Art Criticism

The two articles by Tom Anderson relate to each other in terms of evaluating and critiquing art.  Two aspects of art that must be considered in a critique of the work are intellectual meaning and aesthetic qualities.  The article Talking with Kids About Art stresses the concept that a critique must take place in specific steps, including description, interpretation, and evaluation.  This idea can directly be related to Bloom's Taxonomy, which breaks down the process of thinking, beginning at knowledge and ending at evaluation.  Both of these pyramid-style theories stem from the idea of using prior knowledge gained in previous stages to help develop a better understanding to make a better evaluation.  The second article, Aesthetics as Critical Inquiry, dives deeper in encouraging students to ask questions and think through them using their knowledge about art.  Anderson states that students must have their own ideas about what art is before they can begin to critique it.  These ideas can be useful in a classroom where students help improve each others' art and discuss why certain elements may or may not work.  Students are also required to back up their statements with concrete explanations or examples.  This strategy of having students work through their own questions and thoughts helps promote critical thinking and skills that are important for any classroom environment.