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Visual arts education is the area of learning that is based upon the kind of art that one can see, visual arts—drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, and design in jewelry, pottery, weaving, fabrics, etc. and design applied to more practical fields such as commercial graphics and home furnishings. Contemporary topics include photography, video, film, design, and computer art. Art education may focus on students creating art, on learning to criticize or appreciate art, or some combination of the two.
An alternative approach to art education involves an emphasis on imagination, both in interpreting and creating art. Many educators will ask their students "Why do you think the artist made this choice?", once they have given an answer, they will give them the context of the piece, then ask them again. This is to get students to consider the deeper meaning behind works, rather than just showing them a pretty picture. Art education is also about experimentation and purposeful play and linking their art to conceptual messages and personal experiences. Allowing students to connect a piece to emotion, helps them better understand how the artwork connects to the artist and their subject, developing their critical thinking skills. Alternative approaches, such as visual culture and issue-based approaches in which students explore societal and personal issues through art, also inform art education today.
Prominent curricular models for art education include:
In addition, especially in higher education in the liberal arts tradition, art is often taught as "art appreciation", a subject for aesthetic criticism rather than direct engagement.
Some studies show that strong art education programs have demonstrated increased student performance in other academic areas, due to art activities' exercising their brains' right hemispheres and delateralizing their thinking.Eric Jensen (2025). 9780871205148, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. . ISBN 9780871205148 Also see Betty Edwards' Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain.
Art education is not limited to formal educational institutions. Some professional artists provide private or semi-private instruction in their own studios. This may take the form of an apprenticeship in which the student learns from a professional artist while assisting the artist with their work. One form of this teaching style is the Atelier Method as exemplified by Gustave Moreau who taught Picasso, Braque and many other artists.
Initially, learning to draw was a priority in this system. Michelangelo recommended that a young painter spend a year on drawing alone, then six years grinding colors, preparing panels and using gold leaf, during which time the study of drawing would continue. Another six years would be required to master fresco and tempera painting.Dunkerton, Jill, et al. 136
Historically, design has had some precedence over the fine arts with design school being established all over Europe in the 18th century. These examples of skill and values from the early European art inspired later generations, including the Colonists of early America.
Studio based teaching initiatives integrating contextual and media elements have been implemented as part of a national Studio Teaching Project Studio Teaching Project supported by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) since 2007.
Nowadays, artistic education, which includes visual arts education, is a mandatory part of the school education from the second cycle on (six years old) and runs until the end of the lower secondary school (collège).
There are art-focused classes (classes à horaires aménagés) in some schools that provide advanced art education in parallel to the normal primary or lower secondary education. In the Secondary school, it is possible to prepare a baccalauréat technologique in sciences and technologies of design and applied arts (STD2A, former F12).
In tertiary education, dedicated schools propose a diplôme national des métiers d'art et du design (DN MADE, national diploma of art and design professions) with several diplômes des métiers d'art (DMA, bachelor's degree in art professions), and then diplôme supérieur d'arts appliqués (DSAA, master's degree in applied arts).
Currently in the UK, the art curriculum is prescribed by the government's National Curriculum except in public or fee paying schools. Prince Charles has created The Prince's Drawing School in Hoxton to preserve the teaching of academic drawing.
Founded in 1999 by Royal College of Art graduates, Paula Briggs and Sheila Ceccarelli and registering as a charity in 2004. Projects include:
Inspire: A celebration of children's art, Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge. December"The first exhibition of work made by primary school children at The Fitzwilliam Museum in its 250 year history and was designed in partnership with AccessArt.""The Inspire project demonstrates how a regional art museum can serve as a hub for teacher training and development and support the development of a community of practice around art and design education."
American educational philosopher and John Dewey was influential in broadening access to art education in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th century.
