8/12/2019 rnosles of Women i

1/7

rnos sf Women i isual Culture

Figure 1. Representation of women through acollage of wom en s shoes by Deb Charnas.

This is not to saythat women do nothave agency or anability to criticallyinterpret, reject, orreshape visualculture. However, asGaudehus(1997)noted, women are still in a vulnerableposition to reject and reshape establishedsystems of meaning defined by patriarchyand delivered by visual images. Shestressed that women were historicallydeprived of social positio ns and accessto dom inant systems of meanings, andtherefore had no control over the ways inwhich these meanings are constructedand used against them (Gaude lius, 1997,p.133). Feminist scholars in the arts(Chadwick, 2002; Nochlin, 1971;Pollock,1999) also noted that in traditional finearts and contemporary popular culturewomen are often portray ed as sex objects.

BY A L I C E L A IVisual culture permeates w omen severyday lives, affecting how theysee themselves, the w orld , and theirr e l a t i o n s h i p s w i t h o t h e r s . n theinternetand leltvision, in grocery stores, childcare centers, shoppingmalls, bookstores, and art galleries, women are bombardedwith images aimed at selling dominant ideologies andnormalizing them with identity markers (e.g., mother, careerwomen, heterosexual, wife, middle class, white, middle age).An individual's self-concept can be significantly, yet un criti-cally shaped by visual culture. As Kerry Freedman (2003)noted, Individuals appropriate characteristics of visualrepresentation, adopting these representations as a descrip-tion ofhimself/herself From this perspective, people can bemanipulated through images that are often antithetical totheir individual nature s (p. 2).

inferior to men, and their creative worksare frequently excluded from mainstreamWestern art.

Therefore, increasing women'sopportunities to recognize the power andproblem of visual culture and subse-quently to create new meanings throughvisual culture is an importan t teachinggoal of mine. I considered applying VisualCulture Art Education (VCAE) andfeminist pedagogy to support myintention of critically placing wom en andvisual culture at the center of thecurriculum . Few art educators, however,explicitly examine the (dis)connectionsand integration of these two pedagogicalframeworks in order to critically facilitategendered understanding of visual cultureand its impact on w omen, their lives andself-concepts.

My first purpo se here is to explore thepossibility of integrating these twopedagogical frameworks. Second, I

ART EDUCATION / January 2 9

8/12/2019 rnosles of Women i

2/7

discussalearning unit, RepresentationofWomeninVisual Culture,inmy college-levelart appreciation courseas anexampleofimplem enting Visual CulturalArtEducation(VCAE)andfeminist pedagogy,I also summarize students' discussionandinclude their collage workstoillustratestudents' criticalandartistic examinationof,responsesto, andcreationsofvisual imagesassociated with women's livesand self-concepts.Visual CultureArt Educationand Feminist Pedagogy

Before exploring connections betweenVCAEandfeminist pedagogy,it isimportantto notethecritiqueofVCAE. A growingnumberofart educators (Barrett,2003;K.Freedman, 1994,2003;Pauly.2003;Tavin,2003) support thatan important purposeofVCAEis tocall attentiontoproblematicrepresentationsofgender, race,andclass.However, they havenot significantly exploredwomen's learning aboutthe self,others,andthe world through VCAE. Herrm ann (2005)argued that many curricular ideas suggestedby VCAE propon entsare notalways relevantto thestudents ' lives and insteadbecome teacher-directed activities focusedmoreonmodernist ideasofelementsandprinciplesor socalled 'self-expression' tha non investigationandcomm unicationofideas (p. 42). Because VCAE also utilizescritical pedagogy (Tavin, 2003), Ellsworths(1989) critiqueisworth noting.Herfemini.stcritique suggests that critical pedagogymaycreateanuncomfortable learning atmo-sphere,inwhich students feel oppressedrather than em powered by their learningcontentandprocessandresist discussingtheir beliefsorcriticizing oth ers' beliefs.Indeed, with increasing attentiononVCAE,arteducators (Congdon,1996;Efland, Freedman, & Stuhr, 1996;Garoian &Gaudelius, 2004;K.Freedman,2003;Keifer-Boyd, Am burgy, Knight, 2007;LaiSi Ball, 2002; Tavin, 2003)arebecoming evermore concerned aboulthecontent, context,and processes involvedinteaching of visualimages. Thesearteducators question what

