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Mary Ann Dwight emphasizes the importance of art theory
Art theory around 1850 was still considered a secondary importance in relation to the students' mastery of naturalistic representation. Realism (both figuratively and visually) was an emerging art form in the United States at the time, expressed in Gustav Corbet's The Stone Breakers (1849-1850).
https://archive.org/details/introductiontost00dwigrich/page/10/mode/2up -
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Denman Waldo Ross
In contrast to Dow (and Fenollosa), Ross taught design theory in art through a scientific lens. Born in Ohio he later moved to Boston and studied history, later teaching design classes at Harvard using the scientific methods to explain the principles and elements of art.
**Though Dow and Ross both traversed the globe studying and collecting art, each developed completely different approaches to the study of art and design.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/20023267?seq=1 -
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Arthur Wesley Dow
An Ipswhich native, painter & art teacher, Dow studied in Paris and was influenced by the Modernist notion of universal beauty, artistic freedom & individuality. Later, he was influenced by E.F.Fellonosa's belief in art as a "comprehensive method of going to work to draw out the esthetic faculty of the soul".His theories emphasizing composition over natural representation would replace the South Kensington System in American Art Education.https://americanart.si.edu/artist/arthur-wesley-dow-1325 -
Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia
Walter Smith publishes Examples of Household Taste in response to the exhibit, stating the most admirable art objects are those which show a mastery of traditional, pre-existing forms and a knowledge of design one must be formally taught. A theory rejected by English art critic John Ruskin who believed the design process was intuitive and unteachable. Art education in American schools were influenced by these 2 contraries: the design of taught mastery and the design of creative intuition. -
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The Color Wars
The transition from grey copy books and exhibitions to a more enhanced study and application of color. Two competing systems of color - 12 hues on the color wheel divided differently; Milton Bradley's 6 standard colors with a complementary for each - verses The Prang System's primary, secondary and tertiary colors.
https://munsell.com/color-blog/color-revolution-regina-lee-blaszczyk/ -
Henry Turner Bailey's lectures on historic ornament
Instructed by a student of Walter Smith, Bailey lectured to schools in Clinton, MA on the importance copying prior examples of design throughout history. Furthermore, he pointed out that teachers should also learn the history of ornamental art in order to successfully teach their students design.
http://hurwitz.tc.columbia.edu/taxonomy/term/215 -
Mary Dana Hicks Color Experiments Begin
Attempting to base curriculum on children's color perceptions by studying different groups around the nation. Yellow and the following warmer colors were most attractive to younger children. https://americanantiquarian.org/prang/education -
Prang Art Teacher's Manual
Following Smith's interpretation of art education, analysis preceded drawing; knowledge of design principles preceded the invention of new design by students. Since teachers in Clinton had just begun teaching drawing, the manual allowed teachers to rely on the text for the substantial amount of new information.However, later Prang texts would favor Arthur Welsay Dow's approach to composition over Walter Smith's rigid formalism.https://www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org/about/blog/library-blog-9142018/ -
Munsell's Color "Tree" Patented
A three dimensional system of color composed of hue, value and intensity - correlating to music theory's system of a note's pitch, intensity and duration.
Tree not sphere because some colors naturally have a wider range in hue (red versus blue-green).
Yet, Munsell and Ross both chose muted, middle chroma colors for children. Both agreed on the psychological impact complex and alien color choices would have on students; less harmonious. https://munsell.com/color-blog/color-tree/ -
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Ross Chairs Boston Public Schools' Art and Design Committee
The syllabus exemplified his slogan "... aiming at order and hoping for beauty."
"To have children see the difference between order and disorder... to develop a love of beauty... the beautiful is simply the best of its kind- the supreme instance which gives the standard. To recognize and discover it is one of the interests of a civilized life."https://www.jstor.org/stable/20023267?seq=1
