From Art Appreciation to Pedagogies of Dissent: Gallery Education Rethinks the Inclusion Agenda

This chapter explores the problematic effect on pedagogy when inclusion initiatives are bound up with learning objectives. It explores the generation of critical thinking skills in gallery learning programmes where young people are empowered to take a critical stance. I use hermeneutic theory to explore the position and status given to artworks and to young people’s interpretations of those works. The art discourse that is explored was produced during peer-led workshops which, by design, were aimed at disrupting the dominant discourse of the gallery. With reference to critical pedagogic theory and the emancipatory ideologies of Paolo Freire, I illustrate the ways in which the potential for new critical voices can emerge in this context. I go on to contrast those ideas with potential pedagogic pitfalls in which such approaches become exclusive and ultimately work against their emancipatory aims. The research was conducted over a ten year period at Tate Modern in London. It uses data gathered from a youth programme for 15-23 year olds.