The book Arts Programming for the Anthropocene shares experiences and insights into field programming where students can learn about art, culture and the environment with others in natural environments or environments of social or cultural significance. The main objectives of the book are to showcase the rich work of those engaged in five field-based art programmes that involve environmental art, collaboration and social practices in transdisciplinary ways, to build a case for field programming in the arts.
Because the field programmes are arts based, this book would be of primary interest to those in art education but it would also be useful for policy makers, those in government or leading national curriculum development, who need educating about the value of arts education as a way of teaching and learning in environmentally sustainable ways. I would also recommend this book for those working in environmental education as it offers insights into the educational benefits, challenges and values that field art experiences offers the field of environmental education.
Chapter 3 provides insights into programmes that challenge the conventional, institutional ways of teaching and learning art from the ‘master’ to one where students have more control and creative licence for their education. The authors share how this model enables faculty members to become participants as both artists and as teachers. They suggest field-art programmes that are not confined to one place (like an artist residency or a public art project in one location) but rather where one can spend time in and with nature with others (including sharing meals and accommodation) as field-based education opportunities.
We gain interesting and generous insights into the background thinking of the programme organisers, such as how the programme directors’ own experiences in nature (tramping in new Zealand etc.) have led them to realise the importance of field work, which they have in turn developed or translated for pedagogy relevant to their art student cohorts. They emphasise this model of art education which is more aligned with socially engaged art practices, and move away from the more traditional model of art education where students learn from the practices of a ‘master’. These insights are useful for environmental educators as they show ways of challenging conventional models of education and promote those that are more socially informed, environmental and place based.
In chapter 4 institutional contexts are explained that show the different configurations of staff, levels, discipline, the kinds of faculty make-up and qualifications of teaching and programming staff for field-art education. As the authors rightly claim this ‘is useful in understanding some of the interpolations in the programs between curricular and theoretical concerns as well as logistical and organizational ones – it dictates both constraints and specific choices within the programs.’ (p.88). The expectations of teaching staff and research outputs determines the kind of work they can do and therefore if and how they educate students in and through field art experiences (if it is valued or can be supported by the faculty). This analysis would be interesting for those working in higher education in arts areas as it shares how the positioning of a faculty with other faculties, and staff experiences, backgrounds and qualifications as well as funding, and policies of institutions can have an influence on field programme possibilities. For those working in environmental education, the same educational management considerations would apply – if there are possibilities to collaborate with the arts faculty, some transdisciplinary collaborations might take place where environmental scientists and artists might come up with ways to research, learn and teach art-science approaches such as the artist Carole Solvay in her arts-based investigations into feathers, that have been written about by the ornithologist, Professor Richard O. Prum (Prum, Reference Prum2019)
In Chapter 5, edited interviews are provided with programme coordinators and teachers who share their stories and insights of the depth and complexities of their field programmes. These accounts are inspiring as they show how the important work of being artists and engaging in the social, environmental and/or cultural aspects of field art have driven the educators to mentor a new generation of artists they teach. This seemed a very important point in the book, as without knowing these origins, the field art programmes wouldn’t have eventuated the way they have (which is what the book is about). On this note, the book’s relevance for environmental education would be the unique way each programme explores environmental education through the lens of each field art programme.
Understanding how the programmes come about and shape up as detailed in Chapters 4 and 5, could be useful for creative approaches to environmental education that include social, cultural and art interactions. This type of pedagogy and content would be important for leaders seeking to initiate education outside of institutional norms, collaborate across faculties and dwell in spaces outside of educational institutions. The authors claim that the programme changes students understanding of the environment so it would be good to explore this further by seeing if environmental educators can draw on some of these models for their own teaching and learning approaches. and get feedback from their students to understanding these changes more.
Overall the examples provided are varied. A number of them lend insight into environmental education through experimental arts-based pedagogies. These reveal insights into environment issues through students’ experiences in place, tuning into nature and natural phenomenon that offer opportunities for change, activism and evolution in education possibilities. This, as the authors point out, offers unique interdisciplinary opportunities for education such as knowing ourselves, our community and our environments in more embodied and experiential ways.
I liked the way the book is structured chapters introducing field art concept and different projects, leading to Chapter 4 where research is presented to support the author’s claims. Interview narratives offer important insights into the programme directors’ experiences and a case study provides a deeper insight into one particular programme. These different perspectives result in it being an insightful and engaging read.
I would recommend people read this book if interested in experimental pedagogy set in environments outside of educational institutions. The different angles that each chapter provides will leave you with a good understanding of field art and provide you with some ideas about how you could go about developing and implementing your own field art programme. If you are a student this book would offer insights into ways in which you could manage your own field art projects and they different kinds of forms they might take. For environmental educators not familiar with art approaches, this book will provide some excellent examples of the thinking, embodied engagement with places and the kind of possibilities for creative work that could emerge for teachers and students.
Shelley Hannigan is a Senior Lecturer in Art Education. She has been an academic for 16 years at Deakin University but is also a practicing artist and has a background working as an art therapist in hospitals. Her research focuses on art education and arts health as well as transdisciplinary fields such as place, identity, student and teacher wellbeing, arts-science and STEAM. Her research includes: narrative inquiry, case study, autoethnography, collaborative self-study, arts practice led research, arts based research and arts-based inquiry in education and health. She teaches education, art and art therapies, and supervises PhD and Masters level students in the above practices.
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