digital gardens with real toads in them: the place of ... · figure 1. storyboard for bbc 2 ident....

DRS//CUMULUS20132ndInternationalConferenceforDesignEducationResearchersOslo,14–17May2013

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Digitalgardenswithrealtoadsinthem:theplaceof

heritagemediainadigitalartanddesigneducation.

IainMACDONALD

EdinburghNapierUniversity

i.macdonald@napier.ac.uk

Abstract:Atatimewhendigitalmediaisregardedasorthodoxyineducation,in

advancedglobaleconomiesthereisapressingargumenttoreviewthelessonsofthe

pastandreflectonwhethertheyarestillapplicable.Thispaperwillenquireintotoday’s

issueswithdigitalpracticesinartanddesigneducationusingrelevant,historical

examplesfromthemainchangesinapproachofthelastcentury.Itwillalsoexplain

howthechangesofapproachtoartanddesigneducationhasaffectedthechoiceof

materials,thestressondifferentskillsandthevaluesofdifferentcreativeartswithin

thesubject.Fromapositionasapractitionerinthemovingimage,andinresponseto

thisautoethnographicresearch,theauthorputsforwardapluralistapproachto

teachingdesign,throughahybridofparticularaspectsof‘heritage’anddigital

practices.

Keywords:designeducation,drawing,digital,hybridpractices.

Digitalgardenswithrealtoadsinthem:theplaceofheritagemediainadigitalartanddesigneducation.

INTRODUCTION

WhenDickFieldwrotehislandmarkstudy“ChangeinArtEducation”(1970)thedebateon

therelevanceandplaceofart,designandcrafteducationwasasstrenuousasitistoday

(Addison,Burgessetal2010;Steers2009).Thispaperseekstocontextualisetoday’sissueswith

thecombinationofdigitalandheritagepracticesinarteducation,anddisseminatethe

pertinentchangesofthelastcenturyinordertoexplainhowthechangesofapproachtoart

anddesigneducationhasaffectedthechoiceofmaterials,thestressondifferentskillsandthe

valuesofdifferentcreativeartswithinthesubject.Inthisresearchofteachingandlearning

practiceindigitalartanddesign,theauthorusesautoethnographicmethodologytolookatthe

significanceofstoryboarding,andarguesfortheimportanceoflearningbyhandthrough

drawing.

THEPLACEOFDRAWINGANDCRAFTPRACTICESINTHE

CURRICULUMANDTHEECONOMY

Intheir“AManifestoforArtinSchools”ArtisdefinedasreferringtoArt,CraftandDesign

(SwiftandSteers1999).Thedisappearanceofthewords“Design”and“Craft”havecaused

significantanxietyamongst“Art”educatorsformanyyears,andindeedtherehasbeen

increasingconcernthatartwouldalsoloseitsplaceasadistinctsubjectwithintheschool

curriculum(Hughes1989;Peers2011).“Craftsmenarebeingmadetofeelinferiorfellows,

insteadofthesaltoftheearthasMorrisandGropiusbelieved.ArtandDesignarebeing

separated”(NSEAJournaleditorial1981inHughes1989,p.126).Theconcernremainsthatart,

asasubjectwouldbemarginalisedunlessitcouldjustifyitspositionbyprovidingemployability,

economicvalueandliteracy(Hughes1989;Peers2011),anditcouldbearguedthatthisis

wheretherelationshipwithartandtechnologyiscritical,“failuretofamiliarisechildrenat

schoolwiththeuseofsuchtechnologyinhibitstheirimaginativepotential”(WarnockinHughes

1988,p.132).

InAustraliaasimilarconcernexists,Peersarguesthatthedroppingof“art”fromthe

“NationalReviewofVisualEducation”(2008)isasymptomoftheneo-liberalpoliticsthat

encouragesmarketforcestodictatecurriculumprovisionandfurthercommodifiesthehuman

capitalofchildren:“ineducationalterms,itnolongermatterswhetherknowingisauthenticso

muchaswhethertheperformancecanbecapitalised”(Peers2011,p.420-1).Technicalskills

appeartohaveeconomicvalue,expandedconsciousnessandcreativethinkingseemharderto

quantifyandthereforevalue.Measuringthevalueofartanddesigneducationagainst

economichumancapitalhasbeenanaspectofindustrialisedsocietiesinthetwentiethcentury

(Wood1996),asFieldalsoillustrates:“throughoutthethirtiestherewerecomplaintsfrom

industryandcommercethattheschoolsofartwerefailingtoproducedesignersofmuch

practicaluse”(Field1970,p.57).

