1 - Preparing the Ground

The strand Exploring Forms and Cultural Contexts "focuses on the students’ awareness and understanding of

• how the various arts and art forms have developed in various times and places; 
• of the role of the different arts in students’ own lives and in the local, national, and global communities; and of 
• the social and economic factors that influence how the arts are perceived and valued. 

This component also encompasses the study of contemporary media and art forms. It is intended to help students understand that the arts are an important means of recording and expressing cultural history and identity and are also an essential aspect of living for all people. The focus should not be on the learning of facts, but rather on a meaningful extension of creating and learning in the arts" (Ontario Arts Curriculum, 2009, p. 14).

"Teachers should be aware that dance, drama, music, and the visual arts are separate disciplines, each with its own body of knowledge, artistic “language” or symbols, and modes of investigation. They each have a history and heritage, and they have structures in which ideas and experiences may be developed" (Ontario Arts Curriculum, 2009, p. 14).

An art form is a distinctive medium of expression that employs a particular set of techniques, materials, and aesthetic principles to create works. Each art form has its own conventions, history, and significance, and artists often push the boundaries of these conventions to innovate and explore new possibilities.

In dance, art forms might include genres like capoeira, Bharatanatyam, tango, ballet, hip hop, butoh, folk dances, etc.

In drama and theatre, art forms might include genres like Greek theatre, wayang kulit, mime, Griot storytelling theatre, Noh and Kabuki theatre, Egungun Masquerade, Commedia dell'arte, Chinese Opera, Ananse storytelling theatre, street theatre, performance art, puppet theatre, etc.

In music, art forms might include genres like reggae, samba, fado, calypso, pop, Western classical, afrobeat, mbube, rock, jazz, blues, etc.

In visual arts, art forms might include genres like painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, textile arts, ceramics, mosaic, graffiti, collage, tattoo art, mehndi, quilting, woodworking, mask making, papermaking, etc.

"Tokenism is a perfunctory or symbolic effort to be inclusive of ‘diverse’ groups by attempting to create the appearance of equality in representations in a particular context, such as a curricular program. Tokenism can include the practice of presenting representative figures or events without adequate context about the historical, social, or political conditions of their lives or these moments" (Lofthouse, 2024, p. 156).

An approach to teaching cultural contexts MUST disrupt the idea that there is a shared starting culture that all students belong to. One of the biggest issues when including so-called "diverse" cultural forms is the failure to examine the historical, political, and social influences on art forms that appear normative within a state, often reinforcing Western superiority and other forms of oppression by treating some art forms as "Other".

The curriculum documents physically separate forms and cultural context from other curriculum expectations in the arts. The idea represented by this separation is that content in the other sections of the document are ahistorical, apolitical, and culturally neutral. However, the notion of arts as skills to be developed is based in Western economic and philosophical beliefs about the arts; some approaches to art view it as an everyday engagement with beauty, and not a distinct or separate category.

The risk is that the "normative" approach to the arts is based in White, male, cisgender, heteronormative, wealthy, able-bodied understandings of what art can be. In general, the Ontario Arts curriculum for elementary students focuses on student engagements with the creative process, but there is a risk in introducing certain art forms more frequently or holding certain art forms in higher esteem (by repeated engagement, deeper contextual explorations, etc.) that students will internalize aesthetic judgments that reflect a limited understanding of what art can be.

The challenge is for teachers to show students a wide variety of art forms, challenging hierarchies, and encouraging students to think critically about the social, historical, and political positions of each art form they engage with. Part 3 of this resource explores responsible ways to integrate forms or explore contexts, while avoiding tokenistic practices.

When engaging with Forms and Cultural Contexts, asking students to describe art forms or performances that are not part of their personal lived experiences is inviting them to engage in cultural anthropology. In other words, curriculum expectations have the potential to position students as outsiders to "cultural" art forms

replicating the processes of colonial ethnography in which “inegalitarian power relations were relatively well defined: there was little question about the ‘civilized’ outsider's ability to represent ‘primitive’ peoples” (Narayan, 1993, p. 682, cited in Lofthouse, 2024, p. 117).

Exploring or "visiting" cultural forms that are Other from the forms normalized in the classroom through everyday engagement serves to elevate certain identities of art makers (adapted based on research from Thurlow, 2023).

Recognizing that the anthropological records created by colonial ethnographers were used to suppress Indigenous traditions - the Canadian government's use of the Indian Act to suppress Indigenous traditions was based on anthropological reports sensationalizing and misrepresenting these traditions - inviting non-Indigenous students to describe these practices as objects of study is not advised. When working with Indigenous arts, teachers should consider how to work In a Good Way (PDF) and Things to Consider Before Engaging with Indigenous Knowledge (PDF from FNMIEAO).

Consider the following curriculum expectations:

• describe, with teacher guidance, types of dances used among [Indigenous] peoples in the past and the present that express aspects of their cultural identity
• describe, with teacher guidance, dance forms and styles that reflect the beliefs and traditions of diverse communities, times, and places
• describe forms of process drama, theatre, storytelling, and visual representation from diverse communities around the world, and explain how they may reflect some beliefs and traditions of their communities
• compare some aspects of the music of one culture and/or historical period with aspects of the music of another culture and/or historical period

In this expectations, students are encouraged to describe art forms in relation to the cultural identity, beliefs and traditions of "diverse" communities. While "diverse" may include a large variety of nations, societies, groups, etc., inevitably these expectations will involve students whose identities do not match those of the stewards of the art form. When "Students act as cultural tourists into the lives of racialized figures (historical and contemporary), [they] disposses[s] these represented groups of narrative control" (Lofthouse, 2024, p. 185). 

There are, however, ways to engage with forms and contexts that are not tokenistic and that do not reinforce hierarchies or appropriate.

Teachers are not encouraged to act as an expert on forms or contexts that are not part of their lived experience. Teachers need to consider the difference between appropriating voice and giving voice:

The artistic "canon" is a collection of works considered to be the most important and influential in shaping the history of art. The historical context in which the canon was developed often privileged Western, male, and elite perspectives; those involved in determining what is in the canon is often limited to art historians, the art market, and institutions like museums. The canon is often commodified through reproductions (e.g., merchandise featuring artworks, TikTok trends, retail fashion, etc.), meaning that economic factors have a direct impact on what is considered "worthy" in the Western art world.

The canon has been criticized for marginalizing women, people of the global majority, and non-Western voices. This historical bias reflects broader social hierarchies and power dynamics within the art world, perpetuating a limited understanding of artistic excellence and cultural significance. Recognizing a non-Western canon means imposing a Western structure onto other cultures which has colonialist implications.

By acknowledging these critiques, educators can engage students in critical discussions about whose voices and perspectives are valued in art history and how these exclusions contribute to systemic inequities. Challenging the canon from an anti-oppressive perspective involves expanding the curriculum to include diverse artists and artworks, examining the social contexts in which art is produced and evaluated, and fostering a classroom environment that celebrates the richness of artistic expression across cultures and identities.

When considering how to disrupt the canon, Dhamoon (2009, p. 31) says that culture and multiculturalism are used to “package those who share some aspects of difference without adequately addressing historical and global racialized relations, colonialism, neo-colonialism, and other forms of domination”. A critical approach to forms and cultural contexts will contextualize all artworks and to ensure that White, cis, male, straight, wealthy, able-bodied artists are examined in the same ways as artists of the global majority, Two-Spirit and LGBTQIA+, Black, Indigenous, racialized, economically exploited, and disabled artists.