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Natures Calendar
Early nineteenth century schools started to shift from a rural seasonal calendar to a more regular sessions defined by the increase of industrialization. While some schools sought to be a vocational training ground, advocates for student well-being emerged. Mr. Henry Turner Bailey advocated for a educational atmosphere that celebrated the holidays as a motivational boost for students.
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Leisure Time
Towards the end of the nineteenth century an effort was made towards developing healthy pastimes. The grind of the industrial work schedule had created a desire for unrestricted leisure. An infrastructure was being set in place to encourage a civilized respite Link Text -
Schoolroom Decorations
Bailey advocated for the calendar to decorate and instruct a student population that was repressed by the dictates of city life. The calendar was to reflect European and protestant influence. Teaching students of patriotic duty and cultural significance was essential. Celebrating the holiday, though, was a necessary escape from the drudgery of the industrial city routine people were stuck in.
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Henry Bailey's Europe Trip
A trip to the Palio in Sienna reaffirmed his commitment to the celebration of holiday within academia. The festival's medieval tradition and horse racing was a moving experience for Bailey. It solidified his belief in holiday as a pastoral escape that the industrialized city life was establishing.
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Environmentalism
The turn of the century brought with it suggestions for the classroom aesthetic. While nineteenth century scholars advocated for a classroom that was less drab, twentieth century art educators countered the notion with an advocacy for less clutter. Art teachers were to be aesthetic arbiters whose refined sense of taste brought the community together with sense of professionalism.
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Jack-O-Lanterns
Mary A. Barry directed students in Massachusetts to create Jack-o'-lanterns with specific directives. This was a perfect example of a celebratory approach to education that was a happy medium between informal holiday and vocational schooling. Specification for wall thickness, height, materials, and expressiveness were all a normalize of an informal leisure activity done at home.
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Easter Work
Bailey celebrated the Horace Mann School in an article highlighting their innovative approach to Easter celebration. Directed by Arthur Wesley Dow, students collaborated with younger students to celebrate spring imagery that highlighted nature. Bailey was a proponent for it's generalized perspective. -
Arbor Day
In a 1908 article Bailey encouraged the use of Arbor Day in more of a celebratory fashion. Gone were the efforts to integrate design principles in the aesthetic practice.
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Notable beautiful school buildings
In 1912 the editorial entitled School Arts ran articles that praised the ideal aesthetic for academic buildings. What was highlighted were buildings that brought a revival of traditional architectural styles such as Gothic or Romanesque architecture. Schools were to, also, bring nature into the academic sphere gardens and have art displayed in halls.
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School Arts recommendations
In 1913 an article was published in the editorial entitled School Arts. Suggestions for authentic oil paintings, sculpture memorials, original murals, and stained glass windows were included. Schools with an intentionally thought out color scheme were thought to be most conducive to the educational experience.
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The Pageant Movement
Starting in 1905, this movement was an attempt to bring all subject matter together. Pagents were held in an effort to inform both native born students and immigrants of traditions. These celebrations often led students to study art history to learn the significance of symbols in culture. Reviving festival brought meaning and significance to the educational experience.
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