Lana Bjornson

2/1/10

Gude’s Ideas about Contemporary Art Education

Gude believes that the connection between the self, the process and the product is what
makes art important. Early and continual interactions with art help make a child more aware of
their material world. It fosters a dual consciousness of the student’s inner experiences and their
interactions with the outside world. In order to better contribute to a democratic society artists
can couple their awareness and a sense of agency. Art also helps to form an individual’s sense
of identity. The creative process and thinking makes one aware of the power and vulnerability
they have to formulate questions and come to some sort of a conclusion. Educators are
responsible for over seeing the way in which students are introduced to and experience the
responsibilities of a democratic society.
Art education supports the student’s self-exploration. A good art education is one that
provides the students with the tools and skills in order to successfully create what they want to
say. Through recreated ones experiences into a project, picture, or story one makes “self”. A
self is not determined by what happened but how one perceives what happened. Context is how
images are given meaning; no piece of art can be interpreted the same way by all. A self is very
complex and it is ever changing. Art education helps one become aware of the complexities of
the self and gives one the ability to articulate it. A democratic culture is formed by many voices
and art is a way for one to contribute their voice.
Art education also helps ones creative critical thinking in order to be able to analyze
meaning out of others art. Heightened self-awareness leads to heightened awareness of others.
In the art classroom students become aware that other’s perceive the meaning of images in
different ways which can be applied to a students understanding of the world. Through artwork
students are exposed to the perception of another artist. Democracy requires citizens that are
able to incorporate different perceptions into the decision making process instead of solely
focusing on ones own perception.
`As a child grows into a young student and then into a young adult, art education can
provide students with projects that deal with local and global issues. With the disciplinary skills
needed students are able to break apart current issues and then successfully create a project that
helps with the solution. Students need to be introduced to a wide variety of art in order to
understand a full range of cultural practices. It is the democratic responsibility of youths to be
life-long makers of meaning and interpreters of other’s meanings. Art education teaches students
to play with materials, ideas, and meanings. The process of making art internalizes the meaning
of the piece because it causes reflection with what it is engaging.
Art educators need to introduce their students to a wide range of different types of art
from different times and places. This provides the students with inspiration for ideas and ways
in which to construct their ideas. Art is a way in which people can use their power to make
things and to make things happen. Art education needs to be about learning disciplinary art and
importantly learning strategies for producing individual and cultural meanings. Students should
recognize and utilize their freedom of expression.

Gude creates projects that include large parts of communities and are meant for communities to
see. With You Belong Here! Gude included a large group of people from middle schools to the
elderly. Activists participated and many people were involved in the decision making of what
the piece was going to say. Its Merits Recommend It is a mural which over 50 people worked
on. Postcards are the motif of the mural because when researching the town its history was
presented in the form of postcards. With Fellow and Others Gude created a 2500 ft mural which
figuratively and literally reshapes its community. The mural has a positive and playful
atmosphere so it is approachable for children but it is dealing with serious issues of prejudice and
racism.