Title:
Art and Cognition:
Knowing Visual Culture (Ch. 4)
Author(s):
Dr. Kerry Freedman
Source/Date:
Teaching Visual Culture: Curriculum, Aesthetics, and the Social Life of Art
Main Idea/Purpose:
Chapter four investigates the cognitive aspect of visual culture and how one comes to understand art through the construction of their own experiences. These experiences are relevant because they are the foundation from which an individual experiences and interprets the visual culture that they are presented with.
Short Overview (including any important quotes):
In this chapter, Dr. Kerry Freedman introduces the notion of artistic cognition and explains how our personal experiences shape our perception of art and visual imagery. The way we perceive something is entirely dependent upon our cultural norms, our psychobiological tendencies, and our daily experiences. Freedman (2003) notes that, “our first response to visual form in the environment is to determine whether it is familiar (if so, we know what to expect) and whether and how we will engage with it” (p. 64). Therefore, when we experience or encounter something new, it alters the individual’s perception because they were not expecting it. Freedman (2003) adds:
“Many adults, including adult students, have negative emotional responses to new
visual culture, in part because they tend to have the expectation (interest and
emotional development) that they will generally understand the world” (p. 65).
Conversely, children are often “more accepting of ambiguity in visual culture because they do not have the same feelings tied to understanding” (p. 66). These children are still in the fundamental stages of forming new knowledge based on their experiences. For a child, almost everything is new, therefore they have no choice but to accept those experiences and gain new knowledge from it. Each person understands art in their own unique way due to their lived experiences. The way in which an individual perceives art is based on the information that they have previously stored regarding visual culture which is ultimately informed by their personal experiences. One key factor that we shall remain cognizant of is the idea that art “does not have inherent meaning; the experience of an audience with visual culture makes it meaningful” (p. 69). Ultimately, without previous experience, one would not be able to attribute meaning to a work of art. The information stored within an individual, extracted from their daily interactions with visual culture and their feelings towards it, informs how they perceive visual imagery and how they react to it.
Freedman (2003) also observes state-by-age development and the analysis of children’s drawings to determine a child’s intellectual and developmental growth. As research indicates, a child’s development can somewhat accurately be predicted through stage-by-age sequences of events. Early developmental models observe that “children progress from one stage to the next, in a predictably linear process, some moving through the stages more quickly than others, but all moving in the same sequence” (p. 71). The role of the art teacher is to aid each student in the progression of these steps in a timely fashion. In contrast to this notion of the drawing schema, Freedman also explores the research of art educators Brent and Marjorie Wilson. Wilson and Wilson rejected this idea and argued that a drawing program would be more apt. They believed that children develop symbolic representations of things that they can call upon at any time in order to represent something. This perspective takes into account the psychobiological effects that are apparent before a child enters the social realm of school. Once a child enters schools, there is a dramatic increase in social stimuli and individual interaction, all of which impact a child’s developmental process.
Response/Critical Reflection:
When looking at art, it is essential to keep in mind that all individuals will perceive it differently than the person sitting next to them. This is exactly why we have class-lead art critiques. Each person brings something new to the table based on their own interpretations of what they perceive. Every one of us has led a life of different and unique combinations of experiences, all of which inform who we are as an individual. Those experiences ultimately shape who we are and what we believe. It is important to understand that every one of us interprets visual culture differently based on our cultures or our personal preferences. Assuming that a piece of artwork has an inherent meaning is invalid. The meaning is constructed by the individual. Understanding the cognitive aspect of constructing meaning and understanding in art should increase our awareness of how our perceptions are constructed. It should also help us towards becoming more reflective of what we are being exposed to in regards to visual culture.
I have always been intrigued by the stage-by-age developmental process. I find it really interesting to see, in visual terms, how one is progressing and developing as they age. Thinking about this development in terms of what that child is experiencing in their daily interactions is even more interesting. A child that has a diverse range of interactions with people and with their environment may develop more rapidly or differently than a child who experiences little interaction. Being able to view concrete results of this development is exactly why I find teaching art to be so rewarding. Applying the knowledge that I have gained from this chapter, I can say that I will certainly utilize all of my resources to enrich my students’ experiences in my classroom. Encouraging my students to visit art museums and interact with others will be a necessity. The variety of experiences that one has with visual culture is the source that directs their learning and understanding.
Kelly Mclaughlin 