the growth of globalization can easily create enemies amongst others
when there is not a clear understanding of the shift in which has occurred. All of our changes
around the world stem from something, or for some reason, and I think for us to actively teach
our students to become global citizens we have to help them understand the tasks of learning
about the topics they experience. Globalization and visual culture change daily, such is life, and
in order to help foster a stronger society I feel as though all educators should help educate our
students on their choices and their impacts on the global society in which they live in daily. In
doing so we are helping students to see themselves as global citizens, and see their actions at
work can help strengthen the connection for our students to the global society around them.

References

Knight, W. (2009). Never again: A (K)night with Ben. In E. M. Delacruz, A. Arnold, M.

Parsons, and A. Kuo, (Eds.), Globalization, art, and education (pp. 68-75). Reston, VA:
National Art Education Association.

Tavin, K., & Hausman, J. (2004) Art Education and Visual Culture in the Age of Globalization.
Art Education, 57(5), 47-52.