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    ETA 8 (1) pp. 2347 Intellect Limited 201

    International Journal of Education through Art

    Volume 8 Number 1

    2012 Intellect Ltd Article. English language. doi: 10.1386/eta.8.1.23_1

    Keywordsarteducationcreativitysustainability

    well beingcreative workshop

    palavras-chave

    arteeducaocriatividadesustentabilidadebem estar

    workshop criativo

    susana TeresoInstituto Superior de Agronomia

    eimt ti

    tg t

    absTracTThe work presented in this article aims to examine different approaches to experi-encing the relationship between art and nature as a model of sustainability. Theobjectives include the enhancement of sensibility senses, emotions, feelings, affec-tions as a way to directly experience the well-being promoted by joining art andnature, including harmony, beauty and diversity. The importance of the naturalcycles is revealed by focusing on the light and colour during the day. Scientific knowl-edge is associated with the hands-on approach to achieving a superior consciousness.Different methodologies relating education through art psychopedagogy, the creativeworkshop and the experience and knowledge of the natural environment are created.The ultimate goal is to generate new ideas and creative procedures for joining indi-

    vidual well-being with global sustainability. The experiences developed in a naturalreserve were applied in rethinking the city as a common space where human beingsand local nature are joined to build a superior way of living.

    resuMo

    O trabalho apresentado neste artigo procura examinar diferentes aproximaes naexperimentao da relao entre arte e natureza como um modelo de sustentabili-dade. Os objectivos incluem o realce da sensibilidade sensaes, emoes, senti-mentos, afectos como forma de experienciar directamente o bem estar promovidopela associao entre arte e natureza, incluindo harmonia, beleza e diversidade. Aimportncia dos ciclos naturais revelada centrando-se na luz e na cor ao longodo dia. O conhecimento cientfico associado a uma abordagem prtica no sentido

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    Susana Tereso

    de atingir uma conscincia superior. Foram concebidas diferentes metodologias querelacionam a psicopedagogia da Educao pela Arte, o Workshop Criativo e a exper-incia e o conhecimento do ambiente natural. O objectivo final consiste em gerarideias novas e procedimentos criativos, por forma a associar o bem estar individualcom a sustentabilidade global. As experincias desenvolvidas numa Reserva Natural

    foram aplicadas na reflexo sobre a cidade como um espao comum onde os sereshumanos e a natureza local se associam para construir uma forma de viver superior.

    InTroducTIon

    Art is a fundamental tool for education (Read 1943, in Sousa 2003), and canincrease environmental sustainability through integration with science (J. Saltz,

    Art Review, August 2006). The power of art to persuade, and to create doubt,consciousness and a new global perspective, is fundamental in human mobi-lization for this cause (J. Gilbert-Rolfe, E. Holloway, J. Hanley, S. Hustvedt andS. Durant,Art Review, August 2006). Artistic movements such as Land Art, Earth

    Works and Art Povera have represented environmental art mainly since the 1960s,as a response to destruction of the environment and technological development.A natural reserve is a model of the environment where humans receive

    and preserve the well-being of nature. The natural reserve of the Sado Estuaryis a Portuguese Protected Area with 23160 hectares located in the region ofSetbal, where the River Sado meets the sea. Local activities include tour-ism, salt extraction and fishing. Local human activities have been significantlydamaging to the natural environment of this natural reserve. The residentpopulation of the bottlenose dolphin, unique to Portugal, is vulnerable and atrisk of extinction. The Salinas habitat is also at risk of extinction due to humaninterference. The Salinas are an essential habitat for the reproduction, resting

    and nourishment of the aquatic birds of the Sado Estuary, creating a waterreservoir even during drought or in freezing temperatures. The forest of thenatural reserve is also endangered due to human activities, and climate changemay negatively affect approximately 75% of the species in the Sado region, asa consequence of the severe impact on forestry and agricultural habitats fore-seen for this region. Therefore, this postdoctoral biology project was started

    with the aim to educate the local population, including the local schools.The project was developed in such a way that achieving sustainable art

    through a creative environmental education process was natural. The didac-tical unit, the creative workshop, was applied to environmental education ina series of creative activities, resulting in a possible process involving educa-tion through art, as well as art in and of itself. Creative workshop procedureincludes a subjective approach, where each creative activity included an opensituation and the performance of tasks, confrontation and try in a differ-ent way, as well as the material (Marcinkowska 2006: 39698). The princi-ples of art education were applied, including learning through direct experiencefor self-development, progressivism, puerocentrism (education centred on thechild), personalism (consideration of the childs personality), freedom, sponta-neity, non-directivity, Luddism, creativity and the creative group (Sousa 2003).By acquiring the principles of art education, a higher consciousness and knowl-edge on sustainability, I was prepared for the beginning of a personal artis-tic project. I address the importance of entering a self-experience process toattain deeper wisdom about ourselves and the natural environment of which

    we are a part. Art education is experienced in this project through a holistic

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    approach, applying the precautionary principle first defined in the frame of theRio Declaration. According to the Principle no. 15,

