Philosophy in Public Spaces 

On Friday, 21 July, the year 9 Philosophy class participated in a Philosophy in Public Spaces event (formerly known as a “philos-o-thon”) at the National Gallery of Victoria. Our young philosophers engaged in Socratic discussions with students from other schools, and interrogated what art can tell us about diversity in nature, culture and ourselves.

Our young philosophers then presented a summary of their discussions back to the whole group, with the majority of MSC students electing to present. While the discussions were shaped by the different artworks the groups were interrogating, the common themes were around how cultural perspectives shape our understanding of the world, the ways that colonisation has shaped our world, and the nature of humans as rational creatures.

NGV staff commented that they were impressed by the insights of our young philosophers, and fascinated by the different interpretations of the art that students of philosophy have compared to other disciplines.

I can’t wait to see how our young philosophers apply their learning in our inquiry into how we judge the value of art in our society this term!