Since World War II, artist training has moved to elementary schools, and contemporary art has become an increasingly academic and intellectual field. Prior to World War II an artist did not usually need a college degree. Since that time the Bachelor of Fine Arts and then the Master of Fine Arts became recommended degrees to be a professional artist, facilitated by the passage of the G.I. Bill in 1944, which sent a wave of World War II veterans off to school, art school included. University art departments quickly expanded. American artists who might once have studied at bohemian, craft-intensive schools like the Art Students League, Black Mountain College, or the Hans Hofmann School of Art in Greenwich Village; began enrolling at universities instead. By the 60s, The School of Visual Arts, Pratt Institute, and Cooper Union in New York City and other art schools across the country like the Kansas City Art Institute, the San Francisco Art Institute, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Princeton and Yale had become one of the first art academies."How to Succeed in Art" by Deborah Solomon, New York Times Magazine. June 27, 1999 This trend spread from the United States around the world.
Enrollment in art classes at the high school level peaked in the late 1960s—early 1970s. With No Child Left Behind (NCLB) (which retains the arts as part of the "daily life", but does not require reporting or assessment data on this area) there has been additional decline of arts education in American public schools. The United States Department of Education now awards Arts in Education Model Development and Dissemination grants to support organizations with art expertise in their development of artistic curricula. After 2010, an estimate of 25% of the nation's public high schools will end all art programs. Various "ed-tech" companies like Kadenze and edX have attempted to mitigate this loss through online arts education. Art Schools Go MOOC, With A New Online Platform
National organizations promoting arts education include Americans for the Arts Americans for the Arts including Art. Ask For More., Art. Ask For More. its national arts education public awareness campaign; Association for the Advancement of Arts Education; Arts Education Partnership.; Arts Education Partnership
Professional organizations for art educators include the National Art Education Association, the National Art Education Association which publishes the practitioner-friendly journal Art Education and the research journal Studies in Art Education; USSEA (the United States Society for Education through Art) and InSEA (the International Society for Education through Art).
Education through the visual arts is an important and effective influence in allowing students, from an early age, to comprehend and implement the foundational democratic process emphasized within the United States societal structure.Gude, Olivia. "Art Education for Democratic Life" . Lowenfeld Lecture 2009. National Art Education Association. Minnesota, Minneapolis. 20 April 2009 In 2008, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) studied 7,900 eight-grade students in the fields of art and music. The findings of the study concluded that female students earned higher scores than their male peers in both music and visual art.
Olivia Gude, the 2009 recipient of the National Art Education Association's Lowenfeld Lecture Scholarship, spoke about the numerous ways in which art education is instrumental in forming an informed self- and world-aware citizen. She asserts that:
Through art education, students develop enhanced skills for understanding the meaning making of others. Through quality art education, youth develop the capacity to learn several jobs much easier than others. Most significantly, engagement with the arts teaches youth to perceive complexity as pleasure and possibility, not as irritating uncertainty. Heightened self-awareness is extended to heightened awareness of others . . .
Michelle Marder Kamhi, who has written on art education, is highly critical of recent trends in the field in the United States and elsewhere. She dismisses much contemporary art shown in major museums as political gestures that are not art. In "Rethinking Art Education," chapter 8 of her book Who Says That's Art?, she focuses on two trends in the field that she thinks "should be of concern to thoughtful citizens, even to those with little interest in art." For example, an opinion piece by her in the Wall Street Journal was critical of Judi Werthein's Brinco—a "performance art" piece that consisted mainly of Werthein's passing out specially equipped sneakers to illegal immigrants—which had been recommended for study by a prominent art educator in an NAEA conference session.
Special educator Jean Lokerson and art educator Amelia Jones wrote that "the art room is a place where learning disabilities can turn into learning assets." Special needs students often come out of their shells and get enthusiastic about creating. Art is also a way that special educators teach their students fundamentals that they may not even realize.Gerber, B. (2011). " Art education and special education: A promising partnership " (PDF). Paper presented at 2011 National Art Education Association national convention, Seattle, WA. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
There are ongoing studies that continue to prove that art and special education go hand in hand. Testing continues to prove that art in any classroom, but especially special education classrooms causes students to be motivated, enthusiastic, and in some cases, even promote learning in other subject areas.Iwai, K. (2002). "The contribution of arts education to children's lives". Prospects, 32(4), 1–15.