Goodteachingpracticeaspirestocombinecriticalthinkingandtechnicalskillsinorderto

developindividualcreativeexpression.Manydesigncoursesatuniversitiesandartcollegesare

firmlygroundedinapracticalcreativeethosthatisrelevanttoindustry’spresentandfuture

needs.“ThefusionoftechnologywiththecreativeanddigitalindustriesisasvitaltotheUK”s

economicgrowthasthatofscience,engineeringandmanufacturing”(CouncilforIndustryand

HigherEducation2010).

Artanddesignpedagogyandtheteachingoftheuseofmaterialsandtechnologiesof

creativepracticearetaughtcontinuestobeinformedbytheworkofDewey(1934),Bruner

(1960)andPolanyi(1964).Ananalysisofcurrentteachingpracticealsorevealsremarkable

similaritytoField’sexperiencesoverfortyyearsago.

LEARNINGTHROUGHMATERIALS

Overthelastcenturytherehavebeenvariouschallengesthathaveimpactedonthe

provisionofmaterials,butwhilewaryearsbroughtscarcity,morerecentlybudgetcutsand

governmentpolicyhavemadeanimpact(Facer2011).Sometimesscarcityisthemotherof

invention.Fielddescribesitasa“revolution”,becausetheutilisationofnewmaterialschanged

theworkingprocessesandassessmentcultureinarteducation.

TheBauhausandModernistapproachwastore-educatethestudenttobemoreindividual

andsympatheticwiththeirmaterials,anditchangedtherelationshipbetweenartistsand

technology(Itten1963).Theresponseoftheteacherandthechildin1950isstillrelevanttothe

digitalagetoday,becauseboththeteacherandthechildhadto“startfromthesamebase;

bothhadtoinventordiscover,torespondtothematerial,tofindwaysofusingit,toacceptthe

thingmade”(Field1970,p.14).Workingandlearningwithnewmaterialsandtechnologies

brought“aclarityofvisionwithrespecttothematerial,asincerityofresponse”(Field1970,

p.14).Thisdifferedfromtheresponsetotraditionalmaterialsthrough“theconventionalway”

becausenewconceptsofskillhadtobedeveloped“whileactuallydoingthejob”(Field1970,

p.14).Theprocessbecameasimportantasthefinishedartifacts.Butwhatreallystandsoutasa

paralleltotodayisthat“manyteacherssoonrealisedthatnewmediamightserveasastimulus

forfailinginterestorasacompensationforlackofsuccessinotherdirections”(Field1970,

p.15).ThisechoesWood(2003)whoclaimedsimilarsuccesswithdigitalmediainmodern

artrooms.The2009OFSTED(TheOfficeforStandardsinEducation,Children’sServicesand

Skills)reportonarteducationinEnglandandWalesfoundthatdigitalmediawasmakinga

positiveimpactonpupils”attainmentandtheexplorationofabstractconcepts.Thereport

foundthatstudents(particularlyboys)improvedinartclasseswhenICTwasprovided.Students

whostrugglewithtraditionalmediafindrecognitionascompetentmanipulatorsofdigital

media(Wood2003),which“isoftensupportedbyconsiderablehomeuse”(DaviesandWorrall

2003,p.92).

In2004ScottishprimaryschoolsintheAngusdistricttookpartinafour-yearpilotwith

ScottishScreen(nowCreativeScotland).TheMovingImageinEducationinitiativewasa

programmethatusedliteracy,numeracyandvisualskillstomakeshortfilmsandanimations.

