Research Philosophy

Liberation is a praxis: the action and reflection of men and women upon their world in order to transform it. – Paulo Freire

The focus of my research is the investigation of pragmatic approaches for arts and creativity education, to realize its potential to transform the lives of learners. The research projects I have described here illustrate through selected examples a cohesive body of research that is rooted in personal values and experiences. I have made important contributions throughout my career toward these goals, and have secured the support to advance a robust program of research that has gathered national and international recognition. I look forward to continuing to explore new directions for socially-engaged scholarship, especially those that can lead to sustaining collaborations, underscoring the central roles of art and creativity in research and teaching committed to the articulation of diverse voices and the facilitation of social change.

A Focus on Community

In Cincinnati, I have been deeply involved with the Art in the Market Program, a year-round partnership with community organizations through which urban teens learn about and engage in processes of creating community art. Past projects have included mosaics and murals in key locations around the Findlay Market district, a collection of paintings for the renovated women’s wing at University’s Hospital, and temporary murals placed on the facades of downtown buildings that have since undergone renovation. Over the years, the program has created a legacy of more than 65 community-based works. As both a research and innovative teaching site, Art in the Market has allowed me to further develop and apply community-based art education principles, to engage in service-learning and community outreach activities, and to work in an interdisciplinary fashion with university students and faculty from education, humanities, and creative disciplines. Over the past 15 years, the program reached more than 200 local youth of color from low-income families, many of whom considered art-related careers, and a few who pursued a college education after participating in the program.

A Tension between Familiar and Strange

My research focuses on cultural and artistic understandings, situated within the tension between familiar and strange contexts, considers pedagogical approaches that are critically informed by tradition and innovation, and seeks to create a dialogue between local and international ways of knowing. In “Exploring Hybridity in Contemporary Brazilian Art” (Bastos, 2006), I examine the multilayered nature of culture and art as it applies to the artistic and cultural context of Brazil. On one hand, I have inquired about issues of cultural representation, understanding, and assimilation in my own research-informed teaching, illuminating it with my personal connection to Brazil. On the other hand, I have used my experiences as an international art education researcher to contribute to a growing understanding of cultural research methodologies and the role of cultural research experience in teacher preparation.

Urban Education

In the co-edited book Trasforming Cities through Art: Approaches to Meaningful k-12 Learning published by Teachers College Press in 2012, I seek to articulate a positive vision that celebrates and capitalizes on the educational, cultural, community, and artistic possibilities of the city. Placing greater value on the opportunities available within urban spaces than on the limited resources and opportunities that influence students’ experiences in city schools the authors recognize, question, and challenge these inequalities. I am the editor of the book’s first section that lays out activist concepts informed by community development and participatory action research. Based on broad understandings of visual art and culture that encompass the physical and social assets of the city, the book provides a discourse of hope and possibility, in which problems are met with creativity and the end goal of student learning and advancement is honored.

Creativity Research

In collaboration with Dr. Enid Zimmerman, I co-edited Connecting Creativity Research and Practice in Art Education: Foundations, Pedagogies, and Contemporary Issues (2015). The book is the first comprehensive publication by the National Art Education Association on the topic of creativity since 1964 and it has been a bestseller since its publication. The book challenges the current wave of interest in creativity largely justified by perpetuating the economic interests of industrial nations and emphasizes the importance of promoting a new kind of thinking that centrally locates creative education within social justice education.