Theorizing Experience: Four Women Artists of Color

Overview & Synopsis

This article derives from a qualitative study in which four women artists/educators of color shared narratives of the input of feminism and ethnicity in various areas of their lives that included identity, education, professional activity, and artmaking. The scope of the article is limited to their art making (connected to personal experience) because of the significant role that art production plays in K-12 art classrooms, preservice, and inservice art education. I provide a connection to Laurie Hicks' (1990) recommended feminist approach to art education and suggest that the teaching of cultural diversity can be enhanced and improved upon by sharing the personal experiences of the artists in combination with Hicks' goals of feminist art education. I advocate that the experiences of these women artists of color contribute to strengthening the field of art education by helping us reshape the material we present to students. (Contains 4 footnotes.)