The concept of innocence started to become prevalent in eighteenth-century children’s portraiture, which focused on the pure eyes of the sitters, as well as on their intrinsic relationship with nature, often underlined by their integration into a landscape. The mass reproduction of these images, through copies and prints present in households, ensured the persistence of a romantic vision of childhood for several upcoming generations of artists and educators. This ideal found an echo in religious educators, who saw children as pure souls to be guided along the right path.

When James Smetham (1821–1889), decided to paint Hugh Miller, he was teaching at Westminster College. His vision of a romantic childhood, however, demonstrates a darker shift toward adulthood. He projected his own anxieties about the future onto his youthful symbol threatened by the world, a theme dear to nineteenth-century artists. Indeed, the age of urbanisation also marks an era of concern for children, victimised by poverty-ridden cities. Artists followed the lead of social workers, who worried about a deterioration of society. Some focused on public schools and the study of children's development, while others took a more patriotic approach, wishing to produce individuals who were fit for their country.

This desire for societal improvement led to the creation of organisations such as the Scouts, who used art to promote their ideology. Lord Baden Powell, founder of The Boy Scouts Association, praised the painting The Pathfinder, by Ernest Stafford Carlos (1883-1917), as providing “an immense amount of good among boys”. Used as a role model, it was distributed throughout the British Empire in numerous copies, participating in a standardisation of children.

The devastating impact of the Second World War compelled the opening of emergency teacher training colleges across Britain, including Bletchley Park where Evelyn Dunbar (1906-1969) was an artist-in-residence. Here, Dunbar planned a mural to encourage and inspire new educators. Although the mural was never executed due to the artist’s poor health, her sketches provide valuable insight into representations of education at this time as an engaging, inclusive practice indispensable in the prevention of further disaster.

Through her work for the War Artists’ Advisory Committee, Dunbar understood both the societal damage inflicted by the war and the need for positive propaganda. As a key figure in the documentation of women’s work during the war, she knew that they had a crucial role in rebuilding the country, including the enlightenment of future generations. Contrary to Hellier, who, although she taught young women at Royappehta Girls’ High School, focused her missionary watercolours on boys, Dunbar imagined both boys and girls playing and learning cohesively.

These artworks cement the relationship between their historical provenance and the current curriculum of Oxford Brookes University. Oxford's role as the 'Birthplace of Methodism' also means that it is ideally suited to host the Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History, as well as Hellier's watercolours. Bletchley Park College (for which Dunbar made her sketches) moved to Wheatley in the 1960s, whilst Smetham's collection joined Westminster College in the 1990s.

If you explore the campus, you will find a copy of a sculpture by John F. Matthews (1920-1995), with the figure of Jesus towering over a child, along with a quote from the Bible “Train up a child in the way he should go”, that directly echoes 'The Pathfinder'.

Future graduates in Education and Teacher Training pass these on their way to classes on the Harcourt Hill Campus, where they participate and explore ideas of childhood and education that have evolved since the creation of these items.

How do you think your education, and the traditional images of childhood, affected your transition to adulthood?