Creativity and Critical Thinking: One of the key benefits of art education is its ability to cultivate creativity and critical thinking skills. According to a report by the Arts Education Partnership, students involved in art programs demonstrate greater proficiency in creative problem-solving and critical thinking. These skills are highly transferable and are in high demand in today’s workforce, particularly in fields like design, engineering, and technology. Art challenges students to think outside the box and explore multiple solutions to a single problem, reinforcing cognitive flexibility needed in real-world situations.
Academic Performance: Art education significantly contributes to improved academic performance. A study by Catterall et al. found that students who participate in the arts are more likely to score higher on standardized tests compared to peers who do not engage in such programs.Catterall, J.S., Chapleau, R., & Iwanaga, J. (1999). Involvement in the Arts and Human Development: General Involvement and Intensive Involvement in Music and Theater Arts. The Imagination Project at UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies. These students exhibited better reading comprehension, mathematical achievement, and overall academic success. This link between art education and academic achievement underscores the need to integrate arts into school curricula rather than treating them as optional subjects.
Understanding Math and Science: Art education helps students excel in core subjects like math and science. Studies show that learning through art deepens comprehension and retention in STEM subjects. Research published in Studio Thinking: The Real Benefits of Visual Arts Education found that visual arts activities help students grasp spatial reasoning and geometry concepts.Hetland, L., Winner, E., Veenema, S., & Sheridan, K. (2007). Studio Thinking: The Real Benefits of Visual Arts Education. Teachers College Press. This spatial reasoning is critical for understanding mathematical principles and scientific visualization. Another study demonstrated that integrating art into science lessons improved memory retention and conceptual understanding among elementary students.Hardiman, M., Rinne, L., & Yarmolinskaya, J. (2014). The Effects of Arts Integration on Long-Term Retention of Content. Mind, Brain, and Education, 8(3), 144-148. Through hands-on artistic projects, students visualize abstract scientific ideas, making complex topics more accessible.
Social and Emotional Development: Art education supports social and emotional development. Through collaborative projects and individual expression, students learn communication, empathy, and teamwork. The National Endowment for the Arts reported that at-risk students who engage in art activities are more likely to develop a sense of identity and confidence.National Endowment for the Arts. (2012). The Arts and Achievement in At-Risk Youth: Findings from Four Longitudinal Studies. NEA Research Report #55. They also tend to stay in school longer and are less likely to engage in negative behaviors. The creative process in art-making helps students express emotions, manage stress, and develop resilience.
Fine Motor Skills and Dexterity: Art education helps develop fine motor skills, especially for younger students. Activities like drawing, painting, and sculpting require precision and hand-eye coordination, contributing to fine motor control essential for tasks like writing and typing. Research suggests these fine motor skills are valuable in dexterity-based professions. For example, a study published in the Journal of Surgical Education found that medical students who participated in artistic activities exhibited superior manual dexterity and precision in surgical simulations.Dissanayake, B., Sharma, P., & Peterson, R. (2017). The Impact of Visual Arts Training on Surgical Dexterity. Journal of Surgical Education, 74(6), 967-973. Similarly, research in The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance noted that deliberate practice of fine motor activities, such as those found in art classes, enhances skills critical for fields like surgery, dentistry, and other precision-based occupations.Ericsson, K.A., Charness, N., Feltovich, P.J., & Hoffman, R.R. (2006). The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance. Cambridge University Press.
Careers Enhanced by Art Education: Art education enhances skills essential for careers in law enforcement, the military, and forensic science. Observational skills honed through drawing, sketching, and analyzing visual details can significantly improve situational awareness and attention to detail. For example, law enforcement officers who receive training in art-related skills are better at identifying suspects, analyzing crime scenes, and recalling visual information accurately.Simpson, J. (2012). Drawing Skills and Observation for Law Enforcement. Journal of Police Training and Development, 5(2), 34-45. In the military, visual analysis and creative problem-solving skills are essential for tasks like map reading, strategic planning, and interpreting aerial reconnaissance imagery. Research in Sparks of Genius: The Thirteen Thinking Tools of the World's Most Creative People shows that many successful professionals, including scientists and military strategists, attribute enhanced observational and problem-solving skills to early experiences in the arts.Root-Bernstein, R., & Root-Bernstein, M. (1999). Sparks of Genius: The Thirteen Thinking Tools of the World's Most Creative People. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
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