The Importance of Imagination and Art in Education and Life

In Six Memos for the Next Millennium, a series of lectures written for Harvard University’s Charles Eliot Norton Lectures in 1985-86, celebrated author Italo Calvino speaks to six human values worthy of appreciation, nurture, and preservation by future generations. He titled his fourth memo “Visibility” —the visual imagination—and cautioned his readers of losing this human faculty. Imagination, argues Calvino, is an essential instrument for knowing oneself and the world. What Calvino envisioned was a “possible pedagogy of the imagination,” which draws out inner vision and supports its realization.

Today many children grapple with the distracting intensity of the world, with short attention spans, and even suffer the tyranny of perfectionism. As an art teacher, I believe art is one of the most important tools we can use to slow down, redirecting attention to activities that support what is happening within, unencumbered by judgment. With a focus on creation and identity making, the art classroom can be a space where children unfold their natural expression, accomplishing something that is original and spectacular. In an atmosphere of joy and respect, they can enjoy what their imagination yields—to brave with their ideas, to trust themselves, and to find tremendous pleasure in the act of making. It can also be a place to break the rules, play, and get messy. In an environment of freedom and experimentation, art allows for discovery, where new paths open from the unknown and the unpredictable. 

With the attention of our eyes and hands, we can also use art to connect our unique view of things with the world around us.  “The root meaning of art is to fit together,” wrote celebrated artist and educator Corita Kent. Art intimately guides and reveals how we might fit into the order of things. One day a child may witness his painting of an over-size beluga whale emerge from the page, reminding him of his connection to all living creatures. Another day an embellished box holding a fragile, lightweight red egg may express the story of how tenderness is the compassionate link to humanity.  Or, through a slow, careful pencil study of the eyes of a classmate, a young girl may really see the quiet beauty of another soul. 

“When I draw, I feel like a butterfly.” — Natalie, age 9

With greater appreciation of what the imagination can offer, and with art making as the intentional mode of focus, we can help our children to see more clearly and to connect more fully to the world, adding intensified feeling, wonder, beauty, perspective, and meaning to their lives.

Anne West
Art Teacher
The Pinecroft School

The Pinecroft School is an elementary day school located in Rehoboth, MA.