In preparation for Workshop 2, we were given a choice of readings; I chose to reflect on bell hooks’ essay ‘Talking Art as the Spirit Moves Us’ from her book ‘Art on My Mind: Visual Politics’ (1995). In the essay, hooks begins by sharing the following Mende proverb:
There is a thing passing in the sky; some thick clouds surround it; the uninitiated see nothing. (Boone, 1986)
Through this aphorism, hooks describes how cultural barriers negatively affect the way African-American art is consumed and critiqued. Without the “metaphysical” opening of our mind’s eye, our unconscious biases will pigeonhole our critical thinking, favouring white-supremacist standards (hooks, 1995). This has huge ramifications within arts education, particularly towards students from global ethnic majority backgrounds.
hooks supports this critique by discussing Lucie-Smith’s book ‘Race, Sex, and Gender: In Contemporary Art’, (1994) and the biases which “blind and bind” him, and in turn, us. Meaning, without making purposeful choices to decolonise the way we navigate art critique and education, we will always frame such areas in a Eurocentric context. Consequently, expectations for global majority artists (and students) to assimilate into this narrow lens are upheld and result in othering. Through these unconscious biases, curriculums are shaped to uphold white supremacy. As educators, this emerges in the references we provide, the language (spoken and unspoken) we practice, the assessment criteria we use, and more.
Now, this is not to say these biases are a purposeful choice, nor a form of overt racism, but where we do hold responsibility (and power), is with autonomy to educate ourselves, and unpick these biases. If we choose not to engage with this path, we are no better than those who practice hatred. By creating meaningful connections with students, and providing spaces where Eurocentric ideals and perspectives can be challenged and discussed critically, we can hope to foster a more inclusive learning space for students of all backgrounds.
It is worth noting that this is of course a difficult line to tread. So often education around hardship and power imbalance falls on those who are most marginalised, further othering the already fatigued. hooks (1995) discusses the issues African-American artists face with either the expectation to assimilate into the Eurocentric standards to reach success, or the automatic othering they face in the framing of their artist practice. Specifically, the theme of revolt that Lucie-Smith (1994) automatically categorises all “minority-ethnic” work under. An example of this sort of failure, which began as a well-meaning way to lift and reframe marginalised artist groups, is the 1993 Whitney Biennale. Unfortunately, through this attempt to “intervene & challenge the politics of domination in the art world” (hooks, 1995, p. 104), the exact opposite was achieved. Through framing all the artists under a pseudo anti-art-world-revolt lens, the cultural hybridity and more subtle themes of identity are immediately portrayed in a deeply problematic and aggressive perspective. Since most consumers and critics of art are not initiated into the condition of seeing (hooks, 1995), they will automatically evaluate the work through the context which it has been fed to them.
As educators, we hold an immense amount of power in shaping how our students navigate their studies through both theory and practice. To successfully decolonise the curriculum and disentangle the unconscious bias of ourselves and those around us, we must continuously engage in critical thinking, and encourage initiation of our collective informed intellect(s).
References
Boone, S. A. (1986). Radiance from the Waters: Ideals of Feminine Beauty in Mende Art. New Haven and London: Yale University Press
hooks, b. (1995) ‘Talking Art as the Spirit Moves Us’, in Art on My Mind: Visual Politics. New York: New York Press, pp. 101–107.
Lucie-Smith, E. (1994) Race, Sex, and Gender: In Contemporary Art. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., Publishers.
Whitney Biennale 1993 (1993) [Exhibition]. Whitney Museum of American Art. 4 March – 20 June 1993.