forms of artandwhoseartshouldbeincludedin thecurriculum,andwhatpedagogical theoriescanhelp ground today'sart education. They supportan artcurric-ulum thatnotonly incorporates traditionalfine art,butalso other p roducts thatarevisuallyandculturally influential, suchasmagazine covers, theme parks,and MTVimages. Theyaddthat through VCAH,studentscandevelopandenhance artisticabilities, critical thinking,andlearning skillscrucialforsustaining social justice (Darts,2006; Duncum , 2002; Tavin, 2003).Inshort,educatorsofVCAF. argueforcreatingan artcurriculum that empowers studentstostudyvarious forms of visual culture, particularly acurriculum thatisresponsivetostudents'lived experiencesandsocial life.

Froma feminist pedagogical perspective,educatorsin thearts (A ment,1998;Chadwick, 2002; Congdon, 1996; Freedman,2002; Freedm an, 1994; Garber,2003;hooks,1995; Keifer-Boyd, 2003;Pollock,1999;Staniszewski, 1995)areconcerned abouthowgender inequalityin arteducational contextshinders students from pursuing creativeendeavors categorizedaswomen's domesticworkorcraft, appreciating works madebywomen artists,and actively constructingvaluable knowledge. Although currentresearch indicates that more female artistsan darthave been addedto arthistorytextbooksin recent decades,thevisibilityoffemale artistsinsuch frequently usedtextbooksisstillfarless than thatofmale

artists (Clark Folgo, 2006; Clark, Folgo,Pichette, 2005). Whenthemajorityofartworks appearingin arthistory textbooksare overwhelmingly createdbymale a rtistsand interpretedbymale criticsand arthistorians,allstudentsaredeprivedofopportunitiesto learn about female artistsand their art. Female students becomealienated fromthestoriesofartistsandartworksifthe)'areonly filled withtheambitions, psyches, sexual desires,andlivedexperiencesofmen.Park (1996) argued thatill suchaneducationa l process, Femalestudents receive conflicting messages whenwomen artistsare notaccordedthesamedegreeofrespectandadmirationastheirmale counterp arts (p.3). These disempow-ering educational experiencescanhinderfemale students from thinkingandspeakingfor themselvesandsuch experiencescanreinforcethesubordination ofthe femalestudent's sense of selftomale standards(Garber, 2003).

1maintain that VCAEandfeministpedagogy have muchin common. Growingout of critical cultural theoryand inpartinformed by postmodernism, both VCAEtheorists (e.g., Duncum, 2002; Efland, 2005;Tavin, 2003)and feminist pedagogypropo nents (e.g., Gaudeiius 1997; Keifer-Boyd, 2003) identify their pedagogiesasutilizing critical, empowering,andstudent-centered approaches. VCAE supportsthestudent's critical examination of visualculture imagerytohelp students un derstand

Whenthema jori tyofartworks appearingin rthistorytextbooks are overw helm ingly createdbymale a rtistsand interpretedbyma le critics nd rthistorians llstudents are deprivedofopportuni t iesto learn a bou tfemale artists nd their art. Female students becomealienated fromthestoriesofartists ndartworksiftheyare only fi l led w iththeam bitio ns psyches sexual desiresand lived experiencesofmen .

January 2 9 ARTEDUCATION

8/12/2019 rnosles of Women i

3/7

VCAE and feminist peda gogy can be imple me ntedto help foster sense of em pow erm ent throu ghcritical examination self-reflection and theexploration of social and educational inequality.

