10-18-09

I think the fundamental benefit of collaborative artmaking is the transmission of ideas between artists, in order for each artist to grow by being drawn out of their boundaries, and to gauge the effectiveness of their visual communication methods.  Multiple artists giving input to one piece can also teach the individuals more about themselves, and maybe they would like to expand on some ideas that where pointed out to them in their own work.  Service-learning projects could fit into the curriculum as the beginnings of different projects, using research to guide my methods.

I've never really made art with others in a hands-on sense, but a major part of collaborative artmaking that I have participated in is group critiques.  I think that the technique used in the book to prevent "groupthink" during critique is something that can potentially make that part of artistic dialogue exponentially stronger.  Honest feedback during and after the creation of a piece of art is a vital part of the flow of ideas between artists, and can be key in fostering a collaborative atmosphere.

Groupthink, in my opinion, has been very present in the critiques I've experienced, as even when I have no idea how I would comment on someone's piece, I am able to predict what others would say because of the climate of that class, and give that as my input for the sake of participation.  This can be detrimental to the discussion, the piece in question, and the thought process of the artist who created/is creating it.