A sample activity for holding a studio art – painting – course in a museum

Abstract

Museums are the most effective settings for life-wide learning used in arts education. The aim of this study is to determine the effect of use of museums for educational purposes on a Studio Art – painting – course. In this study designed according to case studies technique, one of the qualitative research methods, a semi-structured interview form was used to determine students’ opinions on the learning process. The study group of the research was composed of sophomore students from the Division of Painting Education of the Department of Fine Arts Education at Bartın University. A museum trip took place in this four-week study, after which students were requested to draw some oil painting. Following the hands-on work, students were interviewed, and their drawings were collected. Data obtained from student interviews were put into a descriptive analysis, and they were arranged according to the specific theme of each. Oil paintings created by students as part of the study were interpreted descriptively by consulting experts, too. The results showed that students were really enjoyed attending a course in a museum, drawing right there. Students stated that they were attracted and got excited by different activities and learning environments in general and by attending a course in the museum, in particular. Considering data obtained from the interviews, the positive contribution reported by students was also reflected on their oil paint drawings, which were the practical component of the study.