Conclusion

During the course of this study, I found that art and spirituality is deeply connected and spirituality is a 'specific trait' of artist-teachers (Daichendt 2010, p. 14). A responsibility rests on the shoulders of artist-teachers to 'encourage student’s connections between the inner self and art making' (Campbell 2003), and apart from drawing, expose them to other forms of artworks like 'objects, images, events, or actions' (Sullivan 2006). The engagement with spiritual, social, and critical practices may help teachers to 'demonstrate an ability to transform their knowledge of subject content into teaching material' (Addison and Burgess 2000, p. 14; Atkinson and Dash, 2005, p. xi; Campbell 2003). This means, regular drawing lessons, mere observation, and making notes would not suffice. In fact, active participation of students and better skills of explanation and interpretation are needed for effective teaching (Carr and Kemmis 1986, p. 88). It would be a good idea to create a space where students can examine their spirituality and try to find answers for their aesthetical appreciation.

 

Moreover, concerns like demonstration and assessment might also need attention. In terms of demonstration, teachers may learn from Ittens; how he used to persuade his students to stretch their limbs around the space and try to understand the correct anatomical gestures while exercising. Ittens regarded this, an ideal way to grab the idea of movement. Similarly, Bauhaus masters used 'activities like Sumi-e, or black ink painting' to engage there students in simplified soft brush stroke techniques in a hope to enhance 'spirituality, concentration, and sensitivity' (Daichendt 2010, p. 112). For properly assessing the spiritual works of students, artist-teachers may need to change their perspectives to develop meaning as discussed by Atkinson (2007, p. 110) while explaining Holbein’s painting where by changing position the smudged image takes the form of a distorted skull. In totality, artist-teachers could include spirituality seriously into their classrooms and try to nourish this source of creativity, which in turn would open doors for new understanding and awareness.