Structural, Educational and Methodological Basis of a Church Art Course Aimed at Prospective Church Ministers and Catechists
Alexander Kopirovsky, Ph. D. in Education, Professor, St Philaret’s Institute (Moscow)
pp. 74–90
The article presents an outline and analysis of an immersion church art course taught over several study days.Examples provided in the article illustrate the methodological basis of the course: rather than being a summarised art history and theological narrative, it is cohesive perception of the church building and the unity of its conceptual and artistic elements. The article lists arguments in favour of introducing local church monuments as part of the course. The author argues that creative goal setting facilitates perception of the study material and stimulates an interest towards it. It is concluded that proprietary courses of this type could be designed for religious colleges, seminaries, theology institutes and catechetical certification programmes, and adapted to their local contexts.
Keywords: church art, art education, church building, concept, cohesion, comparison, methodology, academic course, catechesis.