Against the Flow

by Peter Abbs

At once provocative and inspiring, Against the Flow is a work of polemic from an internationally respected writer and thinker on arts education. Peter Abbs argues that contemporary education ignores the aesthetic and ethical as a result of being in thrall to such forces as the market economy and managerial and functional dictates. He identifies the present education system as being inimical to creativity and authentic learning and instead, narrowly focused on the quantitative measuring of results. This absence of a creative and ethical dimension in education has implications for art making in wider society. Art is shown as emerging from, and appealing to, the ironic postmodernist sensibility and mass media-led culture, while being devoid of philosophical significance.
This book opens up a fresh and timely debate about the vital power of creativity in modern education. Drawing on examples from modern poetry, literature and visual art, it is an eloquent and passionate argument for the need to develop ethical and aesthetic energies to confront the growing vacuity of contemporary culture.

Genres: Education, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Art, Sociology, Self Help, Society

194 pages, Paperback

First published June 5, 2003

Reviews

[Olha]

Tough book. It has few common ideas with this one: art as healing process for soul/mind. And a lot of common stuff with this one: terrible approaches to not-STEM (as well as STEM) education; importance to break down the status quo; realizing that besides of consuming you can try to share some value.

Author is some poet and literature professor. He describes different
types of art.

While he does it in a very academical manner, it could be worse. He introduces original English poets, European painters, ancient Greek poets and philosophers.

The word "aesthetics" happens very often, and I still don't understand what that mean . Author said smth about the culture must be egalitarian, that is, be "higher" than pop culture (btw, he also hates McDonals, Coca-Cola and all kinds of advertisement). And he acknowledges that it's difficult to differ true of not-true. Great artists work by "fetching" collective values from their own conscience and sharing them with others. But I still don't give a fuck how some people can persuade the others that smth is beautiful, if its their subjective perception.
(Actually, I've understood his explanation, but can't verbalize. :))

Nice stuff for those who maybe one time will read simple expressive poetry: Sappho.

And yes, this extra-theoretical book increased my practical creativity, but I'm afraid it's not common stuff.