The Futility of Education

That which he creates defines a man, and to define not just oneself but many men is a thing of wonder. For this reason, we build the gallery and the museum; these places become churches where we worship not God, but the ingenuity and creative capability of mankind, which is what separates us from the rest of the creatures on Earth. In the past few months I have made a habit of worshipping at these sites. What I have found is that, while I was glad for my knowledge of the pieces I viewed, the education I received had been futile when faced with the actuality of the work.
In the academic setting, society requires that students take lecture courses on art. The hope being the students will at least gain an appreciation for the field. In this aspect we are marginally successful. The memorization of works and dates becomes tedious, and more often than not students sleep through their lectures, catching only key ideas they will then regurgitate at a later date. The problem lies in the fact that as much as the professor can try to relate the experience of viewing a piece, in the end, art must speak for itself. Something that is completely impossible through the slide replication. I do not see the humor of a Johns encaustic if I cannot recognize that it is encaustic through a slide. Nor can I appreciate the beauty of a Mapplethorpe photograph blown up to 50 times its actual size. Magritte’s “The Treachery of Images” completely loses it’s meaning when you don’t recognize that the pipe is painted exactly life size. The question then, is how does the academic institution maintain a program to widen the student’s world-view when this art is scattered across the globe. I had to visit multiple countries to view only a few select American artists. I must go to Paris to see the “Mona Lisa,” Italy to see a Michelangelo, etc. While the actuality of the work is the only way in which the student can appreciate it’s importance, perhaps the answer to the academic question is not in the university funding world travel for students enrolled in Art History or Art Appreciation course, though that would be truly wonderful; but instead in the way the subject matter is approached.
The first step in the process of redefining the art course is that students and professors recognize its futility. If both parties walk into the lecture hall recognizing that the course is not about memorizing images and theories, but instead about preparing for a journey that each must embark upon individually at a later date. Changing the point of the class from information that must be received to be considered “educated” to inspiration to seek out things of great beauty.
Secondly, the United States of America is severely lacking in foreign exchange experiences. We often hear stories of students studying abroad in other countries, and the occasional well-off American student may get the chance to study in another country for a summer or so; but in order to facilitate an internalized world-view studying, working, or living abroad must become the rule and not the exception. Americans learn of foreign countries as far-away places that do not affect our daily lives, and might have some neat old stuff, hardly an open-minded world-view. However, foreign exchange programs are often cost-prohibitive, highly selective, and generally difficult. In Europe, on the other hand, if students are studying abroad the “gap-year” (year between high school and university or between university and life) is not only common, it’s almost expected. Warranted, the “Mona Lisa,” is much more accessible if you happen to live in Spain than it is if you happen to live oceans away from it, but that’s really not an excuse. With the accessibility of low-cost travel, e-learning, and worldwide market economy, it’s almost ridiculous to feel cut off from the rest of society just because there happens to be an ocean in the way.
Finally, art in your own backyard. It is really quite sad that while most university students diligently tromp their way to classes, they are rarely encouraged to visit the galleries and museums in their own communities. First of all, only a few places in American have student discounts/are free. This is just ludicrous! All places of art should be available to all people no matter how much money they happen to have. And the professors of art should mandate not just encourage that their students seek out art in their own communities to experience what it is to be faced with the reality of a piece, to be moved by something. Yes, perhaps they are not looking at “the classics” or “the masters” but they are looking, and feeling, and that is what will truly inspire a person to see more.
Art is an experience, and the greatest pieces are scattered across the globe for our wonder and amazement wherever we go. For now, I will continue to gaze at the masters and wonder how I never “got it” in the classroom or lecture hall. But, I will continue to hope that one day, there will be a future in which everyone is