Creativity and the Visual Arts Diane M. Wilcox, Ph.D.

Creativity and the Visual ArtsDiane M. Wilcox, Ph.D.

Children and Artistic Ability

• The arts are essential to a child’s intellectual development• Drawing and

painting can be taught to any child

Visual/Spatial Intelligence

• All children have the ability to express themselves visually, but there is great variability in this ability• Howard Gardner says that all people have

some degree of “visual/spatial intelligence”

Multiple Intelligence Theory (MI)

• Linguistic• Logical -

Mathematical• Visual-spatial• Kinesthetic

• Musical• Naturalist• Interpersonal• Intrapersonal

According to Howard Gardner, humans possess eight intelligences:

MI Theory, cont.

• There is no “artistic” intelligence

• The Visual Arts use visual/spatial, kinesthetic, and intrapersonal intelligences

MI Theory, cont.

• Visual/Spatial Intelligence – the ability to perceive the visual world accurately and to use mental imagery to perform transformations.

MI Theory, cont.

• Kinesthetic Intelligence – the ability to use one's body in differentiated ways for both expressive and goal-directed activities.

MI Theory, cont.

• Intrapersonal Intelligence – the ability to self-appraise, self monitor, self correct, set goals, and manage one’s emotions.

Children and Artistic Development

• Children go through different developmental stages in visual expression• Although all children go through these

stages, there is some variability as to when they go through them

http://www.learningdesign.com/Portfolio/DrawDev/kiddrawing.html

Scribbling Stage

Disorganized scribbles

• 2 years old


Pre-schematic/Symbols

Children try to draw a person

3 years old

4 years old


Schematic/Landscape

• The child uses a “schema” to portray what he/she understands about the world

• 6 years old

The Gang Stage: Complexity/Realism

• Children are concerned with trying to draw how things really look

• They compare their work to others

8 years old

10 years old

Pseudo-Naturalistic/Crisis Period

• Children strive to create “adult-like” images

• 12 years old

Artists that Inspire Children

Diego Rivera

• Famous Mexican Muralist

• Was a child (12 years old) when he painted this

Rivera – painted at Age 18

Jacob Lawrence

• A famous African American painter known for his narrative paintings

Georgia O’Keefe

• Famous female artist• Known for her

sumptuous flower paintings

Pablo Picasso

• Born in Spain• Displayed

exceptional talent as a child

• Started the cubist movement with Georges Braque

Color TheoryPrimary Colors

Activity: Make a Color Wheel

After this activity, you will be able to:• Make a color wheel containing 3 primary

and 3 secondary colors


Blue, Red, and Yellow are the primary colors


Blue and red make purple


Yellow and red make orange


Blue and yellow make green

Primary and Secondary Colors


Add white to make tints



Add black to make shades


• Complementary colors are opposite each other on the color wheel– Blue – Orange– Red – Green– Yellow – Purple

• When complementary colors are mixed, they make gray

Activity: Crayon Resist

After this activity, you will be able to:• Use paint and crayon resist to create a self

portrait

Activity: Stencils

After this activity, you will be able to:• Use stencils and paint to create a landscape

Questions?

References:

• Intelligence Reframed: Multiple Intelligences for the 21st Century by Howard Gardner

• http://www.learningdesign.com/Portfolio/DrawDev/kiddrawing.html

Creativity and the Visual Arts Diane M. Wilcox, Ph.D.

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