Is there an unwritten art canon in Swedish schools? This work is about the art displayed and used in Swedish schools. The study examines whether there is an art canon in Swedish schools, or not. Through my profession, as an art teacher at a secondary school, I have come to take an interest in this issue. When I use art images in my own teaching it often strikes me that many of the pictures I use are the same as the ones my colleagues use. For my own part the choice of images is often based upon vague strategies as "Yes, this is what we usually do”. Therefore it would be extremely interesting to find out what students and colleagues think about the choice of art images used in teaching. Also, in my opinion, a debate on the art shown and used in schools is much needed.

Through interviews and informal conversations, and Photo Elicitation, a method involving the use of images in an interview situation, I will give an idea of how we relate to art images and also make visible the underlying standards behind the art displayed and used in teaching. In my study I have interviewed ninth grade students and high school students and talked to them about their experiences of art images used in art education. I have also asked similar questions to two Art teachers at two different schools. I have tried to trace possible evidence of an art canon in the Curriculum for the Compulsory School System (LpO94). Finally, I have compared my own studies with the most recent evaluation of the Art subject, The National Evaluation of the Compulsory School, which was carried out in 2003.