Bazalgette(2009)reportedthatthispilothadprovidedpreviouslyfailingorexcludedlearners

withaccesstothecurriculum,andbuiltbridgesbetween“home“and“school”culturesand

knowledge,aviewsharedbyotherrecentreports(Wood2003;Lord,Jonesetal2007).Other

keyfindingswerethatmovingimageoffereddifferentroutesintoconceptsofliteracy,andit

gavelearnersasenseofagencyandautonomythatsupportedself-confidence.Iwouldargue

thatthisispossiblethroughthecollaborationandnonlinearlineofimaginativeinquiry

associatedwithdigitalmaking.ForSullivan(2010)thisisevidenceofmotivationand

engagementonadeepemotionallevelratherthananorganiseddivisionoflabour.

Assuch,conceptsofcollaborationaregroundedlessonnotionsofexpertsystemsthat

divideuprolesintermsofendsandmeans,ordesignanddelivery,butmorelikeshared

wonderthatrequiresnewwaysofthinkingaboutvisualandvirtualsystemsofinquiry.

(Sullivan2010,p.158)

Youngerchildrenstillapproachedphysicalmaterialswiththesameelasticandflexible

approachthatField(1970)acknowledged,butusingahybridpracticetheyalsosynthesised

themintoadigitalworldascollagesbecamescenicartor3Dmodelsbecamecharacters.

DeweyandBrunerarguethattheavailabilityofthetoolaffectsthethinkingandcreative

problemsolvingabilityofthelearner.“Thepupiloperatingasartistmust“think”inhis(sic)

medium;hissubjectmatteris,inDewey’swords“thequalitiesofthingsofdirectexperience”

(Dewey1934)”(Field1970,p.45).Bruner(1960)seesthecultureofwhattoolsareavailableand

howtheyareorganisedasalsobeingfundamentalinhowcognitiveabilitydevelops,which

arguablyhavespecialrelevancetodesign.“Designisacompoundofartistic,socialand

technologicalelements”(Field1970,p.61).

Duringmodernisttimes,theprevailingconstructwas“toseeistoknow”.Thiswasgrounded

onempiricalunderstandingbasedondirectexperienceanditwasmostlyachievedby

participationinthegrandtraditionofculturaltourism…Duringpostmoderntimes,welivein

amediatedvisualworldwherethereislittledistinctionbetweentherealandthevirtual.If

weunderstandtheconstructionsthatshapewhatwesee,then“toknowistosee”(see

Rose,G.2001VisualMethodologies).(Sullivan2010,p.171)

Sullivan(2010)bringsthesubjecttothemediatedworldofcontemporarypostmoderntimes

andtheimportanceofmovingimageinarteducationtoincreaselearnerliteracy,inbothtext

andvisualmodes,bythinkingandlearningthroughthismedia.Wells,HardstaffandClifton

(2008)arguethatanimationteachingmustbeflexibleenoughtomaintaintheevolutionofa

robustcriticalmethodology.

Allartseducationshouldbeaboutincitement,notaboutcomplicity,andthisissomething

thatthefreedomsofexpressioninanimationcanreadilyaccommodate.(Wells,Hardstaff

andClifton2008,p.21)

Movingimageoffersstimulatingopportunitiesforscreen-baseddigitalskills,3Dmodelling

anddrawingtodeveloptogether,allowingcontemporarymodesofcreationtobetaughtina

structuredprogrammeinanartscontext.Withinthecraftthereisfreedomtocritically

interpretandthinkwhiledoing.

Figure1.StoryboardforBBC2ident.Source:Gouldie2005.

STORYBOARDING-PRAXICALKNOWLEDGE

Thereareseveralreasonsforlearningtodrawinadigitalage.Krcma(2010)arguesthat

drawingcanbegivennewvisibilityandpurchase,re-energisedasitentersatransformative

relationwithothervisualtechnologies.Hanna(1998)arguesthatdrawingwithpencilandpaper

hasbeensupersededindesignbycomputer-aideddesign(CAD)andthedigitalpenandtablet

technology.Inarchitecture“theuniquenessofsketchingasadesigntool…isanoutdatedand

inaccurateconcept…CADisnotatool;CADisamedium”(Hanna1998,p.39).Architectsmay

wellbeabletovisualize3DspacemorerapidlywiththebuildingblocksandtoolsCADofferson

screen,butforthemotiongraphicdesignerandfilmdirectortheprocessofdrawinga

storyboard(seefigure1.)offersanimmersionintothevisualisationof2D,3Dand4Dspace

(Wells2008).

