Elizabeth, when I read your last two paragraphs I shouted an inward 'yes!'.
I completely understand where you are coming from when you say that you
'trust' your ability to select/organise/highlight information. I trust mine
too. I'm particularly interested in where this ability comes from, as the
'fine art' education that I had (I believe) was not the source of my skill
in this area.
I'm particularly interested in the connection between our understanding of
creativity/visual art etc. and the skills that we use in all other contexts.
What do artists learn that no-one else learns?
I do believe that 'practice' enhances drawing ability as does 'practice' in
any other sense. I think people can feel cut off from certain 'cultures' or
'worlds' and this (as we know) through inhibition prevents them from using
often well practiced skills. But is there reason to suggest that perhaps
there is an innate generic skill that we do possess or that we acquire via
other means? Perhaps this is more to do with how we mentally visualise the
world/systems/structures etc? Some people are clearly better at doing this
than others, but does that make them creative/artistic? How then do we teach
people to recognise/utilise this with confidence?
Thanks
Yvonne
-----Original Message-----
From: Elizabeth. McDonnell [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 12 June 2003 12:33
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: drawing in education
Dear Ana and all
I was prompted to sent a message to this discussion in response to your
statement
>
>The fact that drawing relates directly to the visual mind and directly
>also to the kind of intelligence that is interwove with sensibility and
>emotions,
>without the detour to the abstract cultural building the hearing person
>tends to deal with, and by that I mean words and verbal discourse, made me
>realised the importance drawing could have in developing not only skills
>in
>the student of arts, but the intellectual development, in general, of any
>person.
I do not consider myself an artist and a year or so ago would have agreed
with anyone who said that
>drawing as a talent one is born with, or not.
However, for the past 12 months or so , I have been exploring the use of
visual means of exploring my own thinking, in capturing the content of
interactive meetings of groups, and in feeding back information to others.
(I tutor for the Open University (science and environment) and also work in
facilitation, group-work and dialogue processes.)
I have tried using mindmaps (an OU student suggested this to me), using
diagrams and flowcharts in electronic feedback reports, and using colour/
pictorial representations in recording. Others are often intrigued as to
what I am doing with all my highlighters when I am recording!
>
>I think that everybody may and should learn drawing as a normal step in
>their learning evolution, precisely to overcome the tendency restrain
>explanations
>to words or numbers.
I agree. Personally, I have found that if I allow my intuitive self to 'take
over' and keep my analytical / logical self restrained, that the process can
yield fascinating results. I have learnt to trust this aspect of myself so
much more - for instance, when trying to capture the essence of what is
happening in a group, I 'feel' for what is important and allow my intuition
to direct what I draw, colour or write.
My techniques and tools are very basic and under-developed, so in no way do
I consider that I can draw or that I am artistic in any way !! But I am
gaining the confidence to explore and to cross the boundaries, and to try to
take the learning and expertise from other areas and apply them in a new
context.
Thank you for this interesting discussion.
Best wishes
Elizabeth
West Midlands
UK
|