art/vision/voice - Maryland Institute College of Art

things look “real and right.” Blind contour
drawing and its purposes are deceptive. It
looks easy. Yet kids need to know its
purpose—why one might do an activity to
produce what, in their minds, is an
unsatisfying product. It requires
contextualization in the setup and reflection.
It needs to be thought about as a process for
learning to see, a kind of practice that moves
from blind, to modified, to greater
representational accuracy. It takes a leader
with a sophisticated understanding of this
method of drawing to really do it justice, and
a continuity of practice over time to really
maximize results.
This is not to say that drawing skills cannot
be developed in this kind of setting, it just
takes more sophisticated planning and
implementation as well as interest on the part
of participants. Yet, as played out in this
project, it was hard to recover from the loss of
faith that comes with “failing at drawing”
because drawing is such a public act and
failing publicly undermines one’s self-esteem.
Without inner motivation to conquer
drawing, such as the need to tell a story or
express an idea, the kids here chose to vote
with their feet. Attendance dropped and the
staff needed to regroup.
Regrouping
Regrouping took many forms. It involved the
gradual withdrawal of one of the three
leaders, the discovery that continuity and
consistency of leadership were essential, and
the realization that only getting a fresh start
with a new project would save the club. Here,
the project began to turn the corner by
engaging the kids’ ideas about their
community. An artist who works narratively
was invited to give a demonstration on
creating superheroes. Different media were
introduced, including clay.
commentary, analysis, response 115
Superheroes in Clay
The shifts here are very significant and
worth noting.
v First, the participants were empowered to
say something through art. Expressing
those ideas became an internal drive that
then gave participants reason to solve
challenges presented by representation and
media.
v Second, the representational strategy was
narrative, using the conventions of visual
storytelling.
v Third, clay was the medium, one that kids
love at this age. While appealing to most
kids, clay is particularly engaging for those
who are kinesthetic or tactile learners.
The success of the superheroes-in-clay project
is evident in the fact that those who participated
enjoyed the process so much that word must have
gotten out and attendance started to rise again.
Making Art From Trash
The response to the next project is instructive.
Making art from trash, a notion commonly
embraced by art students and having a strong
precedence in contemporary art, may sound like
a great idea to those from an art school. Only
after the project faltered and participants were
asked to share reasons for their lack of response
did the roots of this project’s failure become clear.
To these participants, trash was dirty, bad,
and gross. Further, parents did not feel it was
safe for their kids, in this community, to be
out searching for found materials in alleyways.
Also significant, although not articulated in
the narrative, may be the notion that trash is
not special to these kids in the way art
students think about it. Rather, it may be
equated with throws-aways, poverty, and not
being worthy of “real art supplies.”
While the staff regrouped quickly from this
discovery, it is one well worth noting.