Drawingisconsideredthemostintellectualofthevisualartdisciplines…becauseitisthe

primarymeansbywhichartistsanddesignersinitiallydepictthree-dimensionalform,

conductinquiryandconceptualisetheirworks.(Addison&Burgess2007,p.204).

ThecontemporaryartpracticeofWilliamKentridgeprovidesanexampleofacreative

approachthatusesdrawingtofindnewwaysofthinking.BothBolt(2011)andKrcma(2010)

useKentridgetoillustratetheparticulartheoreticalunderstandingofcreativepracticethat

comesfromour“concernfuldealingswithourmaterials”(Bolt2011,p.94).Krcma(2010)gives

asimilaraccountofhowKentridgecomesuponaestheticornarrativeproblemswithinhis

drawnfilms,whichbecomeopportunitieswherehefindsnewwaysofthinkingthroughtheact

ofdrawing.Itis“thecontingencyofcircumstanceandthe“interference”ofmaterialprocess,

whichencouragewhatarthistorianBarbaraMariaStaffordhascalled“nonformalizable

momentsofflexibleinsight”(Krcma2010).AccordingtoMontgomery-Whicherdrawing

appearstobe“marginalisedbynewimage-makingtechnologies”(Montgomery-Whicher2001,

p.10),butthesignificanceofdrawingwillendurebecauseofitsverydifferencetodominant

practicesandmedia.

Inbroadertheoreticalterms,Heideggerdirectsustoexperiencetheworld,bybeing-in-the-

worldasDasein,inordertounderstandit.Practicalknowledgeisnotatheoretical,because

“handlingisnotblind,butproducesitsownkindofsight”(Bolt2011,p.96).Ourtheoretical

understandingallowsustousematerials,toolsandprocesseswithcare,“handlingascare

producesacrucialmomentofunderstanding,andthatunderstandingisarevealingof

possibilityinitsverypossibility(Bolt2011,p.97).DiscoveringaHeideggerianpraxical

knowledgethroughourskill,Bolt(2011)seesKentridge”saccountofhispracticeas“material

thinking”,referringtoCarter(2004)whosuggeststhatmaterialshave“theirownintelligence

thatcomeintoplayininteractionwiththeartist”screativeintelligence”(Bolt2011,p.163).This

haspedagogicrelevanceintheteachingofstudentsinthecreativearts.Studentsthemselves

canrecognizethattheycanbestlearnthroughactuallyhandlingamaterialor“doingit”

(Macdonald2012).Montgomery-Whicher(2001)alsotakesaHeideggerianviewtoexplainhow

drawingcancounteranenframingoftheworld,byexpandingandincreasingthedetailofour

vision,andthroughafocalpracticethatbringscontemplationitcancentreourlives.

Figure2.DrawingonaniPad.Source:Firth2013.

WhenIamworkingatastoryboard,asIdrawIamvisualizingthemovieinmymind.I

immersemyselfinthesettingandthenarrative;mypencilbecomespartofmeasIthink

throughthesequenceinaseriesofframes.Itisasimilarapproachtothewordassociation

drawingsofMarionRichardson,thepioneerofprogressivearteducationintheNewEducation

Movementofthe1920s,tolettheinnerimaginationexpressitself(Holdsworth1988;Smith

1996).Iamonlyconsciousofthematerialwhentheleadinthepencilbreaks.Heidegger

remindsusthatitisonlyatthesemomentsoftechnicalfailurethatwebecomeawareofthe

beingasequipment(Heidegger1954).Ourhelplessnesswithoutthepresenceofuseable

equipmentbecomesapparent.TheproductdesignerandlecturerRichardFirth,recognisesthe

differenceinthedigitalandanaloguematerialswhenitcomestomakingmistakes.Firthdraws

directlyonadigitalscreenusinganAppleiPad(seefigure2.),butfindsthatthedrawing“lacks

thescarsofthethinkingprocess”(Firthinterviewconductedbyauthor2011)whichwould

normallybeevidentinadrawingonpaper.Thesescarsrepresentpointsoflearning,andactas

referencepointsofthinkingandmarkthelivingexperiencewiththemedium.

