我的小小天地 my little music

Kindly be informed that there will be no workshops on 22 & 29 Sept.
I am away on a research trip.
Keep sketching, keep doodling with your eye marveling at our world.

As part of the preparation for today’s public lecture on “Who Says My Child Can’t Do Art?”, an initiative towards sharing with the public notes on art education and early childhood development, I created some fun creative drawing play exercise.

I have decided to publish such stuff from time to time. Teachers, kids, parents may download and use them for free. For interested publishers, kindly observe copyright laws. I be happy to negotitate on a possible publication deal.

If you have feedbacks, suggestions, questions, or good works you would like to share with me, pls email me at tienyang@nutsidea.net

creative-drawing-booklet-01.pdf
(click to download pdf file)

I just got back from exhibiting in Russia.
It was a wonderful trip with lots learnt.
Though tired, I was happy to receive the students and had a good workout with everyone.

Take a look at Yida’s still-life study. Notice how he is beginning to connect to the spatial qualities of the subject. Though not using any lines, he managed to set the still-life in an environment. You could almost sense the subject right there.
Good work Yida. This is just the beginning.

Episode 1 (click to read)

To do still-life studies is not about painting/drawing them like photographs or forcing then into perspective drawings. We do not SEE perspective, that is a construction. The crux of doing still-life study is really about the sensitization and re-sensitization of the eye, and the conditioning of the mind to re-learn and re-interprete.

When a kid draws from nature/still-life, the process demands that he looks at the subject before drawing rather than rely on a learnt idea of the subject. A learnt subject is pre-conclusive. For example, once a kids starts schooling, the figures they draw tends to have 10 fingers, eyes, mouth, nose, feet, toes, etc. It is not wrong, but is that what we see? It is not easy to invite kids in that stage to look at nature again and discover the wonder of our phenomenal world because the power of knowledge is overwhelming them.

If you cannot see the phenomenal world as it appears to us, how are you to discover new things around you?

So the process of doing still-life draws the kid back to looking again. By doing so, they will re-discover the world with a keen eye. When the vision becomes sensitive once again, they will see the world with a whole new experience, something that most people have already taken for granted and seized to see (without realizing it).

Below is just an example of how a simple set of dumbbells can appear so differently when one is ready to receive it/see it in the eyes of a child.

Today, we had quite a variety of works done at the workshop. It was great. Work need not be of one track, one kind. What really mattered was whether the work was done with an engaged mind. The kids certainly were right there with their work. Bit by bit, everyone was making progress. Daimai did his first still-life, Helene is now a lot more at easy with mixing colors around, Yida getting better all the time with his still-life studies, Yiying too with an good play of colors in her still-life, Iiyu improving on water color, Dingg an initiative in experimenting, Yaoju with an ever engaged intensive effort in painting.

Again, what a pleasure to have worked with everyone inclusive of the parents.

We again had a fabulous time. Every kid made good progress one way or another.
To hear from parents feedback like these are so important to the learning of how our kids learn.

Thanks again. Yida said he started to find it interesting to 写生。Yiying enjoyed her lesson too. She never thought that she can also draw “really something” besides the cartoons, birthday card….

Drawing from observation is something very fundamental yet often misunderstood. Many approach the subjects with preconceived ideas of what they see before they even begin looking. Objects are broken down into geometrical shapes to be positioned in constructed perspectives. As such, the innocent marvel of what we see, how we see it is already killed before we started looking at the phenomena.

What do you see in this picture? A creature? A portrait? A robot or just still-life?

Hence when we begin playing with what we see by taking alternate looks at the subjects, the fun and joy of observation and possibilities of intepretation return to the observer (or artist). The experience is like returning to the initial moments of a new-born looking at this phenomena world, nothing short of marvel and genuine awe.

Another aspect of how the workshop is run can be seen from how the kids learn from one another. Again it relates back to what I meant by “getting the environment right”.

Until next week.
After next week, I will be off to Russia to do my art exhibition on the 8th May. Workshop resumes 19th May through till 2nd June, and resume again only on the 30th June.

We had a fabulous workshop yesterday. 7 kids all did wonderful stuff and made good progress.
Take a look at what they did. Very intense focused drawing, learning and having fun!

Hear it from the parents:

You certainly have your ways handling children. My children, rebellious of anything prescribed for them, including going for your workshop initially, returned home admiring at their works of art for the rest of the weekend — thanks to your inspiration and encouragement. Great pedagogy!

You are really amazing. Both of my children continued their drawing on Saturday night. They talked and created stories, Yida tried to put everything into the drawing. They really enjoyed the moment. 你真的是功力深厚. Thanks a lot!!

