Art education at the University of Malta

Abstract

Field research on Art education at the University of Malta was carried out in order to identify the educational opportunities provided to students who would like to pursue their artistic studies in Art at a tertiary level. This Dissertation identifies Art education opportunities provided in Malta and Gozo as well as in other European countries. It also gives a general outline of the history of Art education and its evolvement along the years up to the contemporary scene. In this respect, changes were identified, amongst which the introduction of new artistic techniques and expressions within the Art education curriculum. Such information was obtained through bibliographical research. Further literature studies were carried out in order to explore the educational experiences of Maltese artists, as well as the career path they followed after completing their artistic education. Findings relating to Art education in various Maltese Art Institutions emerged through an analysis of qualitative interviews with Heads and Directors as well as with current students. Further interviews were carried out with former University students in order to identify the changes made within the Faculty of Education Art course at the University of Malta since its beginning, in 1984, exploring possibilities for further development. Having examined such issues, considerations on the reasons why Fine Art is not offered as a separate discipline have emerged, thus concluding that a high level of Art education in Malta is still limited due to the various confining factors that may prevent it from developing further.