TheartistDavidHockney,avocaladvocatefordrawing,mostrecentlyexhibitedaseriesof

digitaldrawings,createdonhisiPad,attheRoyalAcademy,London(2012).Thesedrawings,

madebyusingthesideofhisthumbandsentelectronicallytofriendstoshare,aredescribedas

“asdelicateasaTurner,luminousasstainedglassandashi-techasanyartbeingmadeinthe

worldtoday”(Gayford2010).ItisovertenyearssinceRaney(2001)wroteofherPalmPilot

studywithanartistinschoolintervention,nowthatdigitalhanddrawingshavebeenelevated

topublicdisplayattheRoyalAcademy,childrenmaynotfindtheexperienceofdrawingonan

iPadaslevellingandaslessselfconsciousasonthefarcruderPalmPilot.Gombrich(2002)

explainshowrepresentationaldrawingdependsonschematathatislearntculturally.Insome

ofthenewmedia,suchasthePalmPilotin2001,thereisnotanestablishedschematato

conformto.Furtherresearchexploringwhethertechnologyachievesgreatersophisticationto

mimictraditionalmediashouldbeexplored,takingintoaccounttraditionalschemata,and

expectationsoftraditionaldrawingskilltransferredtothenewmedia.

WhenteachingmovingimageIbeginwithtakingthestudentsthroughmyownstoryboards.

Thestoryboardsprovidealearningtool,adrawingthatrepresentsmycreativethinkingand

visualisationofascriptorbrief.Adams(2001),thecoordinatorfortheBigDraw,theeducation

programmefortheCampaignforDrawing,definesthreefunctionsofdrawing.Thesecanbe

appliedtostoryboarding.Thefirstisdrawingas“perception”,forpersonalpleasureorinsight.

Inmypracticeadirectorcanbeginanideawiththecrudestoutlinesketch,asthelegendhasit

“onthebackofafagpacket”or“napkin”.Secondlyitcanbeworkedupintogreaterdetailfor

clientpresentation:adrawingascommunication.Thirdly,drawingas“manipulation”itcan

allowthedirectortoreflect,refine,discardanddevelopasequentialnarrativeofimagesor

scenesthatillustrateamovingimagefilm.Byvisualisingcameraangles,arrangingtheelements

intheshotthatneedtofollowthescriptoridea,amosaicofshotscanbelaidout(seefigure

3.).Oftenitisusefultophotocopyandcutthemouttoallowmorefluidthinking.Eachframe

canrepresenteitherasignificantpointofdifferentactionoranothershotentirely.Itcan

representafractionofasecondormanyseconds.

Conceivably,becauseitcanbereadasacomicstrip,manyfilmmakersandadvertising

agenciescommissionstoryboardartistswithagraphiccomicbookstyle.However,the

idiosyncraticdrawingstyleofanindividualdesignerordirectorcancommunicatejustaswell

anditallowsamoreintimateandpersonalinvolvementwiththeproject,whichcanbe

communicateacompellingvisualunderstandingofthefilm.Forsomestudentsitcanbea

challengetovisualisedifferentanglesanddepthofaction,soImaysuggestthattheyfind

suitablesecondarypicturereferencestotraceandcollageratherthandrawfromimagination.

Figure3.StoryboardforBBC‘Film95’.Source:Author1994.

Unfortunately,someclientscanonlyreadastoryboardwhentheyseeitmoving,andthis

canbeespeciallytruewithmotiongraphics,whichcanoftenhaveamoreabstractcomposition

andcompresseddurationthanacommercial.Manyofmytelevisionclientshadaliteraryarts

educationratherthanavisualartsoneandoftenwhendiscussingabriefIwasreliedonto

translatetheirscriptintoimages,whereasinadvertisinganartdirectorwouldbeginacreative

discussionwiththeirsketchedstoryboard.Thiswasexpandedanddevelopedwithmyown

creativeinput.Withcameratechnicians,setdesignersandpropsmystoryboardswereread

literallyasabuilderwouldfollowanarchitect’splans,orusedsuggestivelyifrequired.

Filmmakingisateameffortandoftentherecanbeabetteroutcomefromembracing

colleagues”suggestionsasaresultofofferingthemcreativebreathingspace.Thiscanbe

replicatedtosomedegreeintheclassroomwithsmallgrouptutorialsthatallowthestudentto

presenttheirstoryboardstotheirpeersforfeedbackandevaluationofthemeansandcontent

ofwhatisbeingcommunicated.

