feldman, edmund b. some problems of art instruction in higher institutions

8/20/2019 FELDMAN, Edmund B. Some Problems of Art Instruction in Higher Institutions

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SOME PROBLEMS

OF RT

INSTRUCTION

IN

HIGHER

INSTITUTIONS

Edmund B Feldman

f

some

sort

of consensus existed among universities, art schools, museums, foun-

dations

and

dealers as to the objectives of art education

and

as to the qualities worth

prizing in

works

of

art, the problems of ar t instruction would be infinitely simpler-

and

less interesting. As it is, the sometimes contending influences

of

major institutions

in

o

ur

society with respect to the artist, his function

and

worth, constitute a good

part

of

the

material we must consider along with students, faculty, facilities,

curric

ula

,

and

administration. in the operation of an art department. Of course, art instruction oper-

ates

in

a vacuum no

more than

instruction

in any

other field. But i


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where ~ o v e r n m e n t a t least in the United States does not stand; where private per-

sons who are patrons of

art

do not stand. Economic assistance to artists as well as the

development of programs to increase general artistic and cultural sophistication these

are

it

seems to me legitimate foundation roles as opposed to patronizing art i.e.

commissioning works of art.

I come now to

art

teaching

and

the point I have been approaching is perhaps

obvious. I believe first of all that

an art

faculty

ha

s to provide instruction which will

survive the vicissitudes of stylistic succession. t must also identify and educate artists

whom foundations can assist with reasonable expectation that they will

co

ntinue to

grow. Similarly museums and dealers must be able·to draw upon artists whose crea-

tive abilities are securely founded so that the works they exhibit collect and sell may

have more than fashionable significance.

Finally college and university teaching has to create artistically l

itera

te and criti-

cally able cultural leadership

in our

society. The

p r i m ~ u y

and secondary schools I

believe

ha

ve a more difficult task since they must deal with the whole of

our

citizenry.

The colleges have a direct responsibility only toward cultural leaders but who can say

they are discharging this responsibility well?

My impression is that many of our contemporary artists are inadequately edu-

cated. This observation is made from viewing not their credentials but their work. I

assume that however useful such artists are to the exhibition agendas of museums

or

the commercial enterprises of dealers they are not in any profound and ultimate sense

useful to themselves.

That

is they are not genuine professionals independent of the

vagaries of official taste. Often they ha

ve

not recei

ve

d good and balanced instruction

in

the rudiments of their art. Such of them as have been

in

college and university

art

departments seem to have learned little of

art

or ideas. The careers of others who have

endured perhaps some brief period in the atelier of a famous teacher or have lan-

guished

at

some summer

art

colony cannot be charged to the

art

departments of our

· colleges and universities.

t may be asked what sort of instruction I mean which creates the genuine pro-

fessional and which equips him not merely to survive stylistic change and official

taste hut also to grow and mature. Very simply

it

is instruction which is sufficiently

rooted in time the distant and recent

past to

afford the st

ud

ent a comprehensive

body of skills techniques

and

artistic ideas so that he can generate style

rather

than

react to the predilections of artistic middlemen. The

art

s ~ u e n t will learn much after

he leaves us

hut

not so

in

tensi

ve

ly nor under such ideal conditions.

Fu

rt

hermore his

creative personality tends to crystallize around his imaginative grasp and technical

skills or unskills after he leaves us.

I have the impression that some university art departmen ts ha

ve

become assimi-

lated unto the standards of dealers and museums specializing in a market which has

grown out of economic and financial conditions following World War II. Of course

there is no reason why dealers should not attempt to sell works of

art

and thus pay

their hills. Also artists normally wish their creations to reach collectors. The artist

who teaches

in

a university may also aspire to this kind of success and may even have

been engaged because he has succeeded

in

achieving a portion of it. But

it

is very


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be

ab

and

on

ed.

(A

t

th e

pr

ese

nt

ra t

e o

f a

rtis

tic

p

rod

ucti

vity

, w

ha

t w

ill

s tu

den

ts

hav

e

to

le

arn

by

th

e y

ear

20

00

?)

