What Is Literacy in Visual Arts?

In the visual arts, developing literacy occurs as a result of engaging in an authentic creative process through the use of traditional and nontraditional materials and applying the formal elements of art and principles of design; knowing an arts language to describe art; and discovering the expressive qualities of art to be able to reflect, critique, and connect personal experience to art.

The visual arts standards describe expectations for learning in the visual arts regardless of style or genre. The standards impart the breadth and depth of the visual art experience through the art-making process. The standards serve as an impetus for arts educators and administrators to inspire, support, and develop their students in the many facets of visual arts so they are prepared for a lifelong appreciation, understanding, engagement and, if pursued, additional study towards a career in visual arts.

“Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.”

—Pablo Picasso (1881–1973), Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, stage designer, and playwright