Thanks for all your feedback. It is great to learn how the kids responded to the workshops. It motivates me in many ways as well. In fact the kids, under the right setting, motivate and learn from each other much more than any other conventional structure. I feel so privileged to be given the chance to work with everyone.

(CLICK to see more)

Welcome Yida!
You made good progress despite spending limited time here.
I am so happy to see you warmed up and released those expressive and sensitive lines towards the end of the session.
You rock!

Whilst I totally celebrate today’s pervasive deployment of art and design in so many aspects of our lives, I have to speak out against some worrying trends in art education.
The very reason why art has been marginalized (in many societies) is today the exact same reason used to privilege the act of doing it these days. Art is now deemed as ‘useful’ because the capitalists have found ways to use it to propagate consumerism through cosmetic packaging. The empathy visual representation strikes among us is now narrowly focused on selling ideas (particular ideas to be specific) to the pool of consumers, to steer thoughts and reactions within boundaries of commercial agendas. As such, people who can do certain craft well are celebrated for their skill, whilst those who can’t, are programmed to become buyers of those ideas.
The process created by this very utilitarian and consumer driven agenda has a big fallacy embedded in it. Because it constricts our experience to a narrow spectrum of what reality has to offer, it blinds us with the concepts it embraces and binds us to those constructs. Such an act does not sit well with the natural history of survival. It builds collective blindspots that become itself a big hurdle to overcome in due time, and it amplifies any shortcoming of any given construct. Philosophically speaking, this new found agenda still is trapped under the religion of science (started around Renaissance). Man it seems have not learned from the consequences of our abandonment of what is spiritual and human.
Art is not manufacturing. Craft is.
So unless we recognize that and treat art and doing art with the right attitude, we will continue to miss out on the essence of art big time. Yes. Art with a capital ‘A’. And like so many of the graduates of applied art I have ‘trained’, once the novelty of working under big brands wear off, they find themselves empty, used, and unfulfilled as a human being.
Whilst Art can be used to serve the capitalist engine, doing art and art education is much more than that. Don’t be con.

This is the 21 century. Art with a capital ‘A’ is for everyone and not just artist or designers or a niche group of collectors.

Doing Art is a privilege of every individual and should not fall victim to any utilitarian agenda. Doing Art is about having FUN, making discovery of yourself and nature, playfulness, being alive, being expressive, celebrating life and many more positive things concerning the deep meaning of an individual’s existence.

Don’t let the bad art teachers tell you that you shouldn’t do art or you are not ‘cut-out’ for art. It is not true. Everyone has the capacity to do art. But not everyone has the capacity to do particular celebrated or endorse forms of art. Ah. That’s the difference.

Creativity is a state of the mind.
It is a mind that is trying to make sense of the world we live in.
Thus it sees new relation, new form, and gets articulated outward as an expression (in any language — science, math, art, music, etc)
So long as we are able to keep our mind open (easy to say), we will chance upon lots of new experience constantly.

OK. Here you are, your back is up against the wall. You either have been forced to teach the subject art because you do not have enough teaching hours and your skillset is, well (unfortunately) not exactly enjoying a good match with that which is needed in the curriculum, or your kid needs to hand up a art assignment that you have no clue what to dish out as advice.
You are not alone. Chances are, you are among the majority who are not developed in art but have to deal with it due to circumstance.
No fear.

The best advise you can give to your child/children if you are not trained properly as an art educator, is to refrain from passing judgement based on your impression of what art should be.

Instead, just encourage your kid. Find the most positive thing you can say about their creation and do not go into the negative. If really nothing catches you, then just smile and say “keep going”, “interesting” or “what else can you do?” or “would you like to do another?”
Don’t worry about what you see or not see. Encourage your kid to describe what they are doing. But if they don’t feel like it, it is OK.
Sometimes, suggest things like “oh look, there’s a red color pencil. What do you think you can create with it.” Leave it to the kid to pick that up or not. Do not pick up a pencil and start doing yor kid’s art or teach them what you think they should be doing.
Give your child the assurance. Most art teachers in schools are forced to do that subject because they happen to be teaching unpopular or non-valued subjects in school. It is unfortunate that they cannot provide the best guidance to they kids in an area to important to the early development of our human brain. They are likely to instruct the kids to “draw outlines for whatever you are trying to draw”, or “color evenly”, or “color within the lines”, or “use only color pencils”, or “copy what’s in the book, or on the blackboard” and etc.
It is so important to recognise that doing art and art education is precisely NOT those things mentioned. In fact, those are the misinformed notions of art that either kills the interest in art in children or plants wrong notions that later takes years to un-learn.

Take a look at this work by a painter we all tend to love — Monet.
See what lines? What consistency in coloring? What … well you get the message I am trying to drive at.