Figure2. Women assuming multiple roles by M M W

how dominant ideologies are at work in th edissemination of images, and thus howstudents' self-concepts can be shaped byvisual culture imagery (K. Freedman, 1994,2003;Pauly,2003;Tavin, 200 3). Likewise,feminist pedagogy supports criticalexamination of gendered assumptions andInstitutionalized power structures ineducational processes, and how thesemarginalize women's ability to speak withtheir own voices and pursue self-under-standing (Garber,2003;Keifer-Boyd, 2003),Feminist pedagogy, as Keifer-Boyd (2003)put it, has the goal of em powe rmen t of allpeoples to create knowledge, particularlypertai ning to self-representation (p. 316).VCAE and feminist pedagogy can beimplemented to help foster a sense ofempowerment through critical examination,self-reflect ion, and the exploration of socialand educational inequality. Moreover, whileVCAE advocates that students construc t

knowledge through activelymaking critical and meaningfulconnections between their livesand the visual arts, feministpedagogy also places students althe center of knowledgeconstruction processes, and thisshould lead to students seekingknowledge on their own termsand in terms of group andcollaborative learnin g (Garber,2003,p. 58).Examining Imagesof W om en in VisualCulture

VCAE and feminist pedagogyhave helped me conceptualizeand teach Representation ofWomen in Visual Culture. Thislearning unit provides studentswith an opportunity to criticallyand coliaboratively analyzewomen's lives, experien ces, andself-concepts as represented invisual culture. By examiningimages of women created mostly by femaleartists in different visual culture forms andsocio-historical contexts, students learnedto analyze, interpret, and uncover culturaland gender assumptions emb edded in visualculture. Students also considered how artistshave used various visual elements orsymbols to convey m eanings, emotions, orart styles. I prompted students to reflectupon assumptions or stereotypes that mayhave shaped ways they perceive themselves,others, and the world. Students concludedthis learning unit by creating images ofwomen that enabled them to represent theirlives or self-concepts as women , critiquevisual culture's portrayal of women's lives,or their observations of women's lives.Most students participating in this unitwere undergraduate female a dults. Iimplemented it toward the end of thesemester so that I had already learned

information regarding students' lifeexperiences and personal background, suchas age, race, religion, occupation, andparenting preference. This informationhelped me select visual culturerangingfrom conventional tine art and popularwomen's magazines, to educationalmaterials produced by our collegerelevanto the studen ts' lives and portraying womenas adults in roles such as mother, home-maker, adult learner, or professional.

Following is a summ ary of some ofthmost discussed visual culture topics andissues. Some women students w erecompelled to discuss their sense ofmotherhood and womanhood. Thenature-versus-nurture paradigm asembedd ed in representations of women'sroles as mothers became a focus of debate.While some firmly believed that women arenatural-born caretakers, others argued thisbeliefw s rather heavily shaped andreinforced by visual culture throughouthistory. They recognized that paintingsdepicting m other and child, such asElisabeth-Louise Vige-Lebrun's ortraitoMarie Antoinette with Her Children havebeen around for centuries. Thus, it ispossible that women may adopt therepresentation of motherhood through thiskind of visual image and believe that this ishow a mother should look and behave.Viewing Alice Barber Stephens' The Womain Business students noticed that Stephenspainting portrays a new image of mother-hood or womanhood, one in which thetender, motherly characteristics arediminished, and instead a masculine,haughty demeanor is emphasized. As morestudents reflected on their life experiencesas women o r observations of workingmothers or professional women, they beganrealizing that their sense of mo therho odand womanhood changed. Many foundthemselves no longer subscribing to themother-as-the-only-caretaker image. Theyhypothesized that men could have similar

ART EDUCATION / J a nua ry 2 9

8/12/2019 rnosles of Women i

4/7

motherly charac teristics, if onlythroughout history men were frequentlyportrayed through such images of tendercaretaking. I