    In order to protect the environment, the precautionary approach shall bewidely applied by States according to their capabilities. Where there arethreats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shallnot be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to preventenvironmental degradation. (www.unep.org/Documents.multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=78&ArticleID=1163)

    The different approaches to sustainable art education described in this arti-cle are important contributions to achieving a higher consciousness as a newparadigm for art education.

    projecT One day in SadO!

    In 2004, my postdoctoral project started with One day in Sado!by joining nature

    tourism and art photography in a special route in the natural reserve of theSado Estuary (RNES). A collaboration with the natural reserve services wasformed, allowing the organization and coordination of a one-day photographytour joining professional and amateur nature photographers and their families(Figure 1AC). Professional photographers could give technical and aestheticadvice to the amateurs and to the family members. The participation of thefamilies allowed the establishment of a deeper relationship with nature, therebycontributing to intergenerational sustainable consciousness. A preparatory expla-nation of the tour environment and natural elements was previously publishedon the Internet where people could register. Most participants had previouslytaken a nature photography course, as had I. I led the tour in collaboration

    with the local authorities, where people stayed together as a group and couldcreate their works in a free manner. Four locations in the natural reserve wereselected to be part of the tour, based on their aesthetics experienced on previous

    visits. Starting with the observation of the sunrise in the northern area, the tourtook the participants on a walk in a forest of millenary wild olive trees, ended

    with a lunch where people could exchange ideas and discuss their experiences.The sunlight was followed through a walk in the western area where the waterreflections were explored, and in the South area at sunset. Forty-one works ofart photography were selected by photographer and professor Eurico Melo fromthe Universidade Nova de Lisboa, based on their technical and aesthetic quali-ties and not on being professional or amateur works. The works were exhib-ited through a local travelling exhibition in the natural reserve and in the maincultural locations of the city of Setbal, the City Hall Library and the ForumLusa Tody. In order to continue this project, the ris Movement was created incollaboration with photographers Fonseca Loff and Daniel de Oliveira, by join-ing art photography and nature tours in the natural reserve (Figure 1D). The risMovement started through a manifesto focusing on the value of well-being andsharing in experimental photography, which was published through the crea-tion of a website. The members participated in a number of creative photogra-phy tours in the natural reserve of the Sado Estuary. The works of photographycreated in this project were used in the frame of the following projects describedin this article, in presentations in Portuguese local schools, and in internationalsecondary and superior schools in the frame of the work visit to the International

    Institute of Education Through Art in dz, Poland. One Day in Sado Estuary!

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    was followed by the project To Feel the Mountain!where the same procedureswere followed but focused on the theme of the senses.

    projecTTO Feel The MOunTain!

    Art photography can work as a therapeutic process, by using colour for self-expression. Our deepest emotions are in the subconscious as images, for whichcolour has been used as art therapy (Withrow 2004). Colour, as an impor-tant tool for creating emotional balance, affects each of us in different ways,and a variety of visual stimuli and change is required for human well-being(Mahnke and Mahnke 1993). Therefore, in 2005, the project To Feel the

    Mountain! was created as an art photography route in the Natural Park ofthe Serra de So Mamede based on our senses, in collaboration with theProtected Area services. A Natural Park is a model of an environment

    where humans can live in harmony with their environment. Nature can bea dynamic partner in human well-being (Berger 2004). A walk in a natu-ral place can be a key to the therapeutic process, as a home-in-nature a hiding place where human beings feel safe and well (Berger 2006). Thetrip to the Portuguese interior mountain Serra de So Mamede representsa journey to our personal essence. A special art photography route wasdesigned along different places in the Natural Park, ending at the top ofthe Serra de So Mamede mountain (Figure 1E). An existing route SoMamede Path was also taken in collaboration with a local group, whichresulted in a number of works of art photography (Figure 1F). These works

    were selected by each participant and presented through the organization of

    a collective travelling exhibition in the main local cultural locations, includ-ing Portalegre City Library, Marvo City Hall Museum, Arronches Cultural

    Figure 1: Art and nature tourism projects: One Day in Sado!(A) Sun rising; (B) Day; (C) Sunset; (D) Toursby the ris Movement Project. To Feel the Mountain!:(E) Exhibition, (F) So Mamede Path, (G) Detailof the Installation in dz .