Fo

urt

h ,

no

exa

m i

nat

ion

in

vol

vin

g r

eco

gn

iti o

n an

d

ide

n-

t

ifi c

a ti

on

exc

lus

ive

ly

oug

ht

to

b

e giv

en

. f

an

i

nst

ru c

tor

ca

n t

hin

k o

f n

o b

ett

er

way

to

ex

am

in e

s t

ude

n ts

, h

e l

ack

s t

he

im

agi

nat

ion

fo

r t

he

wo

rk.

F

ina

lly,

th

e e

m p

h a

sis

in

t

hes

e c

ou

rses

sh

ou

ld

be

on

th

e d

ev

elo p

me

nt

of

an

aly

ti ca

l a

nd

cr

it ic

al

sk i

ll s

and

o

th

e a

bili

ty

to

rela

te

wo

rk s

of

art

to

cu

ltura

l

con

fig

ura

tio

ns

and

co

nc

ept

s o

f hu

m a

n

b

eha

vio

r a

s d

eve

lo p

ed

by

soc

ia l

sci

enc

e.

In

co n

clu

s io

n,

it w

ou

ld

app

ea

r th

a t

ar

t fa

cu

lti e

s h

a

v

a

re s

pon

sib

ili

ty

to m

ai

n-

t

ai n

ar

tist

ic

sta

nd

ard

s ,

par

tic

ula

rly

of

ex

ec u

ti o

n

and

c

raf

tsm

an

shi

p,

wh

ich

ot

her

ag e

n c

ies

su

ch

as

m u

seu

ms

, ga

lle

rie

s,

fou

nda

tio

ns a

nd

jou

rn

als a

re

no

t eq

u ip

pe

d,

in

th

e

na t

ure

of

th

e c

ase

, t

o d

eal

w

ith.

S

eco

nd ,

ar

t f

acu

lti e

s s

ho u

ld

b

e ap

pro

ac

hin

g a

prov

is

ion

al

con

sen

sus

as

to

th e

n

eed

fo

r p

rere

qu

isit

e s

equ

enc

es

for

co

lleg

e a

rt

co u

rse

s.

T

hi1·

d , c

on

sid

era

ble

stu

d y

nee

ds

to

be

giv

en

to t

he

des

ign

of

stu

dio

i n

s

truct

i on

fo

r n

on-

a

rt

m a

jor

s.

Fo

urt

h ,

th

e e

n ti

re

are

a

o f

s tu

dio

in

str

uc

tion

f

o r

gen

er

al

cla

ss ro

om

teachers, as opposed to

ar

t

ne

ed

s a

go

niz

in g

re

ap

pra

isa

l.

F

inal

ly

the

o-

re

tic

al

s tud

ies

in

a

rt

for

th

ose

w

ho

w

ill

n o t

be

sc

ho

la r

s o

r c

ura

tor

s o

ugh

t

to

b

e

fro

m

bon

da

ge

to

u

st

w is

sen

sch

aft

T h

e a

ctu

al

m e

th o

ds

o f

tea

chi

ng,

th

e t

ra i

nin

g o

f c

oll

ege

ar

t t

eac

her

s, th

e

kin

ds

o

f l

ibe

ral

and

o

ther

s

tud

ies

ar

t s

tud

ent

s s

hou

ld

un

der

tak

e a

re

pro

ble

ms

w

hic

h n

eed

le

ngt

hy

ela

bo

rati

on.

In

c

onf

in in

g

m y

self

to

a

few

q

ues

tion

s o

f c

on

ten

t an

d

the

in s

ti -

t

uti o

na

l se

tt i

ng

in

wh

ich

ar

t te

ac

hin

g t

ake

s p

lac

e, I

ha

ve

tri

ed

to

m a

ke

a

beg

inn

in g

to t

he

stu d

y

of t

hes

e o

the

r m

att

ers

.

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feldman, edmund b. some problems of art instruction in higher institutions

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