International Journal of Education & the Arts

Citation: Mandour, B.A. (2024). Traditional textile printing between spontaneity and planning: A study of creative practice. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 25(4). http://doi.org/10.26209/ijea25n4

Creativity and design thinking skills are considered pillars in arts practice in general. Traditional arts education, in particular, involves a tension between pure technical skill and the ability to design creatively regardless of craft limitations. The present study focuses on eliminating the boundaries between craft and art and bridging the gap between technical skills and creativity in practicing traditional textile printing arts. The paper presents a teaching procedure that is based on exploring traditional textile printing within a new dimension and achieving a balance between both the technical and creative sides. The study proposes a survey model to investigate the impact of the applied procedures and understand students' perceptions of the full range of the traditional printing creative process in action. The conclusions of this study will aid in the development of traditional arts education and practice in general and their re-exploration as flexible, expressive, and creative forms of art.