Hot Air

I wrote an article in today’s Irish Times on art education in Ireland - how it’s done, what people (ideally) get from it, the differences between here and other countries, and so on.

Writing about art as something worthy of study and necessary for education is a tricky thing, and I don’t think the article really comes close to covering it all, but hopefully it is some kind of beginning. For something so central to life and everyday experience, there are a lot of different ideas about how it ought to be taught, how practical it is or isn’t and why it should be taught at all. Whatever your views on the subject, I think it would be hard to credibly argue it shouldn’t be a central part of education.

If anyone is interested in finding out more about the role of art and creativity in education - and its value, I’d recommend this TED talk from a few years ago:

But I’d also suggest you get along to IMMA, to the National Gallery, to any of the regional and private galleries - but also Collins’ Barracks, the Science Gallery; anywhere like that will be good for you. Plus most of these places either serve coffee or have a cafe nearby, so you can’t go wrong, really. But ideally, just go for a wander around your world, wherever that may be, doing the odd doodle if you feel up to it. 

And if you ever have children, and someone says ‘Art? What can the kid possibly do with that?”, tell them: “neurology, economics, sculpture, design, medicine, Latin, engineering, music, literature, social work, therapy, accountancy, law, acting… ” You can go on forever, so if you’re getting tired, just say “everything, really.”