Researching new methodologies for art education: the case of Albania

Abstract

The epoch of globalization asks for a review in teaching methods of the combined university level art subjects, not only in terms of the aspect of scientific achievements but also regarding intangible heritage. In country like Albania that is still undergoing the consequences of a half century long experiment on the homogenization of art, culture and intangible heritage. In the global era of the 21st century, the west European teaching methods of disciplines that study the cultural expressions of “Eurocentric” concept should face the development of the cultural cosmos and mentality of other non-European people. Confrontations of homogenous methodologies have produced unpredictable consequences according to the reciprocal incomprehension and rejection of different cultures. Two of these cases are the first human artistic expression (the geometric patterns of petroglyph of the raddle ochre stone in the Blombos Cave), and the string game, the oldest games in the history of mankind. The geometric patterns of the petroglyph of Blombos and patterns of the string games are similar in many cultures and populations in different times and contexts. Those patterns and the rules of games are the same but the way they are used and played with changes. In order to try and face these problems, the teaching methods of artistic expressions in the Albanian Intangible Heritage with Albanian students, are in the process of identification of common elements that connect the natural cultural Albanian cosmos with that of other people.