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Published in:
2019 | OriginalPaper | Chapter
17. Contra-STEAM: On the Value of the Autonomy of Art
Author : Robert F. Arnold
Published in: The STEAM Revolution
Publisher: Springer International Publishing
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Abstract
While recognizing the educational and ultimately societal values of STEM initiatives to confront gender imbalance in science and technical fields early on, as well as the virtues of interdisciplinary and collaborative problem-solving associated with STEAM, this chapter will tease out and call into question some of the assumptions and possible impacts of including art in that mix of disciplines, from the standpoint of a longstanding split in the theorization of art between utilitarian and non-utilitarian conceptions of aesthetic practice. While incorporating art into STEM has many potential benefits, does it ultimately undermine the societal value of art as an independent, autonomous sphere, that sits outside of the practical utilitarian framework of STEM? Does it sacrifice art’s potential to serve as a critical mirror of society, or as an escape from the practical, to put it in service to the ideology of “creative problem-solving?”