Learning on many levels happens in Art. Students must master basic skills, must learn to use various tools, and experiment with differing media. Drawing is the basis of all art, whether painting, designing consumer products, or creating graphics. Learning to draw really is learning to see accurately. What your eye can see, your hand can draw.
It has been my experience that people want to learn to draw well, to make drawings that look like the object drawn. Giving students the necessary tools by teaching them usable methods to draw accurately, is equipping them for success and giving them self confidence.
On a more difficult level, students must learn to use the tools and media to depict ideas visually. What color is anger? How do you make viewers feel sympathy for your subject? How can you visually convince the public to agree with your opinion?
Problem-solving methods learned in the art-making process transfer to other disciplines. Art-making addresses all learning styles. Research supports what art teachers have known all along. Art is at the heart of all learning.
Janealla Smalley
