still Life

    I get the impression from reading blogs and magazine articles, that many families find drawing to be a pleasant, relaxing activity.  It was like that yesterday morning for me and the boys, but that is a long story of perseverance.
    Most books I read from the library suggested that if a child had access to art supplies he/she would start experimenting and so not to pressure them.  My Calm one was such an ears guy, he never wanted to look at anything that didn’t move.  He would choose to talk, listen to a story (but not voluntarily look at pictures) never choose to color on his own, unless the marker or pencil were novel or there was nothing else to do.  So all the non-stressful leaving it up to him stuff were getting us no-where.  Perhaps those books all mean the driven parent?  Or assume a huge dicotomy between parents and teachers, not where they are the same people?
    In Jr High I had to choose between taking orchestra and continuing with art classes.  So my official training in drawing and art ended with 7th grade.  This was an area of alarm for me in teaching, so I kept my eyes open for how to books.
    When he was in H S kindergarten I admired the children’s  drawings on  a friend’s fridge from the "Drawing with Children" book by Mona Brooks.  I bought myself a copy and decided to fit it in on days I needed something enjoyable to break up stress – but that was a mistake!  While arts and crafts might relax ME, they stressed my first born.  Choosing to do them on days that were already tense didn’t help.  Although Mrs Brooks relaxation exercises at the beginning of each drawing period were lovely.  It took a while to realize that stressful didn’t mean he hated something, just that I needed to be more aware of things from his perspective.
    Friends at co-op and Sunday School mentioned how my Calm One really hated coloring, and that perhaps I shouldn’t stress art with him since he had such an antipathy.  My response was two fold, first, drawing is expected as part of a good education in Massachusetts http://www.ahem.info/TipsforWritingYourEdPlan.htm and since when do we quit on a major human endeavor when someone is 6 years old?  I also wondered if there was a connection to the handwriting/reading frustration. 
     I did back off, and bought one of the "Draw Right Now!" books, since it didn’t involve him in so many choices right at the beginning of a lesson (he is Mr. "I’ll have a small slice of both kinds of pie." decisions take forever, since I am Mrs "any decision is better than indecision." that was not so good for me on days we need a calming activity to start with!)  I also took a tip from the Timberdoodle catalog and switched from Mrs Brook’s prefered beginners media of permanent markers, to prisma pencils.  They were not smelly, so we didn’t need to open the window for ventilation.
    The Prisma’s were a huge hit, novel tools almost always are.  We took some art classes with other teachers, he did well with pottery and painting, both on a large scale, and experimented with weaving, sewing and knitting knobbies.  I also bought him a bigger sketch book, since the scale issue might be a problem.
    I wondered if working in 3 dimensions were more natural for him since we live in a 3 dimensional world, and also that he responded more to sculpture and jewlery (and Samurai swords) in art museums than he ever did to paintings or drawings.   I wasn’t sure if this was because paintings are often mounted higher than a young elementary student’s eye level, or if foreshortening is too abstract for the early eye.    
 One Winslow Homer painting at the Boston museum perplexed him (and a group of his 2nd grade friends)  It showed a fisherman in a dory returning to his ship with a large cod half in, half out of his boat and a big storm looming up on the horizon.  The children could see the tail of the cod, but not the leg of the fisherman because the sides of the boat obscured them.   They all asked independently if he were a mer-man.  Once they got a  simple explanation of perspective and how one thing was on top of another, they relaxed.
    Oddly enough, at the RISD museum, modern art, cubist paintings, and abstracts didn’t upset him, or his friends.  Adults often find them disturbing or even enraging.  The kids just liked the textures or something, or perhaps representational art is confusing too, so what’s the difference?
    This Fall the LIFE group sponsored a seminar with Barry Stebbings.  He recommended that my boy take his next level book if I were going to buy one of his books.  Being cheap, I decided to buy that book next year, but to continue with Drawing with Children, using a pdf lesson plan list that my friend sent me, I think from a Tapestry of Grace e-mail list?
    Not only did he try hard, but one of my friends that I had not seen in a long time mentioned how his attitude and skills had improved from Kindergarten.
    I did buy Mr Stebbings book about teaching art at home.  I took note of his classroom management methods too: classical music playing in the background, an authoritative manor, beginning with prayer, and urging the children to give him their attention and best effort.  Also modeling his own work for them.  I decided to try to imitate him.
    So, this morning, after a mad scramble to find the missing books, we started off with gentle arm stretches.  Then I put on some gentle classical music.  I prayed, urged my sons to work hard, then I demonstrated the project, read aloud parts of the chapter from "Drawing with Children" and let them at it (the little one experimented with stencils, he didn’t work on the still life).  I was thrilled with my own drawing, my husband could tell what it was right away.  My son’s was also representational, all the elements were there, in order.  He pointed out that his proportions were a little off, and his lines were shaky.  I pointed out that he had completed the exercise as I’d asked him to,  and mentioned that confidence of line is supposed to be one of those things that takes time to develop.  He seemed calm, relaxed and happy.  What a satisfaction, to pull off a peaceful drawing lesson where we got the project finished, and nobody cried.


3 Replies to “still Life”

  1. It is wonderful that you didn't give up! Drawing and Art apreciation are an important part of a well rounded education and on top of that, you are teaching him perserverence and teaching him that things don't have to be "perfect" to be worthwhile. Good Work Mom and many Blessings,

    MeritK

    @ Creative Learning

  2. I'd love to see some of the still life drawings. Can you figure out how to post a photo of them?

    Blessings,

    Annie

  3. Thank you so very much for sharing your Drawing with Children posts. I just read these. Very helpful to me!! I will bookmark these as well. And I'm going to print out the list you gave me. Super duper blessings to you!