National Art Education Association

On Achieving Multi-Cultural BalanceAuthor(s): Jerome J. HausmanSource: Art Education, Vol. 45, No. 3 (May, 1992), pp. 4-5Published by: National Art Education AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3193348 .

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On Achieving Multi-Cultural

Photo courtesy of Kay Wagner, Instructional Team Leader for Visual and Performing Arts, San Diego City Schools. Photo by Dianne Bess.

The concept of "balance" has long fascinated me, especially as it applies to human affairs. Here, I am not referring to a static or fixed condition in which the balancing forces are unchanging; rather, my interest is in that more dynamic and flexible state in which the balancing forces are themselves changing, requiring modifi- cation and shifting in order to sustain the state of balance or equilibrium. Dynamic balance or equilibrium is a condition that we seek to achieve. Being alive involves this continuing effort to achieve this state. The term "homeostasis" refers to a condi- tion of physiological balance maintained by coordinated functioning of the various parts of the human body. For example, we seek to maintain a particular body temperature. Also, there are delicate balances involving secretions of the endocrine glands. Indeed, our very ability to stand upright or move

about is dependent upon the dynamics of balance.

The artist and teacher, Hans Hofmann, made reference to "push and pull", the expanding and contracting forces operating in visual expressions. As he observed: "the function of push and pull in respect to form contains the secret of Michelangelo's monumentality or of Rembrandt's univer- sality. At the end of his life and at the height of his capacity. Cezanne understood color as a force of push and pull. In his pictures he created an enormous sense of volume, breathing, pulsating, expanding, contracting through his use of color." (Hans Hofmann, Search for the Real, 1967, p. 45). Beyond the visual dynamics in paint- ing or sculpture, Hofmann went further in extending his metaphor: "the tension of movement and counter-movement, achieved through plastic order and unity, parallels the artist's life experience and his artistic and human discipline." (p. 67)

It seems to me that these thoughts have much to do with how we think about educating students in a multi-cultural context. Each person seeks his or her own "balance" in the world. This state, however, is always dynamic in which an individual deals with tensions (the known and un- known, part and whole, self and other, being and becoming) and seeks resolu- tions of these tensions. We do the best that we can in making sense of our lives. Yet, at each point of resolution there are new factors, new entrances, new circumstances calling for some readjustment, some reappraisal in accommodating and balanc- ing to meet these new conditions.

Much has been written about the term "culture". For the most part, the term is understood to refer to the way of life that

4 Art Education/May 1992

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Balance - An Editorial

characterizes a particular group - their learned behavior patterns, attitudes, and values. One's culture serves as an "orga- nizing framework" for making sense of the world. The problem, of course, is that individuals with differing cultural back- grounds are interacting, sometimes with language, meaning, and values stemming from different perspectives and presuppo- sitions. The result is a kind of cultural cacophony. The present crisis is one in which our plural cultures seem more confused and defensive in the resolution of differences.

Mine is the perspective of a teacher; more specifically, an art teacher. The images of great personal satisfaction (of balance!) that come to mind are those moments when I have worked with stu- dents as they made things, as they painted or constructed forms that expressed deeply felt ideas and feelings, or as I have worked with teachers in helping them to under- stand ways that they could enable their students to shape or respond to visual forms. From this perspective, cultural differences can be honored and respected under the rubric of art. To be sure, there are the "pushes" and "pulls" of the known and unknown, the expected and unex- pected. The balance to be achieved involves honoring specific qualities of a culture and transcending its limits through involvement with new alternatives and ideas. Artists and art can be seen as part of every culture. We will be better under- stood and valued if we stick to the essen- tial qualities of what art and artists are all about.

When you come down to it, we each have our life to live. Each of us must come to the realization that we have certain

responsibilities and opportunities. My argument is that understanding and participation in the arts can provide av- enues for particular ideas and insights. These are ideas and insights about quality. My argument is also an argument for honoring cultural identity and diversity. For one thing, we have no choice in that these are givens in our experience. More funda- mentally, honoring, enjoying, and shaping cultural values brings about greater enjoyment and fulfillment as to what life is about.

Jerome J. Hausman Editor

Photo courtesy of Kay Wagner, Instructional Team Leader for Visual and Performing Arts, San Diego City Schools. Photo by Dianne Bess.

Art Education/May 1992 5

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