Inthisstudy,thestoryboard’svalidityinthedigitalageisquestioned.Therestillappearsto

beahighdemandforsomeonewhocandraw,butalsosomeonewiththeexpertknowledge

andexperienceofadirectorwhocanvisualiseascriptforaclient,beitinadvertisingorfeature

films(Wells2008).Withinthemotiongraphicsindustrycreativedirectorsstillregarddrawingas

ahighlydesirable,ifnotessential,skilltohavewhenlookingtoemploynewgraduatetrainees

(Wormleightoninterviewconductedbyauthor2010).Designersanddirectorsneedtobeable

toexpressandthinktheirideasthroughtheirhands,andasKentridgedemonstratesinhis

work,drawingcanbeaprocessofthinkingaswellaslearning.

HYBRIDFUTURESINARTEDUCATION

In“Whythrowthenegsoutwiththebathwater?”(Macdonald2012)itisarguedthatthereis

adigitalorthodoxy,especiallywithineducation,inresponsetotheanxietytopreparechildren

foradigitalfutureinaglobalworkplace.Byfocusingonlensbasedmediawithinarteducation

thepaperrevealedsitesofresistanceandalternativepedagogicpracticesthatprovidedamore

pluralisticlearningenvironment.Contrarytopublicopinionnotallyoungpeopleare“techno-

geeks”,somefindheritagemedianotjust“cool”,butmoretactileandreal–qualitiesthatthey

valueinthedigitalmediatedworldthattheygrowupin(Macdonald2012).Thereareseveral

advantages,itcouldbeargued,toahybridofheritageanddigitalapproachestoeducationin

thevisualarts.

Thefirstadvantagecouldbetobringartandscienceclosertogether.Currentthinkingonthe

futuredirectionofeducationaswholesuggeststhatthereshouldbegreaterconvergenceof

skillsacrosstheartsandscience.Inthe2011MacTaggartLectureattheEdinburghTelevision

FestivalDr.EricSchmidt,CEOofGoogle,calledforanendtothepigeonholingof“luvviesand

boffins”andthattomorrow’sgraduatesshouldnotseethemselvessegregatedinsuchnarrow

definitions(BBC2011).Sullivanarguesthatnewdigitaltechnologiescanprovidethebridge

betweenartandscience:

Itisthedevelopmentofnewertechnologiessparkedbythedigitalrevolutionthatisforging

linksbetweentheartsandthesciences.AndforWilson(2002),theartsarecrucialtothis

enterpriseasthey“canfillacriticalroleasanindependentzoneofresearch,inwhichartists

integratecriticalcommentarywithhigh-levelknowledgeandparticipationintheworldsof

scienceandtechnology”(p.35).(Sullivan2010,p.163).

JohnMaeda,DirectoroftheMediaLabattheMassachusettsInstituteofTechnology,argues

thateducationshouldenablepeopletobecome“humanist-technologists”througha“post-

visualartseducation”.Artandtechnology“complimenteachotherinanecessaryunionof

relevantvisionunitedwithrelevantconstruction”inapurposefullearningenvironment(Maeda

2000,iv).Thisapproachisnotasnewasitmayseem.Maeda(2000)acknowledgesthetradition

oftheBauhausandthearteducationalresearchofJosefAlbersandMoholy-Nagytofindan

appropriatepedagogyatatimeofunprecedentedtechnologicaladvancementand

mechanizationduringthe1920”s.

OtherAmericanEastcoastacademics,suchasLuptonandPhillips(2008)atMaryland

InstituteCollegeofArt(MICA)inBaltimore,alsodrawonBauhausapproachesthatcombinea

humanistic(individualratherthanmachinecentred)approachtousingtechnologytodescribe

andinterpretvisualformsindesignthinking.AtTheCranbrookInstituteofArtinMichigan“the

messinessofhumanexperienceiswarmingupthecoldprecisionoftechnologytomakeit

livable,andlivedin”(McCoy&McCoy1990,p.14).Inareactiontotherational,systematic

approachofModernismtheyhaveembracedexpressiverulebreakinganddeconstructionsince

theeighties.Cranbrookwouldarguethattheyofferstudentsapluralistapproachtosuitthe

individualratherthanthesingularphilosophyoftheBauhaus.

