From Translation to the Transnational: Reading Art for the 21st-Century Classroom

Abstract

In our globalized contemporary world, many artists are becoming transnational and are making art with a global perspective. In this context, not only is our sense of art in relation to other aspects of culture changing, but new ways of understanding art educational practice have emerged. Inquiring about the nature and characteristics of this new type of art, this article analyzes and (re-)interprets two artworks, the forest of stone steles: re-translation and re-writing of tang poetry and the united nations, by the Chinese American artist Wenda Gu. Gu’s works are examined to draw educational and pedagogical insights for contemporary educational practice. Utilizing the artworks as my site of research inquiry, I argue that in order to develop students into future artists and citizens who are capable of creating counter-narratives of globalization, our school curriculum and pedagogy need to demonstrate five interrelated attributes that also characterize Gu’s art—to be thematic, dialogic, janusian, discrete, and relational.

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