(click to enlarge)

Here’s a radical idea! —-> Relate to your child, “never mind what the teacher said about your art. Just do what you like.”
That is the best support you can give your child.
Afterall, art is so lowly regarded and neglected that ‘failing’ it based on most unqualified judgement, would not have mattered. So why not turn the opportunity into something positive —-> just do what your kid feels like. At least it does not damage their confidence, kill their playfulness (that is so necessary in creatively), and bury a possible art geneuis that untrained teachers will not appreciate.

Think of it this positively, the grade for art in orimary (grade 1 -6) is only a pass or fail. No way will the teacher fail someone on art anyway. Besides the standing of your child does not include art as a subject. So why should anyone worry over it at all?

Help Offer —-> OK. You may still have reservation over the suggested idea. You want to know where your child stands in art. Very simple, email me. Make an appointment and I will assess where his strength lies. He may not become the next Monet, but the key is to identify what is his strength relevant to himself.

Give that power to create to your kids. Support them. Don’t kill the ART in them.

http://www.americansforthearts.org/public_awareness/?gclid=CM-yltHlj4oCFSAFTAodPWSBgA

Why Ask For More?
The arts are much more than just fun “extra” activities for kids. Participation in the arts opens up children’s worlds and minds, and offers them the skills they need for a bright future. And chances are, your kids are not getting enough art, in or out of school.

Has your 4th grader ever taken a DANCE class or learned the basics of choreography?
Does your 8th grader know how to play an INSTRUMENT or analyze a piece of music?
Has your 10th grader ever acted in a PLAY or studied the motivation of a dramatic character?
When was the last time your 12th grader went to a museum or talked about the origins of symbols in the SCULPTURE of various cultures?
A Little Art is Not Enough!
There’s not enough art in our schools or in our children’s lives. But ask almost any parent, and they’ll say that arts education is very important to their child’s well being. Which makes it so surprising that the arts have been allowed to virtually disappear from our children’s learning experiences.

Did You Know?

The arts teach kids to be more tolerant and open.
The arts allow kids to express themselves creatively.
The arts promote individuality, bolster self-confidence, and improve overall academic performance.
The arts can help troubled youth, providing an alternative to delinquent behavior and truancy while providing an improved attitude towards school.
An impressive 89% of Americans believe that arts education is important enough to be taught in schools, but the sad truth is, your kids spend more time at their lockers than in arts classes. Read the facts on how arts education helps kids do better.

First and foremost, I am an Artist, an Educationalist, and a father of two lovely kids whom I adore and learn much from, and a whole lot of other things.
The reason for my starting of the art studio is a very simple one — I want to create an avenue that I can share with others uninhibitedly the wonderfully rich world that art has put me in touch with. It is not about money, glory, power, politics nor career, it is solely Art for Art sake, and art for the love of ourselves and life.
i am heavily involved as an art educator in a tertiatry education. all my friends, colleagues, associates always knew me as a creative person, an artist an a very vocal educator. amongst them, those who are parents tend to share with me their worries over their child’s art education in school (especially so for pre-school, primary up to secondary (grade 1 - 10 in U.S. system) levels).

Here are some of the most common problems they encounter:
1) my child cannot draw
2) my child loves to draw, but the teacher might not understand the needs of my child nor appreciate what he does
3) I know my child has talent in art but I do not know how to guide him/her
4) the art lessons in my child’s school are always replaced by math and sciences, what can I do?
5) my child is not creative
6) my child hates art
7) how can my child learn to draw like Piccaso, Van Gogh, etc?

I understand the problems and can empathize with them.
Hence after almost 3 decades of deep search and constant practice in art (both the fine arts as well as appllied arts), I have decided that it is time for me to share what I have gathered so far.
Doing art is a basic right of every human being. It is a fundamental building block in life, development of the mind, and holistic being. It is thus sad that the education in art is so badly executed and greatly misunderstood, resulting in a great many people in our society fearing ART - a quality that is already in each of us.
I have decided one fine day that I have seen enough. I have to do my part. Hence the birth of this workshop initiative.

As a parent, it is important to recognize when your kid is in a train of thoughts. These are very precious moments that we should be as passive as possible in our observation and not disturb the child.
The child may be thinking of an idea, in wonderment of something. Whatever it may be, it is very important. These days, many kids don’t do enough of that. They are constantly in a flux of entertainment so much so that they become passive in their imagination and thoughts.
This is also partly caused by the fact that kids are not given enough personal time to develop their ability to dream. Tuition, lesson, extra-curricular activities, homework, TV, computer games, etc etc. The brain needs a break.

Slow down. There’s a lot out there we are missing as adults.
A child experiences the here and now.