Suzanne Valadon'sThe Blue ooman dRomaine Brooks'Self Portraitgavestudents a new perspective by which toappreciate art created by female artists.Guided by Chadwick's (2002) critique,students understood and began articu-lating visual politics. They realized thatValadon's painti ng rejects the static andtimeless presentation of the monumentalnude that dom inates Western art [whichrepresents] the female hody as a lushsurface isolated and controlled by themale gaze (Chadwick, 2002, p. 285).Similarly, to some students. Brooks'painting was empowering, not onlybecause it represents women in apowerful and intellectual manner, butalso because the new image of lesbianismis rarely discussed in art appreciationclasses. Some students began applyingfeminist critiques to ponder more deeplyhow female and male artists may createimages of women differently, and whetherfemale artists' work should be judgedagainst standards developed by maleartists, patrons, and critics. In discus-sions, students also noticed that oftenwomen are represented in art asdomestic, subordinate to men, exoticothers, or overly emotional. Convincedby feminist scholars in the arts(Chadwick, 2002; Nochlin, 1971),students felt that such representationsand stereotypes exist to satisfy the maledesire and a male-dom inated social order.And one way to bring equality to the artworld is to recognize female artists andtheir creative works on their own terms.

The discussion about images inwomen's popular magazines centeredaround students' perceptions of andstruggle with perfect female body.They found it frustrating that having sucha perception does not necessarily bring a

Figure 3. Body as a site ofstruggle betweenman-made and organicdimensions by Andy Hill,

sense of healthy and happy wom anhood.Students agreed that portrayals of slimor sexy female hody type are not helpfulin accentuating a woman's intelligenceand status. In contrast to pop ularwomen's magazines were images incourse catalogues, folders, and alumnimagazines produced by our own college.When I asked students to consider howtheir experiences as female adult learnerswere being represented, they immediatelycommented on the non-sexual appear-ance of women and men in the publica-tions, and discussed who tbe intendedaudiences and makers of images are. Afew students noticed the images oftendepicted one female or male studentlearning alone. They stated that suchphotos do not represent their experiencesas female adult students. Rather, they seethemselves surrounded by family, friends,or co-worke rs, and th eir lives involving avariety of roles, such as mothe r, soldier,daughter, wife, or professional. Theyjudged such images in the publications asemphasizing male-centric individualism.Figure 4. Advertising should depict all lypes ofpeople. Some of my friends look like this.. . by C. B.

January 2 9 / ART EDUCATION

8/12/2019 rnosles of Women i

5/7

Creating Images of WomenThis iinit concluded with an art project inwhich students used magazine images andother art material to create, briefly writeabout, and discuss their own collages of

images of women. Here I highlight how somestudents' collages and texts exemplifyrecurring interpretations of women's livesand self-concepts, while consistentlyexpressing concerns with the very visualelements used to portray such themes.A few studen ts' collages expressed a senseof fragmented womanhood in the modernworld. They utilized visual elements offragmentation, repetition, multiplicity andoverlapping to represent their own experi-ences. For example, Deh in Figure playfullyrepresented women through a collage ofwomen's shoes. Different shoes represent

different events, hence, diiferent types ofwork that women do. M.M.W. in Figure 2recognized the multiple roles that she playsin everyday life. She felt that her lifejustlike the art form of the collageconsists ofsmall pieces and does not necessarilycomprise a harmonious unity. She listed onthe back of her collage ten roles she perceivesherself in, rangi ng from artist, mothe r, to thinker (M.M.W., personal communica-tion, April, 2005). M.M.W^s collage revealedanother struggle in women's lives. In creatingthe collage and list, she avoided hig hlightingor ranking certain images or roles linearly orby importance because women often assumesuch roles simultaneously.

Other students portrayed a more unifiedsense ofself with collages that utilized fewervisual cues, stronger focal points, and acombination of symbolic items that createdcentralized, modernist-like images. Forexample, Andy in Figure 3 expressed herself-image and struggle in today's tech-nology-saturated world. She perceived herbody as a site of struggle between man-m adeand organic dimensions. While man-madeobjects construct the main body, the feathersymbolizes the sense of nature, which shetries to use as anchor. She wrote: Almost lostwithin the confines of the machines but ableto see and touch th e natural world... (Andy,personal com munication, April, 2005).Some students critiqued gender, race, and/or heterosexual stereotypes in visual culture.C.B. in Figure 4 suhtly critique d hetero -sexism in popular women's magazines. Shealso implied the disappearance of inter-racial

