What is An Anchor Work?
The term "anchor work" as
used in this project refers to a recognized significant
work of art that has sufficient artistic merit and
intellectual heft to warrant careful aesthetic examination;
rigorous analysis; criticism; and discussion of artistic
principles. An anchor work can be classic or contemporary.
It may exist wholly within a single discipline, such
as literature (novels, poems, plays), music, theater/drama,
visual art (two-, three-dimensional, or of media origins),
and dance; or it may be multidisciplinary - an opera
for example embraces drama, music, and text.
An anchor work is one that raises questions
about - and would lend itself to discussion of fundamental
questions concerning - the human condition. It invites
responses that will always be provisional. It would
have within it the power to generate multiple interpretations
and to serve as a sound base for discussions about
those interpretations. Work on an anchor work is dynamic;
it is never finished.
Examples of anchor works would include
masterpieces of the Western classical tradition (e.g.,
a Mozart opera, Balanchine ballet, Rembrandt self-portrait,
or Frank Lloyd Wright building), non-Western classical
tradition (e.g., a Cambodian court dance,) and masterworks
of traditional arts (e.g., a Narragansett basket,
African tribal dance, or Cape Verdean folk tale).
It is also important to note that an anchor work should
be a high-quality selection from a particular author,
artist, architect, or choreographer. Not all of Shakespeare's
works, for example, would be considered anchor works.
In teaching that is “anchored”
by a significant work of art as described above, the
instructor’s first responsibility is to be passionate
about the work itself, to know it, and to trust the
work itself to carry the learning experience. It is
important to give students/participants time to look
at and explore the work—before using it to generate
additional learning—to allow the work to create
the excitement within students of which it is capable.
References to the work and its context - cultural,
political, econmic and social - should be made selectively—to
deepen the experience of the work itself. The work
may lead on to related areas of study or to other
works, but those should be considered later. One should
not jump away from the work too quickly (as is often
the case in contemporary education, i.e., the drive
to “move on”) but trust the work to lead
to deeper questions and connections. An anchor work
will always draw the learner back to it.