    A

    D E F G

    B C

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    Center and Campo Maior Cultural Center. In the frame of a work visit to theInternational Institute of Education Through Art, these works were used aspart of an installation (Figure 1G), performance and happening in the frameof the international conference Art Therapy in dz, Poland (Tereso 2007b).In the happening, it was suggested to the participants that they imaginethat the chocolate packages were a mandala cake inspired by the work ofProfessor Wieslaw Karolak (2004), and that they taste them. Inside some ofthe packages were previously placed thumbnails of the photographs exhib-ited earlier in the collective travelling exhibition. With these photographythumbnails, the participants built an exhibition of painting easels covered

    with locally collected oak leaves. The experience and knowledge obtainedfrom the work visit to the International Institute of Education Through Artin Poland resulted in the project We are Going to Save the Dolphin!and theprogramme We are going to take care of Sado!.

    projecT Walk TO MOuriSca TideMill!

    This project was developed in 2006 in the RNES, in collaboration with theRNES services and teacher Brbara Giraldes from the Centro Alfredo Pinheiroprimary school in Cascais, Portugal, who I had met during my participationin a workshop on Education Through Art at the Cascais Cultural Center in2005. According to Richard Louv, there is a relationship between naturedeficit and disturbing childhood trends, presenting ideas for a better wayto live with nature (2008). The natural environment has been the contextand content of training for teaching of environmental education through art(Miraglia and Smilan 2009). In order to integrate knowledge on and experi-ence of education through art obtained in the workshop mentioned above, acreative workshop was integrated into a walking route in the project Walk to

    Mourisca Tidemill!.A walk guidebook was prepared for the class of 69-year-old students of Centro Alfredo Pinheiro, including the definitions of natu-ral reserve, estuary and marshland, the localization of the RNES, naturaland cultural elements they would see during the walk, and the materialsrequired for the walk. The guide-book and my art photography works onthis natural reserve were part of a presentation at the school. From thisproject, close-up and Polaroid photography, drawing, painting and writing

    were developed by the students during a special walking route that I led incollaboration with their teacher Brbara Giraldes (Figure 2AL). Based on

    what the participants experienced during the walk, groups of four to fivechildren created a story sketch. In the classroom, under the supervision of

    their teacher, the students further developed one of the story sketches into alegend (Figure 2M). The opinions of the students and teacher on the activi-ties were all positive. The resulting works were shown through a collectivetravelling exhibition in the natural reserve and in the main citys culturallocations, including the telling of the legend created (Tereso 2007a). Theexhibition included an installation using local materials such as burlap andflour once used to make the bread in this tidemill, together with ecologicalcoloured flour, and a tent for the storytelling made by the visiting teachersfor their students. The work visit to the International Institute of EducationThrough Art mentioned above gave me a deeper knowledge on and experi-ence of education through art and in the methodology of the creative work-

    shop, allowing me to create the project We are going to save the dolphin!andthe programme We are going to take care of Sado!

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    projecT We are gOing TO Save The dOlphin!

    From the experiments previously described, in 2008 a model of environmentaleducation through art was designed based on a thorough investigation intothe RNES environmental questions, the biology, habitat and history of thenatural elements involved, contact with the local cultural and artistic entitiesand their most interesting RNES natural elements, and the development ofcreative activities, workshops and projects using education through art meth-odologies (AAVV 2000, 2004; Sousa 2003; Marcinkowska 2006; Santos 2008).

    A work visit was made to the International Institute of Education Through

    Art in dz, Poland, in the frame of which a class of 1013-year-old studentsfrom a local school illustrated the legend previously created (Tereso 2008).

    Figure 2: ProjectWalk to Mourisca Tidemill!. (A) The walk; (B)(E) Close-up photography; (F) Legendsketch; (G)(K) Polaroid photography; (L) Painting; (M) Legend.

    A B C

    D E F

    G H I J K

    L M

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    In the classroom, the students attended a presentation of the previous projectsdeveloped, and participated in the telling of the legend (Figure 3AC). Afterone week, a creative activity started by presenting the bottlenose dolphinthrough the five human senses. Each group made an illustration using flourand water over students used paper (Figure 3DJ). In Portugal, the work-shop We are going to save the dolphin!included four creative activities involv-ing 109 students from five local primary schools: a private school, a school fororphan students and three schools located next to the natural reserve. Theschools were invited to participate in the activities in and through the RNESas host institution of the project. Activity 1 was performed in the classroom,

    where teachers and students told the legend and performed and drama. Inthe RNES, the students identified with the dolphin and created a personaldorsal fin and dolphin by reusing personal materials (Activity 2), and throughbody expression (Activity 3) based on published bottlenose dolphin soundsand movements. After identifying with the dolphins population situation,

    Figure 3: Activities developed in collaboration with a school in dz, Poland (A)(C) Oral presentation;(D)(J) Legend illustrations.