As students began u nderstanding and art iculat ing visualpolitics they also recognized the power and problem ofvisual culture and were empowered to reject or reshapevisual culture.

relationships in visual culture. She wrote:Advertising should depict all t>'pes ofpeople. Some ofmyfriends look like thi s...(C.B.,personal com munication, April, 2005).Our discussions of Brooks' self-portraitopened a door for students to display identitymarkers beyond gender, including race,sexual orientat ion, class, age, religion and soforth.Implications and Suggestionsfor Art EducationAwareness of the critique ofVCAEandfeminist pedagog y will assist art teachers ofdifferent levels to empower students' learningof women and art. Providing oppo rtunitiesfor stude nts to initiate, discuss, and investi-gate issues relevant to their own lives andcontexts (e.g., age, social life, educa tionallevel) may ensure a critical, empowering, andstudent-centered approach to art education.Ideally, teachers recommend that studentschoose visual images of interest for discus-sion. However, teachers may also make theselections of images to initiate or guide thelesson once they know their students andwhat is relevant to them at home, school,and/or workplace.

It is important to recognize that VCAEand feminist pedagogy may create alienatinglearning experiences. Students may feeluncomfortable discussing sexism or fearbeing seen as sexist themselves. It will taketime and encouragement for students to feelsafe to share their reflections and critiques.Attenborough (1996) asserted that somestuden ts do not consider the class a safeplace to speak out (p. 123) and that tea chersshould consider creating activities forstudents wherein they can feel safe enough toexpress their though ts freely. The collageactivity, along with proper timing, providessome students a needed safe space forexpression through visual forms.

As an artistic form, collage can be effectivefor VCAE and feminist pedagogy because asa disjunctive, segme nted, and often-dispa-rate representation of visual forms it echoes disjunctive associations between and among

cultural experiencesdissociations, whichenable spectators to participate in thecreation of meaningful yet mutable conjunc-tions (Garoian 8f Gaudelius, 2004, p.3O8).Thus, when using collage to facilitatestude nts' exploration of women's lives andself-concepts, art teachers should not attempto promote consensus among or encourage right visual represen tations for wom en. Asfeminist scholars (Chadwick, 2002;Meskimm on, 2003) argued, attempting to doso actually creates further oppression andalienation because it collapses female intothe universalized category that was, inreality, heterosexual and white, not tome ntion midd le class (Chadwick, 2002,P - U ) .Finally, VCAE and feminist pedagogyshould provide students with oppo rtunitiesto analyze and appreciate art while practicingcritical thinking and expressive skills, AsEfland (2005) asserted , To increase thecapacity for critical consciousness in ourstudents is the main reason why visualcultural study is imp ortan t (p.4O). In

creating their ow n images of women, somestudents achieved feminist consciousness-raising (hooks, 1995) by critiquing conven-tional representation of womanhood andcreating new, more relevant, images ofwomen. As students began un derstandingand articulating visual politics, they alsorecognized the power and problem of visualculture and were empowered to reject orreshape visual culture. If art educators believethat the purpose of education is to helpstudents reach critical understanding of selfand social justice through th e arts, thenVCAB and feminist pedagogy will serve thispurpose very well.

Alice Lai is Assistant Professor of Arts andEduca tional Studies at Emp ire State CollegeState U niversity o f New York SaratogaSprings. E-mail: Alice.Lai@ esc.edu

ART EDUCATION / January 2009

8/12/2019 rnosles of Women i

6/7

Ament. E, A. (1998). Using feminist perspectivesin art education. Art E ducation, 51(5),56-61,

Attenborough, D, (1996). Feminist interventions inteaching art history. In G. Collins R. Sandell(Eds.),Genderissuesin art education:Contentcontext and strategies, (pp. 116-125). Reston,VA: National Art Education Association.

Barrett, I, (2003). Interpreting visual culture.A rtEducation, 56 2),6-]1.

Chadwick, W. (2002), Women, art, andsociety(3rded.).New York: Thames & Hudso n.Clark. K. & Folgo, A, (2006), Who says there havebeen great women artists? Some afterthoughts.An Education. 59(2), 47-52.Clark, R.. Folgo, A., & Pichette, J. (2005). Havethere now been any great women artists? Aninvestigation of the visibility of women artistsin recent art history textbooks,Art Education,5S(3),6-13.

