Abstract
Most people believe that taste in art is highly individual, that one person’s opinion is as good as another. However, the literature on art and art education usually reflects the assumptions and values of the established authorities –art critics, historians, and aesthetic philosophers. It is assumed that, "With varying degrees of success, schools and colleges pass on a set of cultural values which reflect the dominant culture of society ... '" Jones, p. 135). Other institutions, such as museums, also promote these values. However, Johnson's study of socialization in art museum tours found that docents and visitors both emphasized the validity of personal preference. One docent explained, "'Ideas of why you like it are absolutely as valid as anybody else's. And there's, you know, there's (sic) no law that says that you should like this kind of art" (Johnson, 1981, p. 62).
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