Scribble Drawing

Taking an art class can be intimidating for some people, basically for adults who have not done much art in their lives. It seems that at some point in the growing up years either someone has made fun of one's art or the notion that I am not good enough has ended further pursuit of art. Yet, creating art sounds intriguing, so let's sign up for a class!

These are the folks I meet in class. BRAVE SOULS! Ready and willing to tap into their creativity. It is a treat to teach these people who show up.

My favorite first activity is to have them choose a color marker and close their eyes. I invite them to scribble all over their paper. Do you know there are many individual ways to scribble? I am amazed by each person's unique way to scribble! I ask them to stop scribbling and to look at their paper from all different angles to see what images they find. When they find something, I ask them to use the various colors of markers to bring the image or images out.

What fun they have! Scribbling is the very first stage of artistic development. Do you remember scribbling as a child? Or do you remember being told NOT to scribble? This art experiential that I use with my art classes seems to connect people with a sense of play. Maybe they get in touch with their inner child? But one thing I know for sure is that everyone enjoys it.

Discover the Artist Within

This evening was the first class of "Discover the Artist Within" which I teach at Evergreen. It is always fun to see who shows up and why they are there.

Tonight's group recognized the power of art to heal as many students found themselves pleasantly distracted from the chaos of their lives. One student mentioned that she felt transported to another realm and it felt good.

In the artistic development of children, the first art representation is a scribble drawing. I have found that starting adult students off with a scribble drawing, eyes closed, helps them to reconnect with childhood and reopen that door to creativity. It was interesting to note that a couple of students were uncomfortable with this lack of control and realized the parallels to their life. Another insight was the felt need to fill the paper and frustration that the art medium, colored markers, caused because it was not capable of doing this. Where did this need for control come from?

By the end of the class, there were several "ah has" and a unanimous "this was fun!" I find it curious that adults forget how to have fun.