Congdo n. K.G. (1996). Art history, traditional a rt.and artistic practices. In G, Collins & R.Sandell (Eds.),Genderissuesin art education:Content context and strategies, (pp. 10-19).Reston, VA: National Art EducationAssociation,

Darts,D. (2006). Art education for a change:Contemporary issues and the visual arts.ArtEducation. 59{5),6-\2.

Duncu m, R (2002). Theorizing everyday aestheticexperience with contemporary visual culture.VisualArts Research,28{2).4-15.Etiand, A., Freedman, K,, & Stuhr, R(1996).Postmodernart education: Anapproach tocurriculum.Reston, VA: National ArtEducation Association.Eiland. A, (2005). Problems confronting visualculture, Arf Education, 58 6),35-40.

Ellsworth. E,(1989).Why doesn't this feelempowering? Working through the repressivemyth of critical pedagogy.Harvard EducationalReview, 59{?i), 297-^24.Freedman, E. (2002),No turningback: Thehistory

of eminism and the future of women. NewYork: Ballantine Books,Freedman, K. (1994), Interpreting gender andvisual culture in arl classrooms.Studies in ArtEducation, 35 i).\ 57-170.Freedman, K. (2003),Teachingvisual culture:Curriculum,aesthetics, an dthe social lifeof art.New York: Teachers College Press.Garber, E. (2003), Teaching about gender issues inthe art education classroom: Myra Sadker Day.Studies in Art Education,45(1). 56-72.Garoian, C , Gaudelius, Y, (2004). The spectacleof visual culture.Studies in Art Education,45(4).298-312,

R F R N SGaudelius,Y. (1997). Postmodernism, feminism,and art education: An elementary artworkshop based on the works of Nancy Speroand Mary Kelly. In ). Hutchens & M, Suggs(Eds.).Art education: C ontent andpractice in a

postmodern era(pp, 132-142). Reston VA: TheNational Art Education Association.Herrm ann, R. (2005). The disconnect betweentheory and practice in a visual cultureapproach to arl education.Art Education,

58(6),41-46.hooks,b.(1995),Ar tonm ymind:Visualpolitics.New York: New Press.Keifer-Boyd. K. (2003). A pedagogy to expose andcritique gendered cultural stereotypesembedded in art interpretations.Studies in ArtEducation, 44 4), 315-^34.Keifer-Boyd, K., Am burgy, P.,& K night, W, (2007).Unpacking privilege: Memory, culture, gender,

race,and power in visual culture.A rtEducation, 60(3), 19-24.

Lai,A., & Ball, E. L. (2002). Home is where the artis:Exploring the places people live through arteducation.Studies in ArtEducation,44(1).47-66.

Meskimmon. M. (2003).W omen makingart:History, subjectivity,aesthetics.New York:Routledge.

Nochlin. L. (1971). Why are there no great wom enartists? In V. Gornick & B.R, Moran (Eds.).Women in sexistsociety, (pp. 480-510). NewYork: Basic Books.

Park, C.(1996).Learning from what women learnin the studio class. In G, Collins 8i R, Sandell(Eds.),Genderissuesin art education:Contentcontext and strategies,(pp. 2-8), Reston. VA:National Art Education Association.

Pauly, N. (2003). Interpreting visual culture ascultural narratives in teacher education.Studiesin Art Education, 44 3),264-284.

Pollock, G,(1999).Differencing thecanon:Eeminismand the writing ofart shistories. NewYork: Routledg e.

Staniszewski. M.A. (1995),Believing isseeing:Creatingth ecultureof art.NewYork PenguinBooks.

Tavin. K. (2003). Wrestling with angels, searchingfor ghosts: Toward a critical pedagogy of visualculture.Studies in Art Education, 440),197-213.

V i e u p j

(iroat Seneo

Jan uary 2009 ART EDUCATION

8/12/2019 rnosles of Women i

7/7