    A

    C D E F

    G H I J

    B

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    each student created a personal petition postcard to the director of the RNES(Activity 4). The workshop We are going to Save the Dolphin! resulted in a totalof 544 works of self-expression (Figure 4AC). I followed the principle thatit is important to involve the students in the programme in an active way(Ballantyne et al. 2001a).

    programme we are goIng To TaKe care of sado!

    In 20082009, the previous experience led to the creation of an envi-ronmental education through art programme in the RNES host institu-tion, whereby the schools were invited to participate by publishing theprogramme on the Internet (http://portal.icnb.pt/ICNPortal/vPT2007/O+ICNB/Centro+de+Documentacao/Noticias+-+Arquivo/Detalhe+Noticia/

    Vamos+Cuidar+Sado.htm). The creative activities that I led and involving atleast one school class started with a nature tourism walking route, pre-existingor specially created depending on the creative activity needs. Three enquiriesdirected to the professors, students and their parents were created based on

    the previous approaches developed by an Australian research group focusingon the impact of different environmental education programmes (Ballantyneet al. 2001a2001c, 2006). Unusual or pleasant experiences outside the class-room such as a creative walk in the natural environment may inspire inter-generational discussion (Ballantyne et al. 2001a). Intergenerational influence isthe process through which young people can act as catalysts of environmen-tal change among their parents and other adult members of the community(Uzzell 1994). Knowing that young people can influence the adult environmen-tal consciousness (Kruger 1992; Sutherland and Ham 1992; Uzzell 1994), the

    Australian research group suggested using this process in their programmes(Ballantyne et al. 1998a). The enquiries on the training course aimed to analyse

    the effectiveness of acquiring knowledge and experience on environmen-tal education through art. The enquiries directed to the teachers/educatorsanalysed the objectives of the creative activities and their achievement, andthe difficulties, results and innovation of the proposals. The students parentsenquiries analysed the intergenerational influence of the students, by focusingon the depth of the discussion between students and parents, on the activi-ties or factors inspiring their discussion, and on the level of influence of theirdiscussion on the parents changes in attitudes and behaviour. I followed theprinciple that students can share their environmental knowledge and attitudes

    with their parents, creating a positive influence (Ballantyne et al. 1998b, 2001a).After the realization of each activity of the RNES programme, the intergen-

    erational influence of environmental education was promoted by proposing tothe teachers/educators that they reproduce and recreate the activity togetherwith their students and students parents, and also involve the local popula-tion. I followed the principle that the experience of teaching others about goodenvironmental practices contributes to our own environmental conscience.In addition, it might be a way to get parents involved and thereby be influ-enced by their children. In the frame of the Australian environmental educationprogrammes according to students parents, the intergenerational discussion

    was inspired by homework projects or school and community presentationsmade by the students (Ballantyne et al. 2001a, 2001b). One of the schoolsparticipating in the previous project We are going to save the dolphin! sent me

    a Powerpoint presentation on sensitivity towards on dolphins. According tothe psicopedagogic basis of education through art, people should satisfy their

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    own needs (Sousa 2003), for which they are not obliged to perform the activi-ties proposed (B. Marcinkowska, personal communication). This principle wasapplied to both the creative activities and the answers to the enquiries. The crea-tive workshop To Know the Reserve by Color!included the creation of trees madeof flour and water and painted with natural elements by 12-year-old children,resulting in 32 works (Figure 4D). The benefits of colour (Mahnke and Mahnke1993; Withrow 2004) are experimented with using local natural elements. ToPhotographthe little drop of water girlincluded storytelling and drama performed

    with the collaboration of 35-year-old children, followed by the creation of apersonal story through collage, resulting in 35 works (Figure 4EG). To Play inthe Estuary!included the building of musical instruments made of tree elementsby 35-year-old children, followed by music expression exercises inspired byeducation through music exercises (Sousa 2003), and drawing, resulting insixteen works (Figure 4H). The Reggio Emilia approach to early childhoodeducation is a reference, where learning through the use of the senses joinsself-expression with the environment as educator (Cadwell and Gandini 1997;Tarr 2001). Give Me a Water Mirror! involved bird photography and sound

