Hi Lynne, thanks for e-mail. The container is only half the story. The other
half is the journey. I explain it to children as being like putting things in
a carrier bag that they might need later, then going on a journey, getting so
far, sitting down & taking out the things in the bag, re-arranging them &
adding some more things from round about & then carrying on - all with
appropriate mime. As an artist, I'm sure you get the drift. Then I tell them
it is just the same taking your ideas across the paper. Eachg drawing contains
your ideas (like the carrier bag) and as you move your ideas across the page,
so you go on a journey.
I have a web site - www.designdrawing.net and links there to the NGfL website
where I have more "how to" stuff, should you be interested. You are more than
welcome to use the metaphor -it's in the public domaine as I have done several
conference papers on it - but the container/journey metaphor diagram I have
copyrighted, as you will see - but feel free to use it - if you download the
webpage, you should be able to extract the image as a jpeg.
I would be very interested in hearing about what you are doing. I have been
putting out appeals for some cross-media contacts for a while. One of the
things I want to do soon is to see if the metaphor works in other media - does
it stimulate story-writing, or story-bording etc. So will be really keen to
hear if it is a success.
Gill
>===== Original Message From The UK drawing research network mailing list
<[log in to unmask]> =====
>Hi Gill,
>
>I love your description of working drawings as an idea container. I am a
children's book illustrator, and I do a fair bit of spin-off work in schools,
running workshops. I try to introduce the idea that the most important part of
illustration is generating and developing ideas that can communicate, rather
than simply 'being good at drawing', and your phrase really sums that up. If
you don't mind, I'd like to steal it! I find that trying to get children to
move ideas on through discussion is one of the most tricky elements, and so I
was particularly interested in your success.
>
>Thank you!
>
>Lynne Chapman
>
>
>Lynne Chapman: Children's Writer & Illustrator
>Take a look at my website: www.lynnechapman.co.uk
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: gh21
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Sent: Tuesday, February 17, 2004 8:53 PM
> Subject: Re: Drawing Dialogues
>
>
> Hi Aileen and others who have joined in this conversation.
> I have just completed my PhD researching young children using drawing to
> support development of design ideas. I had one class to whom I taught the
idea
> that a design drawing is both a container for your ideas and that you take
> those ideas on a journey across the page, and another parallel comparison
> class who didn't get this input. One thing that came out really strongly
> across the 15 months of the project was that from the point at which I
> explained the purpose of design drawing using these metaphors, "my" class
> became much stronger at developing ideas within conversation. So that the
> drawing ebcame a discussion document between pairs or groups. they were
saying
> "what I'm going to do is..." and then draiwng it. Or looking at other
> children's drawings & saying "what you could do is..." This was quite
> spontaneous - I din't tell them or teach them to do that. What happened was
> that they enriched each other's thinking & so their ideas were more
creative,
> but also they kicked out the wild & wacky non-starter ideas. The paralllel
> class drew in near silence and then really began discussing & designing
once
> they had the materials in their hands. This meant that ideas were less
> creative and if unusual, tended to be poor solutions to the problem given.
> Once they had started cutting up materials, they couldn't re-image their
> ideas, whereas "my" lot, who designed through drawing conversations could
> re-image, abandon first ideas that went nowhere, copy & adapt good ideas
from
> others etc etc...
>
> As next (post PhD stage) to this, I want to look at how children model
ideas
> through construction kits & see if same processes apply, and also to see if
> parallels exist in drawing/ mark-making/ interaction of graphics & text &
> multi-media text - anyone have any thing useful on any / all of this?
> Gill Hope
>
>
> >===== Original Message From The UK drawing research network mailing list
> <[log in to unmask]> =====
> >Aileen - this sounds fascinating! My research area is the development of
> >children's symbolic languages - and their thinking as their early marks
> >begin to be defined as 'drawing'; 'writing' ; 'mathematics' and so on.
> >
> >I'd be interested in learning more about your 'coversation' in June.
> >Thanks a lot.
> >Maulfry
> >
> >----- Original Message -----
> >From: "Aileen Stackhouse" <[log in to unmask]>
> >To: <[log in to unmask]>
> >Sent: Monday, February 16, 2004 3:55 PM
> >Subject: Re: Drawing Dialogues
> >
> >
> >> Hello Angela
> >> I'm currently in the 3rd year of my practise-led PhD at Duncan of
> >> Jordanstone College of Art ( a faculty of the University of Dundee).I
use
> >> drawing to research thinking which occurs during drawing. Part of my
> >> research involves drawing while in conversation. From 1 June until 30
June
> >> this year I will be creating a 30 Day Drawing for Conversation in
> >> Centrespace at the Visual Research Centre(Dundee Contemporary Arts)as
part
> >> of my final submission. I will be in conversation for a set time once a
> >> week using the drawing as a fulcrum. Conversational partners include a
> >> practising artist, a philosopher, a visual anthropologist and a
> >> curator.This project is still at the planning stage as it is focus for
the
> >> work I have done up till now. If you want to know more let me know. I
can
> >> also be reached at [log in to unmask]
> >> Regards
> >> Aileen Stackhouse
> >> School of Fine Art
> >> Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art
> >> University of Dundee
> >> Dundee DD1 4HN
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> =======================================
> >> Aileen Stackhouse
> >> =======================================
> >>
> >>
>
> Gill Hope
> Senior Lecturer Design & Technology
> Canterbury Christ Church University College
> Canterbury
> Kent
>
>
> ---
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Gill Hope
Senior Lecturer Design & Technology
Canterbury Christ Church University College
Canterbury
Kent
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