Revitalizing History

"Revitalizing History is an insightful collection of multi-storied histories long overdue in the telling. The editors and authors of this remarkable text remind us that histories are always in the making and re-making, and are as much about collective community practices as they are about influential individual narratives. However, this anthology offers more. It not only gives voice to silent subject matter, but it also reveals the material processes historical researchers use in assessing practice-based evidence found in the visual traditions of art and culture. As such, Revitalizing History tells us as much about contemporary dilemmas facing artists and teachers today, as it does about the struggles, lives, achievements of colleagues from the past."

Graeme Sullivan, Director

Penn State School of Visual Arts

"By bringing to light the hidden histories of African-American and women art educators, Revitalizing History disrupts the monumental narratives of art education. This text is indispensable to any art educator who wants to envision their classroom as a public space that has the potential to radically transform our understanding of the past, in relation to our present and our future."

Dipti Desai,

New York University

<i>"Paul Bolin and Ami Kantawala have curated a remarkable collection of essays describing histories of unconventional art educators – African Americans and/or women whose creativity extended not just to their own art and educational endeavors, but also to forging their unique paths in a society that constrained their possibilities. From a community of Black landscape artists in Jim Crow Florida to a relentlessly creative puppeteer, artist, and educator who struggled with disability, the rich variety of accounts in Revitalizing History opens wide our understanding of those who found ways to thrive outside of mainstream institutions that largely excluded them. Bolin and Kantawala are uniquely well suited for editing this project given their longstanding commitments to rendering visible the works of artists hidden from history. This volume will appeal not just to art educators, but also to artists, historians, and general readers who admire stories of human tenacity and imagination."</i>

Jackie Blount,

The Ohio State University

<i>"This is a unique and original collection of essays from scholars both established and emerging on the subject and practice of art education history. Carefully crafted stories of art educators working with individuals and communities in specific locations and within particular institutional contexts are offered as examples of how one can attend and become attuned to the stories and representational practices of others from other times. The histories presented in this book speak to the socially and culturally embedded nature of what might appear as individual accomplishment and contributions to art education. All essays attest to how educators of the past have devoted time, thought and attention to helping others to live in the company of art. They, too, demonstrate how one can find ways of conceptualizing one’s educational and pedagogical practices by paying attention to the educative practices of others.

The essays in this collection, first presented at the Brushes with History: Imagination and Innovation in Art Education History conference held at Teachers College Columbia University in New York during November of 2015, represent an approach to doing historical research, which the editors, Ami Kantawala and Paul Bolin, describe as ‘history from below’ by which they mean histories produced by paying attention to the stories and accounts produced by those who are typically less likely to be consulted or heard in the production of history traditionally understood. As a result, this collection of essays presents a fresh set of accounts of the practice of art education in times past.

This collection of essays will be invaluable to those who are interested in learning about and conducting histories of art education as the essays demonstrate ways of thinking and doing historical scholarship that are productive in their potential for continuing to articulate the past in compelling and ever more nuanced ways."</i>

Dr. Dónal O’Donoghue,

The University of British Columbia, Canada

"The contributors to Revitalizing History: Recognizing the Struggles, Lives, and Achievements of African American and Women Art Educators provide significant new knowledge about the ways in which people learn about art. Impressive is that this volume concentrates on the people and institutions responsible for facilitating this education rather than simply examining pedagogical strategies over time. Significant to this anthology is that it tells the story of art education from the perspective of women and African American educators who are largely unknown. Also significant are the ways in which the authors describe the institutions or communities within which these art educators are working. Reading these accounts provides readers with a nuanced historical view of how people learn about the arts and how individuals, communities, and institutions, made learning about the arts possible. This volume will be of interest to scholars working on art education history as it broadens the contexts from which historical studies emerge. For others, the volume will be a source of inspiration for posing new questions about the history of art education and choosing methods through which this history can be discovered."

Prof. Doug Blandy,

University of Oregon