I found myself intrigued by the parallels within Object Based Learning, and costume for performance. Costumes are objects which are presented to an audience who experience, interpret and discover (dramatic) information about, through, and from them. They are sometimes contextualised by narrative, movement, set, light, other dramatic information, and sometimes they are not. Much like OBL, the choice to withhold or supply this information by the creatives involved (educators) affects the ways in which the audience (learner) interprets the costumes (objects).
This deliberate choice is interesting to me in its relevance to my own teaching practice using objects, as it is in teaching this as a concept to students. A costume (object) will be disseminated through the lens of the individual audience member, and the specific historical and cultural references they bring into the theatre (classroom) and that recognising this is an important part of costuming practice. A scarlet red dress may communicate intensity or danger to one person, but symbolise celebration and joy to another. I find myself discussing with students often, in relation to colour, texture and material choices, or when helping them choose an appropriate garment of accessory from our Costume Store. As exemplified in Hardie’s reflections on the choice of objects in her activity; ‘Design Crimes’ (2015) the diversity of the student body affords an opportunity to highlight the complexity and weight of the semiotics of objects (costumes), peer to peer.
I moreover found the concept of giving value and time to ‘extra-rational responses’ to objects, as presented by Willcocks (2024) very interesting. It is widely recognised that the opening image, or first impression an audience member experiences before a performer has spoken or moved, has a powerful and lasting impact on how they experience the rest of the performance. OBL is well suited to teaching performance design students this phenomenon out of context.
I was also taken with Vilhaur’s dissemination of Gadamer’s ideas around the ways in which we understand Art – by interacting with objects, and through dynamic play with other people (Vilhaur, 2010). The ingredients required for play to happen, according to Gadamer, includes unpredictability. This offers an opportunity in my teaching practice where a challenge lay. So many elements of my work as an educator are unpredictable – even in a timetabled workshop scenario, a great deal of reactivity and spontaneity is required. It is perhaps then, best to embrace this, and utilise play as a philosophy within my teaching practice.
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References
Hardie, K. (2015) Wow: The power of objects in object-based learning and teaching. York: Higher Education Academy.
Orgill, G. and Willcocks, J. (2024) ‘How to…use objects to support learning and teaching’ [online seminar]. Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice: Theories, Policies and Practices. University of the Arts London. 24th January 2024.
Vilhauer, M. (2010) Gadamer’s Ethics of Play: Hermeneutics and the Other. Washington D.C.: Lexington Books.