Society truly cannot be democratic unless the educational systems function democratically. Art education has a role to play in this process. The perceptions of many different groups in a pluralistic society must be considered in a new multicultural approach to the teaching of art. A "Foreword" (June King McFee) and "Introduction" (Doug Blandy; Kristin G. Congdon) along with 13 contributed articles addressing five central issues are presented. Part 1: "Individual Differences, Cultural Pluralism, and 'Social Role Valorization,'" includes the articles: (1) "Culturally Based Versus Universally Based Understanding of Art" (F. Graeme Chalmers); (2) "Qualifications and Contradictions of Art Museum Education in a Pluralistic Democracy" (Karen A. Hamblen); and (3) "Masculine Bias and the Relationship between Art and Democracy" (Georgia C. Collins). Part 2: "Public Dialogue on Art," presents: (4) "Art, Social Action, and the Preparation of Democratic Citizens" (Doug Blandy); (5) "Historical Participation: Toward an Understanding of the Historian in Art Education" (Paul E. Bolin); and (6) "Toward Democratic Direction of Technology" (Beverly J. Jones). Part 3: "Citizens' Responsibility to Individual and Group Processes," includes: (7) "Why Art Education Is Neither Socially Relevant nor Culturally Democratic: A Contextual Analysis" (Robert Bersson); and (8) "Cultural Literacy in Art: Developing Conscious Aesthetic Choices in Art Education" (Barbara Ann Boyer). Part 4: "Freedom of Aesthetic Choice in Work and Play," articles are: (9) "Occupational Art and Occupational Influences on Aesthetic Preferences: A Democratic Perspective" (Kristin G. Congdon); (10) "Making Work Art and Art Work: The Aesthetic Impulse in Organizations and Education" (Michael Owen Jones); and (11) "Toward an Ecological Aesthetic: Notes on a 'Green' Frame of Mind" (Jan J. Jagodzinski). Part 5: "Responses to Art in a Democracy,'" presents: (12) "Democracy and Art, Then and Now" (Mary Ann Stankiewicz); and (13) "Misdirections and Realignments" (Vincent Lanier). A "Selected Bibliography" and notes "About the Contributors" conclude the book. (NP)