Class Draft Proposal: Teaching Consent

A few weeks ago I was browsing Facebook, when I came across a video teaching young children around the age of three about consent. It was a surprise to me because my immediately react was these children were too young to be taught sex and relationships. But that was not what the video was about. Instead, this video showed a preschool teaching these children about understanding the meanings of yes and no, as well as, the importance that they alone have control over their bodies and only they can give permission for others to touch them physically. It was an extremely powerful video to watch. One that made me realize we, as a society had failed to educate our children on the importance of their permission regarding physical touch.

Although this video had nothing to do with sex, it does paly an extremely important role in sex education. This video is a hard reality about the rape culture here in the U.S. Everyday there are more and more victims of sexual assault or rape in this country. According to Rainn Institute and the Department of Justice every 98 seconds an American is sexually assaulted. That is staggering and upsetting statistic. Which is why this video was a refreshing sight among the darkest of rape culture. For too long, we as a society have failed to prepare our children for the physical intimacy of relationships or how to behave among our peers. We have a nasty habits of demanding our children hug and kiss their relatives or debating the definition of consent when tragedies happens. The video I watched was just one example of thousands of educators counteracting the culture that has been created from a toxic masculine environment. With the push to change the way we teach children about sex, these educators could influence the next generation regarding their sexual behaviors for the better. All while never saying the word sex until they react adolescence.

For my art 451 project I would like to explore the evolution of teaching consent. As many of us know, consent was not something that was taught to us when we were younger. This lack of communication regard consent and physical touching has contributed to the extreme rape culture we are exposed to today. It has been an effort from many difference group to come together and educate the masses from a young age on consent, physical intimacy and casual touches. Because of this I think it is important to explore these changes happening now in our society.

For this project I want to incorporate the ability to physically touch the art work I make. I believe that the ability to physically touch an art object creates a deeper metal bond with the message of the piece. Through my research and other classes I have discovered I enjoy making books. The book artist Julie Chen has created many beauty books. I would like to use her as an inspiration for my project.

My goal for this project are a little unclear. I’m not sure if I want to create one large piece or several pieces. But like I said above, I would like to incorporate aspects of physically touching the piece for the audience.