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This again is a fascinating subject but one fraught with opportunities for misunderstanding due to the inadequacy of word-based language alone as a means of exploring the topic (sorry Ken!). I have taught drawing in the context of illustration for many years. As Jacques Giard observes, many students cannot draw because they cannot see. In 1856, a couple of years before he gave his address here at the opening of Cambridge School of Art, John Ruskin wrote in The Elements of Drawing: “For I am nearly convinced, that when once we see keenly enough, there is very little difficulty in drawing what we see; but, even supposing that this difficulty be still great, I believe that the sight is a more important thing than the drawing; and I would rather teach drawing that my pupils may learn to love Nature, than teach the looking at Nature that they may learn to draw.” A simple starter project that I used for many years when I taught 1st year undergraduates was to give them a list of things to draw on a large sheet of paper, leaving plenty of space around each drawing. This list would comprise things that they could not have failed to see in the previous 24 hours (but could not look at in the studio for reference). Here in Cambridge that might include things such as a bicycle, the entrance to the Ruskin Building, a 50 pence piece, the spiral staircase in the adjacent student bar, the facade of the Fitzwiliam Museum. After attempting to draw these from memory, each student would then be sent to draw each element from direct observation, alongside the memory drawing. The results would generally be something of a revelation in exposing to the students the difference between 'look' and 'see'. Best regards, Martin Professor Martin Salisbury Course Leader, MA Children's Book Illustration Director, The Centre for Children's Book Studies Cambridge School of Art 0845 196 2351 [log in to unmask] http://www.cambridgemashow.com http://www.anglia.ac.uk/ruskin/en/home/microsites/ccbs.html -- In the official 2014 government assessment of our research the following 12 areas were found to have world-leading research: Allied Health Professions; Architecture & Built Environment; Art & Design; Business & Management Studies; Communication, Cultural & Media Studies; English Language & Literature; Geography & Environmental Studies; History; Law; Music, Drama & Dance; Psychology; and Social Work & Social Policy. This e-mail and any attachments are intended for the above named recipient(s)only and may be privileged. If they have come to you in error you must take no action based on them, nor must you copy or show them to anyone please reply to this e-mail to highlight the error and then immediately delete the e-mail from your system. Any opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of Anglia Ruskin University. Although measures have been taken to ensure that this e-mail and attachments are free from any virus we advise that, in keeping with good computing practice, the recipient should ensure they are actually virus free. Please note that this message has been sent over public networks which may not be a 100% secure communications ----------------------------------------------------------------- PhD-Design mailing list <[log in to unmask]> Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design -----------------------------------------------------------------