Arts-based learning is defined as the use of artistic expression—including poetry, drama, dance, film, literature, music, and all forms of visual art—as a catalyst for improving business performance. It can occur in a conventional program or workshop setting, or beyond the walls of the training room (for example, a concert hall, photography studio, or museum).Arts-based learning typically is used in two ways in the context of leadership development: parallels are drawn between the artistic process itself and leadership, and participants create art or engage with a work of art firsthand. Both can be useful depending on the objective of the initiative. For instance – one exercise called for participants drawing a picture of how it feels to be in a conflict. The resulting images—almost all of which are negative—serve as a springboard for dialogue around fear of conflict and the possibility for constructive resolution.The participants report that arts-based learning fostered positive changes in their beliefs about leadership, risk taking, ambiguity, collaboration, and self-image. There are several reasons for these results:
- The arts tap into our emotions in ways that defy rationality, often leading to a heightened sense of self-awareness and introspection.
- Artists and leaders have more in common than one might think, which allows for intriguing and fruitful associations to be made between the two disciplines.
- By altering our perceptions, art can peel away illusion and assumptions to reveal the truth at the heart of an issue or subject.
- Engaging in the creative process of making art can require the application of cognitive, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills that are essential for business success.
- Engaging in the creative process of making art can require the application of cognitive, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills that are essential for business success.
- Art can simplify the complex, which leads to previously unseen or unimagined solutions to intractable problems.