Learning through and about the arts enriches the experience of studying while at school as well as preparing students for life after school. Arts subjects encourage self-expression and creativity and can build confidence as well as a sense of individual identity.

The arts make vivid the fact that neither words in their literal form nor numbers exhaust what we can know. The limits of our language do not define the limits of our cognition. The arts teach students that small differences can have large effects. The arts traffic in subtleties.

We can learn to really see, to use our eyes and take in what is there for us to look at. So many colors that we are not aware of; so many patterns in nature. So many changes of light with the sun passing overhead. The artist deals with all of that and if we try to learn art, we must learn to really see.

Value is important in art because it can help to create a sense of light and darkness in a work. Adding value can also help objects appear to be more realistic and three-dimensional. As you can see, there is an illusion of light in this artwork as well as shadow that makes this landscape appear to be more realistic.