A historical methodology, which emphasizes political currents and influences, is applied. The history of art education in elementary and middle schools of the People's Republic of China between 1949 and 1989 is systematically applied. The development of art education is divided into three periods: October 1949-April 1966 when art education mainly adopted the model of the Soviet Union; May 1966-November 1978 when art education fully implemented the educational model of the Red Base Areas; and December 1978-Novermber 1989 when art education started to deal with the Western art education, especially that of the United States.
The issues that are critical for an enhanced understanding of the history of art education in the PRC are intensively discussed. Art education before 1949 and after 1989 is also briefly surveyed since doing so clarifies the development of art education in the PRC between 1949 and 1989. Predictive comments on the future of art education in the PRC are put forward. In order to show how art education is carried out in the PRC, the components and functions of the art education system are detailed at both the central-government and grassroots levels. The philosophical and theoretical basis of art education in the PRC is explored. In particular, the two educational models that most influenced art education are described at length. Finally, the essence of Communist aesthetic education in elementary and middle schools and its relationship with art education are probed.