Bilingual Arts Practice, Frameworks and Possibilities

Abstract

This paper draws together visual arts education and the Irish language reflecting on how they have developed and evolved in the Irish primary school context. Visual arts education and the Irish language have a complex history influenced by the shifting priorities of the Irish education system. This paper explores the residual effects and challenges because of this. This work focuses on bringing together two teacher educators to explore art making through the medium of Irish and English. The collaborators explore the potential of using European frameworks to extend their practice in creating bilingual dialogue space. In doing so this bilingual arts practice between two teacher educators can be seen as a peaceful coexistence, involving translation, negotiation of meaning and oral dialogue where the act of engaging and coming in and out of both languages was ever present in the art making. This work is framed within a collaborative auto ethnographic approach. This paper represents the initial project development stage of an ongoing collaboration.