    identification by 78-year-old students in the natural reserve during the walk,followed by the creation of a personal bird and bird sound, and the creationof a written and/or visual petition for bird preservation, resulting in 34 works(Figure 4I). We are going to save the dolphin! involved primary and secondaryschool students, and incorporated new visual techniques resulting in 206 works(Figure 4J), and the legend drama (Figure 4K). I Am a Tree! included the crea-tion of a personal tree, group body expression for creating a forest, and thecreation of a petition associated with global climate change, resulting in 56

    works (Figure 4L). Teaching about global warming has been proven to increasestudents consciousness and action-taking in solving this problem (Lester et al.2006). Trees! included body expression and tree-texture exercises, followed by

    the creation of a personal pine or cork oak tree through written and/or visualexpression, resulting in 90 works (Figure 4M). To Photograph the Marshlands!included photography of natural reserve elements similar to elements fromeach of the other Portuguese Protected Areas, by students from the primaryand secondary schools (Figure 4N).Air Diary! included the smelling, touchingand observation of local aromatic plants and, after consulting the manuscript

    Air Diaryon local aromatic plants, the creation of a personal aromatic plant asa character (Figure 4O). To Feel the Estuary!was developed in collaboration witha local artist, and involved a creative moonlight walk based on the adult partici-pants touch, smell and taste, followed by a drawing session using permanentink (Figure 4P). The public animation project was developed in collaboration

    with a local professor from the Superior School of Education, involving a pres-entation of the previous work and local birds in the classroom, a guided visitto the natural reserve and Salinas, and the ateliers Bread, Soup, Saltand Danceinvolving 150 students from a local primary school (Figure 4Q, R). To visit theSado Collection!included a guided visit to Susana Teresos Sado Collectioninstal-lation, followed by the creation of a drawing project by 1416-year-old students,

    where a personal natural reserve was applied to a group-made natural reserve,resulting in 36 works (Figure 4S). Individual exhibitions Take Care of Sado!and We are Going to Take Care of Sado! were followed by the organizationof the collective exhibition Art in Sado!, with the participation of local artists,in the local city libraries (Figure 4T). Further creative activities were performed

    in 2009 and 2010 by establishing the collaboration project We are going to knowthe Sado Estuarywith a local school, involving the teaching of drawing, painting

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    Figure 4: ProgrammeWe are going to save the dolphin!(A) dolphin dorsal fin; (B) bodyexpression; (C) postcard petitions from the five schools. ProgrammeWe are going to take care ofthe Sado!; creative workshops; (D) To Know the Reserve by Color!; (E)(G) To PhotographThe little drop of water girl!; (E) drawing; (F) tissue collage; (G) paper collage; (H) To Play inthe Estuary!; (I) Give Me a Water Mirror!; (J)We Are Going to Save the Dolphin!; (K) Legenddrama; (L) I Am a Tree!; (M) Trees!; (N) To Photograph the Marshlands; (O)Air Diary!;

    (P) To Feel the Estuary!; (Q)(R) public animation project; (S) creative workshopTo visit the Sado Collection!; (T) Sado Collection.

    A B C D

    E F G H

    M N O P

    Q R S T

    I J K L

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    and modelling of estuary natural elements. This experience inspired me tostart a Ph.D. on Painting at the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Lisbon(FBAUL), involving an art research project that is ongoing.

    projecT paradiSe

    During the final part of my postdoctoral degree in Biology, and as my recentPh.D. on painting was running in Lisbon, I decided to start the art project Paradisein Lisbon, aiming to participate in the sustainability of the city by promoting thecreation of urban parks (Tereso 2010). The idea of urban parks has developedmainly from the nineteenth century onwards, trying to mimic nature, and inparticular the multidimensional value of trees in city comfort has been recog-nized (Almeida 2006). The concept of a green city has been greatly expanded

    worldwide. However, according to the study European Green City, Lisbon isa weak performer (http://aeiou.visao.pt/infografia-cidades-verdes=f541368,accessed 31 January 2010). The city should provide its inhabitants with aboutten square meters of green space, integrated in the habitation structure, and

    thirty square meters as complementary green space of recreation and, there-fore, of intensive use (Telles 2003: 285). This idea was explored through thephotography work Green City (Figure 5), where photographs of my art studiolocalized close to the Arrabida Natural Park. I decided to organize the collectiveexhibition Naked Lisbon in 2011, including works by students of the SuperiorCreativity School the Escola Superior de Design, Marketing e Publicidade

    Figure 5: Project Paradise. Work of photography Green City(art studio) (A)(N) 15cm10cm.

