art/vision/voice - Maryland Institute College of Art

v Staff should be consistent with their
attendance and flexible in meeting the
needs of the participants. Kids count on
these responsible adults to be present for
them, ready to listen to their needs.
v “Art,” for potential preadolescent and
adolescent participants, may best be
described as an opportunity to enjoy
making things, to work with interesting
materials and processes, to learn new art
skills, and to work on projects individually
and collaboratively. This age, in particular,
may associate art with drawing and not
being able to make things look “real and
right” due to lack of talent. Few understand
that art involves skills that can be taught
and learned, skills that take practice and
experience to develop.
v With beginning activities, tasks should be
structured for success. Simultaneously, these
early activities can be designed to reveal
students’ interests, concerns, reasons for
coming, experiences with and preferences for
art materials, leanings toward two- or threedimensional
processes, and their interest in
specific kinds of imagery. Sharing with the
group and among individuals can also help
participants begin to find connections with
one another. Participants can also be invited
to bring in work they have done at home,
work made by others in their family, or visual
material they find interesting. Continuation
of this dialogue along the way can feed ideas
for new projects.
v Art education sources provide information
on developmental needs and age-appropriate
strategies in art. Training with age-appropriate
strategies is even better. Gathering contextual
information about cultural influences, values,
and interests will help leaders find connections
between artistic and social development
and the values of the community.
commentary, analysis, response 117
v Certain art materials, such as clay, have
seductive powers. Ideas also come from
materials. Quality materials make these
clubs special. Projects that incorporate what
kids might consider “trash” should be
carefully checked out with students for their
response. Alternating between two- and
three-dimensional materials and processes
helps keep projects interesting. It also
allows leaders the opportunity to observe
preferences, affinities, and special talents.
v If participants are encouraged to tell their
own stories, voice their concerns, imagine a
world they can shape for themselves, they will
invest the work with more effort and intent.
If they care about what they are making, they
will be even more likely to craft it well.
v Themes and metaphors can serve as
organizing structures that allow for
individual and group interpretation. They are
particularly useful in structuring projects so
that there is creative tension between certain
limitations and the choices participants have
to create their own meanings.
v Being alert to teachable moments is part of
the art of facilitating quality art encounters.
Participants are likely to give clues as to
when a demonstration might be useful to
them. If practice with materials or
representational strategies seems desirable,
a context for practice, and perhaps a place
for it in sketchbooks, can be incorporated
into individual sessions and encouraged at
home. Pre-adolescents and adolescents can
understand the difference between practice
exercises and making a product. When
engaged in practice exercises, kids should
understand the purpose of what they are being
asked to do and why the practice is useful.
v A trip into the real work world of an artist,
where participants can see new materials
and processes can provide inspiration and