In my master’s thesis I explore the question how high school art teachers could include socio-critical art as part of their teaching. Particularly I examine what content-related-perspectives the teachers could use in their lessons when this type of art is in focus of the teaching. Furthermore, I briefly explore what kind of pedagogical perspectives the teachers should take into account so that the teaching and the critical content of these lessons wouldn’t be in contradiction with each other.

The data of the research consists of several interview answers by six Finnish high school teachers and seven socio-critical contemporary artists: Tero Puha, Stiina Saaristo, Katja Tukiainen, Ulla Karttunen, Henry Wuorila-Stenberg, Sami Parkkinen and Kaisa Salmi. As a secondary data I use some art works of the artists. In addition to these, I also use older theory and current media conversation to form the research results.

The qualitative research has had a hermeneutic approach when collecting and analysing the research data in several different stages. All in all the complex research process has been strongly layered. It means that some of the interviewees taking part in the research have answered the interview questions on the basis of earlier interpretations and significations made by other ones. When analysing the research data also I, as a researcher, have formed my own interpretations and the final research results on the basis of these layered interpretations and significations of other people.

The research results include a wide range of different content-related-perspectives that can be used in high school art lessons dealing with socio-critical art. The results show three primary perspectives: socio-criticism in art, art and its audience, art’s and artist’s role in society. These primary perspectives include lots of more detailed secondary perspectives constituting a wide and interesting whole together. The pedagogical perspectives emphasize the possibility of pupils to form their own experience and interpretation in front of an art work, but also the value of other interpretations, conversation and sharing information and knowledge as a tool of learning.