    A B C D

    E F G H I

    J K L M N

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    (IADE), the personal works Green Cityand Rosemary, and the engraving seriesWild Olive Treeand the video Cork Oakby the invited artist Lus Valente.

    As trees are a symbol of the purity of air, stability and ultimately the cosmos(Bachelard 2000), seven Portuguese indigenous trees adapted to the localconditions were the subjects of drawing, painting, engraving and installation(Figure 6). Local indigenous plants are increasingly being used for adaptation tolocal conditions, in accordance with the local landscape, and for their capacityfor reproduction (Costa 1996). The exhibited works were based on the philoso-phy of sumi-epainting, a Japanese traditional style focusing on the essential, the

    Figure 6: Project Paradise. Experiments joining the sumi-eand occidental paintings (A) sumi-etechnique;(B) introduction of red colour in the sumi-epainting; (C), (D) different Portuguese indigenous trees;(E), (F) watercolour using one type of paint or various paints on Japanese paper; (G) rosemary painting on

    manufactured azulejo; sumi-estroke with (H) watercolour, and (I) after graphite sketch, with (J) sumi ink(K) on canvas.

    A B C D

    E F G

    H I J K

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    soul of natural elements, and ritual based on harmony (Sato 2010). In order topresent ideas for the citys sustainability, the exhibition Urban Parks occurredin 2011 at the headquarters of Lisbon City Hall, where seven Portuguese indig-enous trees were exhibited together with the artworks (Tereso 2011). In paral-lel, five art exhibitions focusing on the idea of joining human beings with eachof the indigenous trees have been planned for the next five seasons, in collabo-ration with Sesimbra City Hall.

    projecTSuMi-e painTing and SuSTainabiliTy

    A Ph.D. project on the fine arts by the FBAUL has been in developmentsince 2010 in a private studio at the Arrabida Natural Park. At present, thisProtected Area is in danger due to the presence of the cement company Seciland various quarries (Figure 7). In this frame, the state of the art on artis-tic concepts of sustainability and ecosystem has been delineated (Figure 8).The Revival of Space by George Steinmann was identified as a sustainablemental sculpture(Kurt 2006: 139). International art movements on natural

    Figure 7: Unsustainability in the Arrabida Natural Park (A) Cement industry

    Secil; (B)(D) Quarry Quimipedra; (E)(F) Arrabida Mountain, by SusanaTereso, digital photography 30cm40cm, 2011.

    A

    C

    E

    B

    D

    F

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    Figure 8: Artworks from contemporary artists based on artistic concepts of sustainability (A) George Steinman,The Revival of Space, reform of the Tallin Art Hall as sustainable sculpture, 19921995; (B) SandhiSchimmel Gold, Mother Nature, Collage on paper, 2010; (C) Renata de Andrade, installation, no date (n.d.);(D) Henrique Oliveira, Tapumes, wood 3.5m23m1.4m (2006); (E) Ann Elis, necklace, trush jewellery;(F) Steven Rodrig, Theres No Data Like Home, circuit boards, 20.32cm10.16cm12.7cm (n.d.);(G) Robert Bradford, no title, armature wooden toys, 1m2m0.5m (n.d.); (H) Braga Tepi, MeditaoUniversal, iron sculpture, 180cm44cm54cm and base diameter 46cm (n.d.); (I) Bansky, Graffiti over wall,I dont believe in Global Warming(n.d.); (J) Verheggen, Dog Sled Riders, iron sculpture on iceberg (2010);(K) Miguel Palma, sculpture Carbon 14(1998); (L) Fernanda Fragateiro, projectAir, Earth, Water, Light,

    Iron, Time, installation at the Garden of the Painters(2008); (M) Alberto Carneiro, The four elements,installation of iron, plastic, photography and natural elements, 200 x 200 x 200 cm (196970).

    A

    BC

    D

    E

    F

    G

    H

    JI

    K L M

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    environment started by exhibitions such as Earth Works in 1968 (Kastnerand Wallis 1998: 2), and Earth Art in 1969. The present fear of global envi-ronmental unsustainability was expressed in exhibitions such as RadicalNature Art and Architecture for a Changing Planet 19692009 in 2009

    (www.barbican.org.uk/artgallery/event-detail.asp?ID=8908, accessed 01 May2011), and Rising to the Climate Challenge (www.tate.org.uk/modern/eventseducation/symposia/20797.htm, accessed 1 May 2011). In Portugal,different artistic concepts of sustainability have been created, such as theecological art of Alberto Carneiro (19681971; Rosendo 2007a, 2007b),Ecossistemain 1995 and Carbono 14in 1998 by Miguel Palma, and the project