Thereareothervoicesthatsuggest“algorithmicthinkingrequiresananalyticalbentof

mind”(Vidwans2008,p.152),andthatweneedto“developtechnologicalintuitionwithout

losingaestheticintuition”(Huang2008,p.167).Huang(2008)suggestsamoreEastern

philosophicalapproachusingWu-Weitodevelopamasteryoftechnologyinharmonywith

artisticpractice.ThisiscontrarytoWesternthinkerssuchasHeideggerwhowouldadvocate

thatweworkwithtechnologyratherthanattempttomasterit.

Itissignificantthatsomeofthemostradicalandhighlyreputedartanddesigneducation

institutionsareusingnewtechnologytobringartandsciencetogether,butretaininga

pluralisticapproachthataccommodatesheritagepracticestointerrogateandoftensubvertthe

originaluseofnewtechnology.Kittler(1999)describesaworldthatwillonlybeconceivedand

experiencedthroughdigitalmediawherecablesconnectingcomputersformahumanbypass,

removingusfromtheinformationhighwayloopandso“computersthemselvesbecome

subjects”(Kittler1999,p.258).Thisissurelyadystopiawemustavoid.

Anotheradvantageofahybridapproachtovisualarteducationislinkedwithliteracy.

FuturistssuchasAlvinToffleracknowledgethecontinuingtechnologicalchangenecessitates

thatpeoplemustcontinuetoeducatethemselves,otherwisethe21stcenturyilliteratewillbe

“someonewhocannotlearn,unlearn,andrelearn”(Toffler1971,forward).Illiteracyatitsmost

basiclevelofreadingandwritingisacentralconcernacrosstheworldsoTofflerwarnsusofthe

potentialforgreatersocialandeconomicinequality.IntheUKandotherdevelopedcountries

therapidincreaseofdigitalprocessingpoweratacorrespondingfallingcosthasalloweda

democratizationofdigitalmediaandcommunication.(Moore’sLawfollowsthat£1000of

memorytodaywillbeworth£1intwentyyearstime(Facer2011).)Whilesomecontestedthe

assumptionthattheuseandavailabilityofdigitalmediawasuniversalwithUKchildren(Hallin

Stanley2009),itisevidentthateachyearitbecomesareality.Theimpactofthisisthat“those

childrenwithaccesstodigitaltechnologiesoutsideschool,suchresourceshavethepotentialto

intensifytheimpactandreachoftheirinformallearning”(Facer2011,p.19).Withinthisthere

willcontinuetobeinequalities.

Importantly,someoftheseaugmentationswillhavethefunctionofempoweringand

extendingchildren’sagency,othersmaybeadministeredtolimit,andcontrolthem,and

thesedifferentpatternsmayplayoutalonglinesofwealth,ethnicityandgender.(Facer

2011,p.54)

Wildermuth(2010)arguesthateducationshouldfocusonempowermentratherthandigital

inclusion.Therearestrikingimbalancesacrosstheglobewherethevastmajorityofhumankind

iswithoutthephysicalresourcesorskillstobeadigitalcitizen.InIndia,theSarairesearch

projectinDelhihaschallengedtheculturalWesternhegemoniesandthedigitaldivideby

bringingtogetherartists,activists,urbanists,theoristsandcriticsonahybridmissiontoshare

learning(Lovink2005).NationssuchasBrazil,IndiaandChinaarerapidlygrowingeconomically

andhaveenormousresourcesofpeople.Thesenations,increasingly,willbringinnovationand

aresourcefulness,whichincludesheritageanddigitalpractices,toeducation.Havingtaught

recentlyinChinaIhavewitnessedtheappetitetoadaptandembraceneweducational

research,toinvolvehandcraftsanddigitalskillstomodelanddevelop3Ddesigns.

