Research in Arts and Humanities

 

Research does not stop at the sciences. Exploring the history of a subject, coming to deeper understandings, confronting boundaries, discovering new dimensions, creating new solutions to problems ... the same processes engage faculty and students in all fields. In countless ways, the fruits of research enhance the quality of life in Oregon's classrooms, workplaces, recreational sites, and homes. Multimedia Educational Material Corporate Creativity K-12 Curriculum

 

OSU Brings the World of Art to the World

Comprehensive, multimedia package available to schools and the public

An innovative, critically acclaimed art history book written by Oregon State University professor Henry Sayre has been developed into a multimedia tool that is revolutionizing art education across the state and beyond.

First came Sayre's 1994 book, "A World of Art." That was developed into a 10-part Public Broadcasting System television series, "A World of Art: Works in Progress," which was first aired in 1997.

The ambitious $1.2 million project, funded by the Annenberg Corporation, has also resulted in a supplementary website and CD-ROM software, as well as a workbook for teachers and a second edition of the textbook.

It's a whole new way to look at art. You can take a class of 350 people into an artist's studio

Now the web-based course is available to Oregon high school students through OSU pre-college Programs; OSU art faculty monitor the work of high school seniors, who earn advance college credit. The course is also offered by several Oregon community colleges, for distance-learning from about 65 institutions, as well as on 140 college campuses, including Stanford University.

Sayre's book had been praised for its inclusiveness. It incorporates the art of masters such as Picasso and Van Gogh, and also work ranging from Imunu art of New Guinea to Baule carvings from the Ivory Coast.

More than 170 of the book's 700 images are of "nontraditional" art. Another 90 deal with art by women, "about double what most other books had done," Sayre says.

The TV series was produced by Oregon Public Broadcasting, in association with OSU.

"In the beginning, we merely wanted to do something on the creative process - filming something from beginning to end," says Sayre. "But it occurred to us, what we really were doing was changing the art appreciation curriculum.

"The project allows art teachers to shift the focus from the `monument' to the process itself. It sort of demystifies art. Artists are not necessarily geniuses; their works are often the products of thinking and hard work - not all that different from the creations of engineers or designers."

OSU faculty created the sophisticated World Wide Web site (www.prenhall.com/sayre) to help teachers with the curriculum. It includes links with art around the world, from the Metropolitan Museum to The Louvre.

... changing the art appreciation curriculum

The interactive CD-ROM was designed by OSU art students. It lets users experiment with balance, color and perspective - without having to do original drawing. "It creates a field for students to experiment," Sayre says. "For example, there is a shirt and collar with a striped tie. You can make the ugliest shirt-tie combination in the world, or the most attractive, or something in between. The CD provides a pseudo-studio so that students face some of the same problems and choices artists face."

The comprehensive, multimedia package has gained the attention of the art world. "It's a whole new way to look at art," Sayre said. "Traditionally, you couldn't take a class of 350 people into an artist's studio. Now you can."

 

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"Corporate Creativity, How Innovation and Improvement Actually Happen," coauthored by OSU education professor Sam Stern, is inspiring people locally, nationally, and internationally. Stern has worked directly with Oregon companies, including Hewlett-Packard and Nypro, on fostering new ideas that help them realize their creative potential and significantly improve their competitive position and profitability.

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K-12 teachers around the state are learning to successfully integrate art into the curriculum, through the work of OSU's Sandy Brooke. She has worked directly with several Oregon school districts to help them develop the art component of the new core curriculum standards. Brooke offers her course "Art for Teachers" on-campus and will be bringing it to Eugene, Portland, Gresham, and Baker City; OSU Statewide will make it easily available to even more Oregonian's

People in the far corners of the state, the disabled and housebound, and those just plain too-busy are becoming educated in many fields through OSU courses on the Internet. Even philosophy is being taught in a whole new way by Quest Writer, an innovative software package that manages the use of computers in courses in any subject taught on-line. Developed by philosophy professors Bill Uzgalis and Jon Dorbolo, Quest Writer is the first piece of commercial software ever copyrighted by OSU. It is bringing widespread attention as a model for distance education.

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