Article on the pedagogy of Bruno Munari Nipponico.com published on the website.
Bruno Munari and creative research of a method of Christian education
Martorella
January 3, 2001. Sometimes you discover unexpected proximity between Italy and Japan. Thus, for example, is little known as they once were rich exchanges between our culture and the Japanese about the search of an educational model that stimulating creativity in children. In this article we want to remember as the work of Bruno Munari has been incorporated by the Japanese, and as he is still considered an innovative teacher, a genial and generous, absolute point of reference.
Bruno Munari (1907-1998), eclectic figure in Italian culture of the twentieth century, was primarily a designer (and therefore received the Japan Design Foundation Prize), and this activity will fall even many contributions as an author (for which he had the Andersen Prize ) and illustrator of children's books (including the memorable designs for machinery and texts Rodari). He often cited Japan as a country to learn from both in the art that the organization and civic education. Bruno Munari has left us a little book that tells, in a light, witty and funny, one of his experiences in Japan. The text is titled "The Castle of children in Tokyo" and describes his visit to a conference and the establishment of an exhibition at the Aoyama theater near Shibuya. In addition to describing the structure of the castle of the children and the unfolding of the event's conference and exhibition, Munari has the opportunity to take Japan as food for thought. Often he is a bit 'challenging against the usual stereotypes that seeks to remove:
"In our country, some say that the Japanese come to us to copy everything. But why, I say, we do not copy something from them? "
In fact, the book will show how many Japanese children's activities may also be provided from our own. Munari draws on extensive hands, and integrates its experimental program with the Japanese cultural tradition. So combine origami, textures, patterns compounds, all in an anthology of shapes and colors for the triumph of imagination and creativity. As regards the analysis of operative techniques, Munari has a concrete proposal. Sometimes things are much simpler than seem, we are not only recognize them. Munari uses the term "resolve underlying problems" to showcase something elemental in its simplicity seems to elude us, so come la soluzione di un puzzle a portata di mano:
"Ma nel frattempo, che cosa ho imparato io dal pensiero giapponese? In parte ho avuto la conferma che certi principi progettuali che applico normalmente erano giusti. Altre regole o procedimenti utili a migliorare i progetti o le comunicazioni, o semplicemente altri comportamenti quotidiani, erano invece da capire e applicare. Un esempio è che i problemi vanno risolti alla base.
A Venezia ci sono dei natanti che vanno in giro per la laguna a pulire le acque. Questo è necessario perché i cittadini buttano spesso i rifiuti nei canali. Il problema si risolve insegnando ai bambini a non sporcare la laguna. Se nessuno (utopia) butta l'immondizia nella laguna, non c'è niente da clean. Another example: we in the West are very good in inventing sophisticated appliances, to clean the house, polishing the floors, washing windows, collecting waste. The Japanese do not dirty the house, there are floors to be polished in their homes when they take off their shoes and walk on the tatami in stockings. Do not throw cigarette butts on the floor and then stamp on them, are short, as they say, polite, and the problem of cleaning the house is fixed to the base. "
Munari is regarded as the inventor of a method for teaching children and is watched closely by scholars from different disciplines, artists, educators and writers. Coca Alberto Frigerio and wheels are trying to organize the material left to us by Munari trying to deepen and continue the work of the master. To do this they created a series of books, published by Edizioni Erga, entitled The alphabets munariani. This is the most comprehensive contribution to show us the great news of the issues raised by Munari. The methodology is ideally linked Munari a Japanese author, Katsumi Komagata, graphic designer in his lectures in Italy has recalled how he feels tied to the creative work of the Milanese. Readers should be aware of Italian thanks to an article by Paola Vassalli, entitled Walking between the awards and exhibitions, published in the journal "Andersen": "[...]
beautiful books by Katsumi Komagata, also a Japanese student who was also ideal Munari, Bologna has received an honorable mention in the new section of premium Bologna Ragazzi Award - Introducing Art to Children with the series Mini Book. "
Japanese magazines also consider Komagata a prominent illustrator. See, for example, the article in the September 2000 dedicated to him by the Japanese magazine "Moe." Apparently, then, the work of Munari is putting fruit even in that distant country that he looked with admiration. Surely evolution will have the best if you understand that the creative development of the child should not be stifled by cultural patterns that require a single interpretation of reality. To achieve this, must consider the child as a person who has full rights, and therefore its own mode of development, and not as a taxable person to train. Until the confrontation between cultures will be lively and fruitful, as Munari has been able to show a modest, we find ample scope for the invention of creative children. But when the culture becomes sterile and stiffens in templates, it presents itself as an enemy and obstacle to creativity.
Bibliography
Frigerio, Coca and Wheels, Alberto, and game art, Erga Edizioni, Genova, 2000.
Kawabe, Shoko, Katsumi Komagata no hon. Ehon no Waku koeta katachi or, in "Moe", n. 9 September 2000, p. 95.
Munari, Bruno, The castle of the children in Tokyo, Editions E. Elle, Trieste, 1995.
Munari, Bruno, One thing leads to. Notes for a design methodology, Laterza, Bari, 1996.
Munari, Bruno, artist and designer, Laterza, Bari, 1978.
Munari, Bruno, design and visual communication, Laterza, Bari, 1985.
Munari, Bruno, The craft of art, "Art and disclosed," No 8 December 1986, pp. 18-21.
Vassalli, Paola, Walking between awards and exhibitions, "Andersen", n. 159, May 2000, pp. 16-17.
0 comments:
Post a Comment