Asdigitaltechnologydevelopsitseemstomimicmoreanalogueexperiencesandsobringa

wholenewdimensiontoeducation.Hapticliteraciesthatgrowthroughheritageskillsand

analogueprocessesarelikelytobedevelopedindigitaltechnologiesthathavemotionsensors,

forexamplethosetechnologiesfoundintheWii.Informationandexperimentaldesignscould

befeltandnavigatedthroughinavirtualsimulation.Thespeedofreflectionandactionis

furtheraccelerated;theplasticityofadesignprocessbecomesgreater.It“bridgesthedivide

betweentheacademicandvocationalknowledges,betweenknowing“that”andknowing

“how”,betweenreflectionandaction”(Facer2011,p.65).Ofcourseendlessplasticityanda

fastercycleofactionandreflectionmayhaveabewilderingandoverwhelmingeffecttoless

competentandliterateartists.

Tobe“literate”inthisenvironment,istobeabletomodel,toexperiment,tovisualize,to

verbalize,towriteandtofilm(amongmanyotherthings)…Educatorswillneedtoengage

withthematerialsbywhichrepresentationsareproduced,withthewaysinwhichthe

hardwareandsoftware,thenetworksandbiologyofourmodesofcommunicationalso

servetostructureourpossibilitiesforrepresentation,modellingandcomprehension.(Facer

2011,p.71)

Theworldismoremediatedandsotheexperienceofthelearner,bothyoungandold,isalso

moreinter-textual(Darley2000).“Nothingisfinished,nothingiscomplete,nothingcannotbe

modified”(Facer2011,p.75).Thecreativeopportunitiesonlineallowforpeopleto“mashup”

music,video,textandimagetocreateindividualcompositionsandproducts.Thesecanbe

foundonfansites,whichprovideopportunitiestocreate,disseminateandengagediscoursefar

beyondtheclassroom.Thisheavilymediatedexperiencemaybecreative,butitisfarremoved

fromRichardson’sapproachthatviewedchildren’sartwithaRomanticpurityofvision,or

Heidegger’sargumentforunmediatedauthenticity.Itisquestionablewhetherauthentic

creativeexpressioncaneverbefoundortaughtifthetechnologyandmediausedallowsfor

contenttobeeasilysofluidlyinter-textual.Thismaybetheboundarybetweenarteducation

andmediastudies.

CONCLUSION

Thispaperhasendeavouredtocontextualisethechallengethatfacesartanddesign

educationincontemporarydigitalartanddesign.Thereareperennialsimilaritiesoverthelast

hundredyearsonhowthechoiceofmaterialshasanaffectontherelationshipbetweenartand

technology.ThechangesthatIndustrialisationandAmericancommercialisationbroughttoart

educationatthebeginningofthetwentiethcenturyhasresonancewiththedigitalrevolutionin

theearlytwenty-firstcentury.Yetitcanbearguedthattheplaceofdrawingasameansof

thinkingthroughthemediumremainsavitalandimmediateasithasnoeconomicorsocial

constraints.Whateverthelabelgiventovisualarteducation,thechallengeremainstodefend

itspurposeandroleineducation.Theemphasiswillchangewiththelanguageusedinits

defence,dependingontheaudienceitseekstoinfluence.WesternGovernmentslooktothe

economicvalueoftheartsasacommodity,aworkforcethatcangenerateprosperityand

economicgrowth.Withinacademiathereisalsotheopportunitytobringartandsciencecloser

togetherthroughtechnology,andfollowingHeidegger,ameansofcontinuallyquestioningthe

authenticityoftheinnervisionincreativeexpression.

Manyartcollegesanduniversitiescontinuetosupportheritageandanaloguefacilitiesthat

attractandareappreciatedbystudents.Digitalmonoculturecanbefoundinhighereducation,

butifitweretobecomethemainstreamitwouldmarkasignificantthreattoheritage

processesthatcouldatrophyandbelostforever.Itisparticularlyimportantinmyfieldof

movingimageandanimation.

Pluralistapproachesshouldembraceallvisualartseducation,toallowindividualexpression,

acriticalquestioningandthinkingusingachoiceofmediaandcross-curriculacooperationand

exposurethroughnewsitesofpublicengagement,bothphysicalandvirtual:digitalgardens

withrealtoadsinthem.

digital gardens with real toads in them: the place of ... · figure 1. storyboard for bbc 2 ident....

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