Teaching colour in the desert : Adapting art curriculum.

The image ive been concerned with recently is the construction crane. Why cranes? Because I am surrounded by them.

Simply put, to be an artist (I relentlessly tell my poor students) 'is to express your ideas about your environment'. Learning art processess encourages critical thinking and establishes a deeper knowledge on difference and cultural understanding. It also helps students move toward themselves and this understanding inspires confidence, trust and grounding. ( I could go on, but Ill stop there.)

Colour:

Recently I have been talking about colour with my students. Living in the Gulf after having lived on so many continents is a bit like having a palate cleanser during a meal. The artistic palette is limited- the taste buds are desperately wanting. You know that moment in-between meals when you need to take a pause for the next plethora of tasty colourful delightful things- it could come in the form of the sorbet- the 'page refresher' so that you can start again. As an artist living in the gulf I live in two colours : the light pastel cream yellow (of sand / of buildings), and blue (sky / glass building/sea) Occasionally this landscape is doted with the black and white of national dress. It has made me feel like the next meal may never come, but it has also led me to appreciate every part of the process and see the beauty of this particular place in its simplicity.
Culture:

Living as an expatriate enables one to draw from exotic cultural environments. This country in the gulf has only been 'modern' for less than a decade- there is a fascinating frenzy of building to watch - and this has resulted in my sketchbook filled with the drawings of cranes (and the constant wearing of ear plugs.)
So when I asked my 15 year old students to create a diary of their daily activities I was not surprised to see in their sketchbooks references to sparce brown palm trees set against yellow and blue. Not to mention a few pigeons, their t.v.s, and other electronics. Although you could argue that the obsession with using technology indoors can be seen in any city, it was evident that their everyday visual world was sparse.

It has also been a huge learning curve culturally. Understanding bias and finding ways around learning sensitivities regarding what art is and local expectations of art education. Sometimes this includes the sensitivities-which i openly respect- toward the drawing of the conscious being- the strict taboo towards the creation of the idol, resulting in a curb in the curriculum here and there. But then I am left wondering about students who move abroad to attend top universities and wether it will effect their performance. For example not studying the anatomy of the human/animal form may compromise a career in character animation.

I have a new understanding of islamic art and the comparatives I like to draw relative to what I have studied in Western Art History. The local contemporary art world is developing alongside the skyscrapers at a fast speed. Most artists must have studied abroad or of a brand new generation.