Study Task 2 - READING AND UNDERSTANDING TEXTS

NOEL CARRINGTON - POPULAR ENGLISH ART 1945

KEY CONCEPTS
-Art for the people 
-Problematic nature/definition of craftsmanship
-Art grounded in a belief culture
-Popularity aligned with accessibility
-Folk art as function, value added to the everyday; fine art to display status

KEY QUOTES
- 'to meet the taste of those amongst whom the artist himself lives'
- 'the popular arts show the greatest resilience in those walks of life which, by their nature, were confined to the more or less uncultured'
- 'practised by artists of the people for the enjoyment of the people'

EXAMPLES
-Folk Art - canal boat painting/ ceramics/ signage
-Fairground rides
-Ornaments and toys - vernacular culture/ immediate visual objects

HOW COULD THIS TRIANGULATE WITHIN MY PROJECT?
-Explore how the immediate visual culture we are surrounded by defines or confines our awareness and knowledge of art and how heritage and tradition can celebrate art in more accessible forms and uphold storytelling. 

Study Task 1 - ESTABLISHING A RESEARCH QUESTION

PART 1 - ME

Taking time to consider where I sit within my practice and the world around me worked positively to help me identify my research concerns. 

FINDINGS 

- Learning and knowledge are key concerns of mine, I see great value in creative learning and wish to work within the context of teaching or inspiring others.

- Heritage is something that informs me both within and outside of my practice, particularly in the knowledge I acquire.

- Craft, play and storytelling are pivotal to my creative practice.

- I am intrigued by the culture of viewing through books and museums, I use these observations to drive my intent for practice.

LAUIL501                    Research Questions – Initial Ideas – Feedback

Specific areas of interest – PRACTICE – PHENOMENA – THEORIES How children are exposed to art - culture of toys/ visual objects Visual culture Canal boat/ folk art Fairground rides - industry and revolution Unsophisticated arts - signage/ boat/ fairground painting

10 most important points – theories – ideas – quotes Piaget’s theory of cognitive development Beamish - contemporary resource of heritage Leeds Discovery Centre - museum archives Nostalgia Throw away culture - modern toys Contemporary illustrators that make toys today - Tom Frost/ Ed Cheverton Why do people keep certain things? Carry out research into toys people have kept Re-using toys - recycling vintage toys/ wooden blocks Aura High art vs. low art Aesthetic vs. utilitarian

Possible research questions How are children informed about art via their immediate visual objects? How do a child’s first toys and books shape their awareness of cultural landscape? How do visual objects operate as the foundations of our cultural awareness? To what extent is our awareness of art defined or confined by our own social/ historical/ cultural context?

PART 2 - FEEDBACK 

Sharing my identified interests and concerns with my peers, we were able to pin-point more specific topics within my practice to form my research project. My proposal at the end of level 4 was to develop my investigation of taste within education and the art media that children consume, now my project seems to have some more personal directions relevant to my intent for practice.

PHENOMENA & THEORIES

-Children's exposure to art, culture of books and toys

-Exposure to visual objects in childhood

-Folk Art within industry and class

-Visual culture within revolution

IDEAS & QUOTES

-Cognitive development

-Nostlagia

-Reclamation/ re-purposing old toys

-Why do people keep certain objects/ childhood memories

-How does illustration add value to objects?

POSSIBLE RESEARCH TOPICS

-Heritage in the cultural landscape

-Weight of immediate visual objects on cultural awareness