Talking Deeply about Art

Primary art curriculums should allow pupils to take part in high-quality, well-sequenced art lessons that allow children to produce creative works using the skills they have gained. Alongside this, every child deserves exposure to great art.  

One of the most enjoyable things about art is how subjective it is. No two opinions on a piece of artwork will be the same. Teachers often talk of Reading for Pleasure. I am a strong advocate of Viewing Art for Pleasure. Responding to art is one of life’s great joys. The key here is discussion. Discussions around artworks need to be planned well within a broader curriculum that emphasizes vocabulary, language, and the value of talk. In its simplest form, this could just be as simple as a pupil saying what they can see in front of them but with careful modelling and the right school culture, it can lead to powerful discourse in the classroom. 

When I redesigned the art curriculum in my previous role within each unit of work there were explicitly planned discussion points. As the learning progressed sequentially throughout the school the discussion points became more nuanced and built upon what had been discussed in previous year groups. Eventually, by year six pupils will have been exposed to seven years worth of high-quality artworks and the vocabulary and discussion around them. 

Whilst I strongly believe that children should have access to artworks because it is their right, there are also other advantages. Evidence from a 2012 study suggests that low-income American eighth-graders who regular exposure to artworks were more likely than their peers with less exposure to receive higher grades and attend college.

So what can we do to get them talking?

Firstly, we have to ensure that we create a classroom culture where pupils feel safe to express their ideas and thoughts. Talking about how art makes us feel and the scenarios it evokes can be deeply personal. We also have to model what this language and discussion look like. This is very important.  It can be done with another adult in the classroom or by ‘thinking out loud’ (asking yourself the question and then answering). 

When starting this process guided discussions are key. Children love looking at art! When presenting artworks to children they will often bring their own experiences and stories to the scene. This can be wonderful and can form the basis of an initial discussion. However, it is also important to ensure we are teaching them to discuss the artwork itself so they are fully able to experience it. This can easily be done by asking questions such as, “What do you see that makes you say that?” or “What makes you think that?” to gently bring them back to the artwork. 

The ultimate aim is to enable children to become perceptive viewers with art who actively engage with what they can see so they can have meaningful thoughts and dialogue. 

Background Knowledge

In previous blogs, I have discussed the importance of children having a knowledge-rich art curriculum alongside a creative one. If we want children to fully experience the art they study we need to ensure they also have contextual understanding. This doesn’t have to be dry facts! We all know how enthusiastically primary children respond to History. They love learning about the past and they are thirsty for knowledge. We can apply this to art. In my art assemblies of the week resources, I lay out how this can simply be achieved with primary children. 

When introducing artworks to children we should consider: 

Subject Matter 

This is what the artwork is about. It could be humans, animals, buildings, landscape objects, or how they are represented.

Emotional Aspects

The emotions and moods that are created in the artwork and how the artist achieves this.

Technical Aspects

This is the medium itself, how it is created, and the techniques that are used by the artist 

Context of the artwork

The culture, historical period, and art period in which the work was created. All of the external factors that contributed to the artwork such as the sex of the artist, the age, how they were feeling when it was created.  

Sensory Qualities

This is how lines, textures, and shapes are created and positioned, dark and light, deep and shallow.

Questioning

Finally, we have to ensure our questioning is effective and promotes deep discussion for pupils when thinking about the artwork. This is where careful question planning comes in. In my questioning resource (that can be downloaded below or via tes) I have collated various questions that can be used for a variety of artworks. It is important to pre-plan a brief selection of questions in order to aid and shape the discussion. Of course, once the discussion begins it will take many different shapes, and no two discussions about the same artwork will ever be the same!