Art
Am I Missing Something?
Q. I was drawn to Waldorf schools partly because of the emphasis on art. But now I find there are all kinds of rules limiting what the students can do in art. Why?
A. Waldorf schools are often very beautiful, and they are often filled with lovely art. But, indeed, the schools' approach to the arts is hemmed in with rules and limitations. Students may be restricted to the use of certain colors, certain kinds of pencils, certain kinds of crayons, certain kinds of paintbrushes, certain kinds of paper...
The reason? There is almost no art for art's sake in Waldorf schools. The arts (like almost everything else) have mystical importance in Waldorf schools. Rudolf Steiner taught that spiritual beings enter the earthly realm through colors, musical tones, and other artistic qualities. Likewise, he said, we can be transported into the spirit realm through art. You need to realize that he meant such things literally, not figuratively. Steiner believed in a very distinct spirit realm, and the essence of his spiritual system consists of finding ways to enter and investigate that realm. [See his book, HOW TO KNOW HIGHER WORLDS.] [1] Art provides important avenues into the spheres above us: “This is what gives art its essential lustre: it transplants us here and now into the spiritual world.” [2]
The titles of various Steiner books drive home the meaning of art in Waldorf belief: ART AS SPIRITUAL ACTIVITY, ART AS SEEN IN THE LIGHT OF MYSTERY WISDOM [3], and THE ARTS AND THEIR MISSION. [See "Magical Arts".] Parents who choose Waldorf schools for their emphasis on art are often sadly disappointed. "My daughter cried at bedtime and in the mornings as she vehemently resisted going to [her Waldorf] school. However, thinking we should work through her intensifying revolt, because it was in her best interest, we ignorantly kept sending her off as we were dubious about our other options for schooling. When her accumulated wet-on-wet 'artwork' came home, I was aware that, unlike her prolific creative drawing done at home, at school the self expression we had anticipated was actually being frustratingly suppressed." [See "Our Brush with Rudolf Steiner".] [4]
o0O0o
[1] This link takes you to a pdf file containing the entire book.
[2] Rudolf Steiner, THE GOETHEANUM: School of Spiritual Science (Philosophical-Anthroposophical Press, 1961), p. 25.
[3] In Waldorf belief, "mystery" knowledge or wisdom is the hidden knowledge of higher worlds that Steiner's followers try to attain. Another term for it is occult knowledge.
[4] "Wet-on-wet" watercolor painting uses wide, wet brushes, watery paints, and wet pieces of paper. As practiced in Waldorf schools, it is a technique meant to create images that reflect the spirit realm as Steiner described it, a place of colors but not forms.
o0O0o
For more information, see
(See especially the section on art.)