Drawing upon a review of literature and interviews with four artist-teachers, this thesis explores the implications of post-modernism on the studio teaching of painting. Additional emphasis is placed on uncovering the issue of the-death-of-painting and its links to post-modernism, and my own reflexivity as a painter and a teacher of art. The thesis presents also an attempt to respond to an apparent lack of educational research that addresses post-secondary studio teaching of art, and that engages artist-teachers in reflection on their teaching philosophies. The overall objective of this thesis is to generate a body of knowledge that could be of assistance to other practitioners in the field in their own pedagogical reflections and development of contemporary studio instruction. Thus the questions and ideas brought in this study present both an invitation and directions for future inquiries in this area of education.

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Cubism has often been referred to as “a dead art.” It is the objective of this thesis to present evidence gained through working with high school art students that the study of Cubism, at the secondary level, can result in greater creativity and a genuine appreciation of the abstract. In addition to the study of Cubist artists and their techniques, a correlation was made between art of the early 1900’s and other areas such as Social Science, Music and Literature of this time. By this method, the students were given a broader insight into the motives of the Cubist artists. The personal involvement of each student in the progressive changes from objective representation of subject matter to quasi-nonrepresentational painting provided them with more open attitudes in understanding art of the past and of the present. Photographs of student work from an advanced art class at Reynolds High School are offered as evidence to support this thesis.

My research problem was to experiment with four high school art classes in drawing and painting the figure, to draw conclusions about how they relate to working with the figure, and to recommend methods that appeared to be most successful in broadening viewpoints, developing skills and increasing interest and involvement in art. This problem was selected because teenage students, in the vast majority of cases, have great difficulty in drawing or painting figures and, therefore, strenuously avoid it. I discovered that a subjective approach that recognizes personal feelings, along with one that requires close looking, seemed to get the most exciting, results and to be the best received by the students.

I. Statement of Research Problem. The research was an exploration into the broken color technique within the paintings of the Impressionists and Neo-Impressionists and the application of their techniques within the painting experiences of the adolescent student. II. Resume of the Data. The application of pure pigment directly, without blending, constitutes one of the major aims of the Impressionists and Neo-Impressionists. The breaking of color was done in many methods by juxtaposition of hues and values in various combinations to give the desired effect; it was applied through a wide range of brush techniques such as comma-shaped, spots, hatchings, and a multitude of undefinable forms. Historical Data. The emphasis upon color in painting has a heritage stemming from the city of Venice during the Renaissance. The Venetian artists began what is known today as the painterly direction of painting. Many artists thereafter portrayed this painterly mode such as Caravaggio, Rubens, Constable, and Delacroix. It was, however, during the latter half of the nineteenth century in France that the painterly style reached new heights through the art of the Impressionists. The Impressionists sought to capture the momentary effect of light upon their canvases through many diverse methods of broken color. The Neo-Impressionists felt Impressionism was too unstructured; therefore, they based their method on a scientific approach. Colors were broken into small dots and placed contiguous to one another. Through optical fusion, these dots would fuse into a new and more vibrant hue. Painting Data. Data was gained from the involvement into actual painting where the broken color techniques were explored. Some of the factors are that media having a rapid drying quality (such as acrylics or casein) are superior to the slower drying oils; that the various methods of brush strokes used in the application of pigment created a varied broken effect; and the use of pure hues aids in the freshness of color passages. Educational Data. Within art education a knowledge of the aspects of broken color will aid the art educator in presenting a painting program in which the student will become involved in exploring new dimensions in color perception. III. Data Obtained. The data was obtained in three principle ways: the readings relevant to the subject, the involvement into specifically related paintings, and the application of broken color techniques within the adolescent art program. Readings. The readings involved the general history of the period, biographies, and texts relating to aspects of color. Paintings. Several large paintings were undertaken with specific objectives. Four major paintings were done in the divisionalist method, each with selected subject and light conditions. Others were painted by the direct application of pure pigment with landscape and figures as the motif. Classroom application. The techniques of breaking color were presented to several groups of adolescent art students. They were encouraged to explore divided color utilizing various media. IV. Summary. Research in the broken color technique should create a greater visual awareness of the richness of color. Through the juxtaposition of color the eye would be put to work mixing colors; the observer, therefore, will take a more active role in the perception of all images on the retina of the eye. The emphasis upon color in painting had a long heritage; it was fully exposed in the broken color style of the Impressionists. Neo-Impressionism also added new vistas in the perception of color. This period of painting contributed greatly to the contemporary arts. Therefore, it is an important era to be explored by art students today to develop more insight into the nature of color within painting.

This thesis attempts to demonstrate an approach to secondary art education which will emphasize the student's own experience as the basis of his art work. Furthermore, the students' learning activities are given a broader context by the inclusion of material from the history of art within the framework of the studio course. Such an integrated approach can give meaningful insight to the adolescent as he deals with experience in a visual form. This orientation to art education has evolved through the writer's own teaching experience and from reading the works of art educators. In preparation for the thesis, I researched the history of landscape painting, current material on art education and adolescent psychology, and the formal technical aspects of using color in art. The problem became that of integrating this diverse information into coherent teaching units. Landscape painting is the subject of the teaching units, or chapters; and each chapter deals with a different approach to the world of nature. The thesis consists of five chapters, including an introduction and a summary. The central chapters contain two sections: one based on the history of art and the other on related student experiences and classroom procedures. A specific lesson plan is included at the end of each chapter.