Teaching art - my thoughts - your thoughts?

[Frukc]

Showing paintings of famous artists is a part of EK teaching.

While using art slide shows from Brillkids library I found that something is not going well with them. Every painting is supplemented with tittle and sometimes also with explanations. These tittles were distracting for me and for my children. I think, art is "right brain" and tittles is "left brain". I can not enjoy the painting if I have to think about facts. The painting is important; the title is secondary. When we go to exhibition, we want to enjoy paintings and if we like them than we look at their titles.

It was written also somewhere (in a book about Japanese children) that in old times it was believed that newborns and kids of bargainers should be "wrapped" in expensive things and arts and than later they will be able to distinguish cheep things from expensive ones. So, content is important, not the tittle. Images and feelings.

So I prepared several slideshows with no text, just paintings. To get the feeling of good paintings. I show these paintings to my kid every day, since 8 months (now he is 19 months). My kid likes them very much. (He refused to watch slideshows where paintings are mixed with texts.) I am not artist but I also started to like these paintings very much

Usually I show one artist per one or two weeks. After several months of showing these slideshows I started to think that it would be interesting to discuss my thoughts with other parents

I uploaded my slideshows here http://forum.brillkids.com/downloads/?cat=114
and also Rothko here http://forum.brillkids.com/downloads/?cat=114;pg=2;sortby=date;orderby=desc

[nhockaday]

Isn't EK supposed to have facts?  It would just be right brain flashing without them. And how are you supposed to learn about the art if you don't know the title and the artist? That seems very important in teaching a child about art. Or are you just trying to teach them to appreciate the art itself and not concerned with who the artist and work is? I don't think you need to teach other facts as EK would have you do; that would be distracting, but the title and artist seems important.

[Frukc]

I am going to have fun with art; maybe it is not the proper EK

I think - if I will show a lot of art, my child will love art, and later he can get the titles. In the same way as we learn our first language without grammar. In he same way we teach math dot cards - we know that the kid will loose the ability to perceive quantity but his brain will be ready for more math. And as I read everywhere, kids forget most of EK facts anyway; the aim of teaching is to introduce the variety of subjects ant to train the ability to perceive them.

In this way, I can show more paintings in one session (20 - 30 instead of 5 - 10). We both like to watch my slideshows; my both children refused to watch typical EK art slideshows. Someone else in this forum (maybe it was DadDude) also said that he spent a lot of time in preparing his slideshows about the art - and his child did not like to watch them.

I started this approach because it seemed silly to show titles with unfamiliar words to my 7 months old.

[DadDude]

Makes sense to me, actually.  I like your idea and might well try it.  (With art.)

[Skylark]

I like your idea, in fact we have done that for art appreciation. I did it a little bit differently, having various paintings ( from variety of artists) sorted by subjects -- ie Autumn, Winter, City, Sea and water, celebrations. That way my girl was able to get familiar with paintings without getting distracted with long names.

However, we also did flashing painting with the name and the artist's name. I found it easier to do it with actual physical reproductions, just naming it as I am showing it to her, and then later adding some facts about it. Whenever I tried doing it with the Power Point, the names were distracting, so I agree with Frukc on that    I am sure there can be some way to do it in electronic format that would work, possibly showing the reproduction of the painting first, and then flashing name or fact... Just some observations and ideas.

[Kimba15]

Personally, I'm with Nhockday on this one. Even if EK is long 'forgotten' into the future i think the title is important. One because a title tell you what the painting is about. I believe though it should be on a seperate page so you can show the title than the painting. I do spend alot of time changing the downloads so i can seperate the title and the painting. I have been priniting them out and I only flash the paintings. My older DD sometimes likes me to give her each slide to look at. Other times she is happy to  have me flash her.


I think the title is needed especially if you end up showing Aboriginal art as each piece of art has a dreamtime story behind it. Although my thoughts are just based on my own observations from my own child. I would love to see some real EK cards from the Doman Institute to see how they do it.

[lzp11]

I really like this idea for art!  I guess it depends on what type of knowledge you are focusing on imparting to your child.  My mother is an artist and I spent a lot of time looking at art as a child.  She is an abstract painter and a lot of people would stare at the painting for about 2 seconds and then say, "well, what is it?", without taking any time to look at the painting for itself.  That wasn't really the point, and in fact there are many different interpretations of art, which people can draw for themselves!  I think what I would like my DD to learn from looking at art is an appreciation of form, structure, colour, depth, use of strokes etc etc.  There is so much to learn! I agree it is very interesting to learn about the history of art and the artists as well, but I also feel that spending time purely appreciating art for it's own sake is very important.  I have found that titles can be at times distracting, although perhaps I would consider having two different sets of flashcards - one with and one without.   

[Frukc]

I agree that often tittle gives an added value. Like "The Persistence of Memory" of Salvador Dali. For Dali, I added tittles, partly invisible, just for me. My 13 month old does not know what is persistence and what is memory. I remember, I saw this painting when I was teen, and it fascinating me. I did not know it's tittle but now I know and I think about it

Generally, tittles are important for old paintings. But they are less important for modern paintings which work for feelings and not for information.  Like "green on orange" of Rothko

I think, if you believe to classical EK in your heart than you are able to give it to your child. I you feel that it is not for you than you should search for your own ways

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