"A Role for Aesthetics in Centering the K-12 Art Curriculum" - 02/01/20

By: Tom Anderson and Sally McRorie

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Anderson and McRorie focused on defining the two major components of aesthetics within this article in order to give a recommendation to art educators of how they should facilitate them in the classroom. The two main categories of aesthetics are formalism and contextualism which are both vital to the overall understanding. I agree with the general conclusion of this paper which suggested that a balance of these both is the best option when attempting to educate students on aesthetics. I believe this because of the diversified area for understanding. Students while growing and entering more open studio classes will need to understand what it means to be original and what certain materials do, but they will also need to understand the collaborative nature and social impact that the arts can have. Once students are educated in both they can choose to follow the guidelines for either but, in order to make this decision students should be given all of the resources and information needed.

As an educator I would enforce the creation of original works while also commenting on works throughout art history, which many times follows with a social commentary about the time at which the piece was made. Including both sides of aesthetics then allows for students to take up the challenge of creating their works using this new knowledge.