    Air, Earth, Water, Light, Iron, Time by Fernanda Fragateiro (2008). Naturalplants have been used in artistic installations such as the projects of JosephBeuys (Reames 2005: 42), Mark Dion and the Chicago Urban Ecology ActionGroup, Guerrilla Gardening (www.guerrillagardening.org/, accessed 1 May2011), and Time Landscapeby Alain Sonfist.

    at, S TqThe project Sumi-e painting and Sustainability is developing a sustainabilityconcept by joining the fine arts with scientific data and technical knowledge, asare many contemporary artists (Kagan 1994; AAVV 2007; Laiglesia et al. 2010).There is an increasing tendency towards the creation of spaces in the borderbetween art and life, in which social, scientific and art experimental works aredeveloped for sustainability (Kurt 2006: 143). Art and science are both associ-ated with creativity. Art, as a word to which nothing real already corresponds(Heidegger 2004: 11), finds in science an objective and validated knowledge(Wilson 2002: 3), and in art technology its methods, technical processes, materi-als and tools (Bain 1937: 860). Science theorizes the real (Heiddeger 2007: 158),

    whereas art is focused on the artists individuality (Rodrguez in Laiglesiaet al. 2010: 27). Considering that art and science involve different sustainabil-ity conceptualization processes (Kurt 2006: 143), by joining art and science,

    we can put together the sensitive and rational knowledges in a broader vision(Cassidy 1964: 16; Prez,2008: 5051). Technique links the concepts with thereal world and transforms the knowledge into a product (Franco in Laiglesiaet al. 2010: 212). By joining art, science and technique, we can obtain experi-mental objects(Caeiro in Laiglesia et al. 2010: 47). The hybridization process mayinvolve the establishment of dialogues, such as in the projectNeuston, where amore profound knowledge valorized the emotional (Valverde in Laiglesia et al.2010: 199), and in the project Hydrotopia/Hydrophobia: Contemporary Art and

    Waters Fortunesfocusing on the sustainable agriculture on the coast and in themarshlands (Kurt 2006: 143). The difficulty in separating the artistic and scien-tific aspects of the projects (Tudela in Laiglesia et al. 2010: 277) may emergein a discourse plurality associated with a holistic consciousness of the need forsustainability. In the frame of my Ph.D. project Sumi-e Painting and Sustainability,the scientific data from seven trees and indigenous (autochthonous) aromaticplants from the Arrabida Natural Park were associated with the sumi-epaint-ing technique. These plants are being increasingly used in the indigenous land-scape due to their adaptability, low maintenance costs and good framing in thelocal landscape (Costa 1996; Magalhes 1992: 30203), and possibly to a newecological conscience of the need to conserve the local natural environment

    (Castro 2000). This includes to preserve the spirit of the place as all that gives toa landscape a unique character, including the factors involved in the landscape

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    perception (Magalhes 1994) such as the local plants (Magalhes 1992: 302).In my project, a herbarium of leaves from each local indigenous tree wasconstructed. A number of photography works were made focusing on theseplants in the winter (Figure 9). Sumi-epaintings of the Portuguese indigenoustrees have been created in the spring (Figure 10). More works on this paintingtechnique are being developed through different seasons until September 2012,

    which will be exhibited in each season, in the frame of local individual exhibi-tions already set up with the local Sesimbra City Hall.

    As a teacher at the Superior School of Art and Design IADE, I developed acreative workshop on sumi-epainting with the participation of two classes. The

    workshop started by giving the students an introduction to the sumi-eessenceand painters, and the abstraction and colour introduced in the contempo-rary sumi-epainting (Figure 11), materials (Figure 12) and gesture (Figure 13).

    Although the traditional sumi-epainting uses only sumi (black) ink, colour hasbeen used by sumi-econtemporary artists (Okamoto 1996: 77). Traditionally,colour is part of occidental painting (Menezes 2008), and it has been shown toaffect our well-being (Heller 2009). A number of painting sessions were then

    carried out, where it was proposed to the students to apply the sumi-epaint-ing line to their own occidental painting styles (Figure 14).

    Figure 10: Project Sumi-e Painting and Sustainability. Experiments on sumi-epainting based on photography and graphite sketches on indigenous local trees,sumiink on Japanese paper 33cm24cm (A)(D) e 132cm96cm; (E) A Local

    tree, B Arbutus unedo, C Fraxinus angustifolia, D Olea europaeavar.sylvestris and E Quercus suber.

