Teaching Meaning in Artmaking

by Sydney Walker

Book by Walker, Sydney

Genres: Education, Art

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 31, 2001

Reviews

[Ally · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must have for any art educator or other content area teacher who is interested in putting the 'meaningful' back into learning --- this book is a great 'how to' guide on the direction of allowing students to make art that is personal and relevant to them ---not, copy this artist's style or sponge up these technical processes --- this book is a great intro the the series and provides a nice peak into what all the books have to offer.

[Peaches · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked so much of this book. Though it came out in 2001, feel that it still is very informative and relevant. Walker does an excellent job making content approachable for educators with many examples and blending theory with accessible language. She clearly wants educators to consider her ideas and experiment with them. I found myself thinking of how her ideas could transfer to my arts-based undergraduate composition courses and appreciated her clear definitions of big ideas, themes, etc. I love that she wants art to be like research with exploration, experimentation, and sometimes failure.
I can't give it five stars because I didn't like that she felt students had to be limited by teacher's prompts to be successful. I also didn't like that she felt students needed to constantly view adult artists to emulate and model. Yes, adult artists are talented, but I am far too learner-centered. I'm also not an art teacher, so I don't have to teach my students about artists. Those in art ed. do, so I guess that is her target audience.

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Teaching Meaning in Artmaking is an excellent resource for art teachers who would like their students to get a little more out of art class. It can help you develop and implement strategies that will help students understand art and make art that is more meaningful. It is easy to read and follow. Included are teaching tips and example lesson plans. I would recommend this book for any art teacher.