From: melyons at adelphia.net <melyons>
Date: Wed, 7 Jun 2006 5:54:14 -0700

"Who gets to decide what is art" is an issue I dealt with repeatedly while researching the seven titles in my "African-American Artists and Artisans" series. I could write an entire book about the art dealers, museum directors, patrons and family members I interviewed.

The idea for the series came to me after sharing outsider art--a term that no one likes but everyone uses--with kids when I was an elementary school librarian. They loved the art (Minnie Evans's dream-like paintings always brings gasps, for example), but some many adults are puzzled by it, even uncomfortable with it.

The same is true for Clementine Hunter's and Bill Traylor's works. Their paintings are too childlike or raw for adults who are used to seeing the more sophisticated Romare Bearden or William Johnson material. Yet both of these classically trained artists are best-known for stylized works inspired by unschooled artists.

It's not just the art itself, but its success, that stirs up emotion. One jealous "insider" white artist in Wilmington, N.C., said to me about Evans's museum exhibit, "If museums take up space showing stuff like this, where will they put the REAL art?" That same day I showed slides of Minnie Evans's paintings to a group of Wilmington middle schoolers. They were spellbound.

Anyway, the three artisans books in the series seem to be more popular with educators. I'm guessing this is because quilting, furniture-making and blacksmithing are easier on the adult eye than outsider art.

So, who gets to decide for children "what is art"? Grownups.

Mary www.lyonsdenbooks.com
Received on Wed 07 Jun 2006 07:54:14 AM CDT