    A B C

    ED

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    Figure 11: Sumi-epainting artists (A) Liang Kai (11401210); (B) Ma Yuan (1160651225); (C) Hsia Kuei(11901225); (D) Sesshu (14201506); (E) Sengai Gibon (17501837); (F) Shozo Sato (1950); (G) NaomiOkamoto (1950); (H) Zen abstract painting by Lu Shoukun (19191975).

    A

    B

    C

    E

    D

    HGF

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    Figure 12: Materials and techniques shown to the IADE students in the frame of the sumi-eworkshop(A) Stone for grinding the sumiink; (B) Sumiink bar; (C) Traditional Choryubrushes; (D) Mountain horse

    brush; (E) Mensobrush; (F) Occidental brushes based on the Japanese brush; (G) The ink-grinding ritual.The sumi-eline pattern made by using the brushes; (H) menso; (I) choryu.

    A B C

    FED

    G H I

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    dIscussIon

    The crises in both art materiality (Michaud 1997, 2003) and sustainability may

    be solved through art organicity, where the creation process uses a holisticapproach. Traditionally, the sumi-e painting uses only dark ink, representingall the other colours used in occidental painting (Sato 2010). The abstract Zenpainting of the contemporary Japanese artist Lu Shoukun, and new ways ofusing dark ink by contemporary Chinese painters such as Qi Baishi, HuangBinhong, Wu Changshuo, Zhu Da and Shitao (Clarke 2000), gave new insightsto the project. The creative workshop joined with the environmental educa-tion framework of this study was a valuable way to reach the participants,engaging them in learning about and becoming active in global sustainability.The scientific knowledge on the local natural environment was joined withthe creative workshop methodology (Marcinkowska 2006).

    In conclusion, a model joining art, nature and scientific knowledge wasdeveloped as an approach to sustainable art and expression. From the analysis

    Figure 13: Painting exercises showing the quality of the line and the poetry of the gesture in the sumi-epainting. sumiink on Japanese paper 33cm24cm (A) Regular thickness line; (B) Thin-thick line; (C) Thin-thick-thin line with; (D) Spiral line; (E) Thin-thick-thin and spiral lines; (F) Free circular lines.

    A B C

    D E F

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    Figure 14: (A)(G) Paintings made by IADE student Ricardo Valente in the frame of the living model sessionsacrylic on paper 40cm30cm (2011).

    of inquiries performed by the professors, students and their parents, theobjectives of education through art were achieved. The activities were pleas-ant and fun in that they allowed the participants to observe and photographthe natural reserve and different species in their habitat, and to walk in thenatural space and learn about it. The participants learned to respect nature,and the characteristics, importance and beauty of living beings. There was aconsciousness about the risk that natural elements and habitats will disappear,and on ways to protect them. The participants interest in establishing a futurerelation with nature, the natural environment and its freedom, and the inter-generational dialogue and parents sensitization and knowledge, indicates the

    educative effectiveness of the model in sustaining our global house.According to the Intergovernamental Panel on Climate Change reports,global climate change is a reality (Dresner 2008). The Biodiversity Conventionis not effective in avoiding habitat destruction, and many species are at risk ofextinction. The most recent ecological studies focus on global climate changes,species extinction and the need for scientific contributions in society due tothe urgency of the environmental questions (AAVV 2010). The expensiveenergy flows between the financial town and the personal house in the citysuburbs may be avoided through a sustainable way of living in the city. Thecontrol of noise and air pollution together with the assurance of green spacesparallel to each building may be a way forward in city well-being. The useof autochthonous plants in the exhibitions is a sign of the flow of the natu-ral reserve into the city. Natural harmony, beauty and diversity are personal

    A B C D

    E F G

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    Susana Tereso

    rights and may move human beings towards fundamental changes in the cityenvironment in the future.

    acKnowledgemenTs

    This study was supported by a grant to the author from the Fundao para a

    Cincia e Tecnologia (FCT).

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    suggesTed cITaTIon

    Tereso, S. (2012), Environmental education through art, International Journalof Education through Art 8: 1, pp. 2347, doi: 10.1386/eta.8.1.23_1

    conTrIbuTor deTaIls

    Susana Tereso has a graduate degree, a Masters and a Ph.D. in Biologyand is working on a Ph.D. on Fine Arts at the Faculty of Fine Arts of theUniversity of Lisbon. Since 2004, she has been developing a postdoctoralproject including creativity projects, a programme on education through artand an art project.

    Contact: Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Tapada da Ajuda, 1349-17 Lisboa,Portugal.E-mail: [email protected]

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