Synopses & Reviews
The educational constituency for the arts is rapidly expanding beyond the conventional school setting to include the wider community. Cultivating the Arts in Education and Therapy is a much needed textbook for courses in the training of arts teachers, arts therapists and community artists. Malcolm Ross brings together the latest research on human empathy and creativity to reposition the arts as central to the effective initiation and management of change in contemporary society.
The book integrates traditional Chinese Five Element Theory, also known as The Five Phases of Change, with contemporary Western psychological and cultural studies, to form a new Syncretic Model of creative artistic practice. Ross sets empathy and authenticity at the heart of the curriculum a not just the arts curriculum but the whole curriculum. The Syncretic Model is explored and validated through an analysis of interviews with practising, successful artists, and in a comprehensive review of the latest neuro-scientific research into human consciousness and emotion. Finally, drawing upon his extensive experience the author offers practical help in using the Syncretic Model to educational and therapy professionals working and training in the arts.
For training and practising arts therapists the book will supply a much needed comprehensive rationale at a time when the need for a new research and theoretical underpinning of practice is recognised to be urgent. With the demand for their services growing and pressure to demonstrate effectiveness mounting, the arts therapy community is looking to build bridges between the different therapies and across national boundaries. This book offers a coherent, co-ordinating framework for a comprehensive reflective practice.
Synopsis
The constituency for education and therapy in the arts is rapidly expanding beyond the conventional school and clinical settings to include the wider community. In Cultivating the Arts in Education and Therapy, Malcolm Ross integrates traditional Chinese Five Element Theory, also known as The Five Phases of Change, with contemporary Western psychological and cultural studies, to form a new Syncretic Model of creative artistic practice.
The Syncretic Model is explored and validated through an analysis of interviews with practising, successful artists, and in a comprehensive review of the latest neuro-scientific research into human consciousness and emotion. The book addresses the well-documented difficulties experienced by arts teachers and therapists intervening in, supporting and evaluating the creative development of individual students and clients.
This groundbreaking text repositions the arts as central to the effective initiation and management of change in contemporary society. Besides being of wide general interest, it will have particular relevance for practising and trainee arts teachers, arts therapists and community artists. With the demand for their services growing and pressure to demonstrate effectiveness mounting, the arts community is looking to build bridges between the different arts, and between arts education and therapy across national boundaries. This book offers a fresh, coherent, and challenging framework for a revitalized reflective practice from an experienced authority in the field.