Monday, January 12th, 2009
limits
In the architecture studio I teach we talk alot about constraints and limits. I’ve talked about this here before as well (right now I’m too lazy to go find the link….). I think in all work setting limits to what you are examining is a good idea as it allows you to focus and explore issues in more depth. In a beginning design studio though, it’s especially important as too many ideas and issues can be overwhelming. The students often start out thinking that the constraints we’ve set are too limiting, but by the end realize how freeing having those limits can be.
I was thinking about this issue of process recently as my 4 year old son and I embarked on a painting project. We are redoing his bedroom and as he loves art, and painting in particular I wanted to have a special piece to hang up. I also wanted to begin to teach him about art and design in a way a 4 year old could understand.
I knew that talking about technique or composition or ways of seeing would be way over his head, but that he could start to learn about these things through the process of putting paint on canvas and seeing the result. This is where the idea of limits and constraints comes in:
- I decided to give him a large canvas so that he would have to take more time than he normally would. The large canvas also gave him a different perspective and made it necessary to move his whole body around the piece.
- Because of the large size, large brushes were also necessary, which had to be held differently and forced him to paint in a new way.
- Lastly, and most importantly I limited the number of paints he used. I chose two neutrals, grey and black, and allowed him to choose two colors. I had 3 gesso brushes of graduating size, and I put the larger two in the neutrals and the smaller was used for the bright colors. I knew this would automatically impose more limits on his use of color without me having to verbalize anything.
Typicallly when faced with a full box of crayons or paint palette, my son will make a drawing or painting by choosing each color one by one until he’s used all or most of the colors. Then the piece will be “done”. This makes for some beautiful and colorful work, but it seems to be more of an exercise in using all the colors than in making a picture.
It was quite interesting for me to see how he concentrated and carefully thought about the placement of the 4 paints he had. Early in the process, when he had some grey, black and a bit of yellow on the canvas, I realized how beautiful it was in combination with the white. Both his older brother and I commented on it, and I encouraged him to leave some white showing. Lately though he is very interested in filling the whole page with color or the work isn’t “done”. So in the end the canvas was filled except for a 1″ dot that he “left white” for me. I am proud of myself for not saying anything else during the process, instead letting the limits I imposed do the work of teaching.
In retrospect I think it would have been better to give him just one color choice and talk more about the white of the canvas as the fourth color prior to him starting. I feel like he learned alot about color and compostition though, and he had a blast through the entire process. And while for me the final product isn’t as important as the process, he absolutely loves his painting and was so excited for me to hang it on his wall. And I have to say that I love it too:)
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 12:41 pm:
Martha, what a fabulous post. Thank you. You description resonates with me both as someone now working in the commercial arts under huge constraints, and as the child of two working/teaching artists.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 12:46 pm:
martha– this is amazing. so inspiring to me (maybe i can try something like this with freddie
). seriously, i love all the thought you put into this and how you adjusted it to meet his four year old needs and wants. and how exciting for him (and you) to have an original piece of his artwork hanging in his bedroom!
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 12:53 pm:
i think that format is such a positive thing for a child’s self-esteem; working with a large canvas and large brushes. how long did he paint?
i also just love seeing the photos of the different stages of him working. i always think it is so interesting to quietly watch a child in their thinking and creative processes.
nice post martha. thanks!
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 1:05 pm:
Martha, this is so inspiring. My girls love painting on canvases, but they always end up muddy brown after all the color mixing. I love the idea of limiting colors. I think this is going to be a project around here soon.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 1:32 pm:
Martha….this post really touched my heart. I am just so incredibly impressed by what an exceptional mother you are. What lucky boys you have. I have a very large canvas at home and have been waiting for Memphis and I to do it together and this totally inspired me. Now I think I will follow your lead and not control it so much and just let Memphis Create the piece herself. Wow….your son is a great little artist and I am just so impressed by this entire post. Thank you so much for sharing.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 1:32 pm:
This is so fabulous Martha! I want to run out and buy a huge cancas for Seth right now. I’ve struggled with how to give Seth new perspectives and encourage him to try new things. He hates going out on a limb with his artwork. If it was up to him it would be 4 variations of green on a green background and then only some wonky swirls. I try so hard to let him have the relationship with his art and let him progress at his own pace but oh how I’d love to see him using color or paint a face. (Though I would never let him know this.) I really like the idea of a specific brush for each color, each in a different size. Maybe the fact that I haven’t given him such limits is actually a limit to him in and of itself.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 1:41 pm:
What a creative and cool way to interact with your son! I can’t wait to see it in the room with all the other cool stuff.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 1:55 pm:
What a wonderful activity.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 2:11 pm:
what a fantastic post - so interesting and i love how you created the boundaries. also congrats on not saying too much while he was painting - i find that very hard. a beautiful end result too.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 2:37 pm:
Thanks so much for sharing this fantastic project (your documentation is great, too)
xo
ps. did O manage to keep his white T and jeans pristine throughout?
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 2:44 pm:
This is great, just think of the fantastic memories you’re creating for him
Love your approach!
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 3:14 pm:
so interesting. this post made me wish i was back in the classroom.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 3:20 pm:
this is a very montessori approach, i think!
we often think of creativity as being about freedom or wild abandon, but it is also about making choices…creative endeavors are just as much about what we choose to leave out as what we include.
i think it’s really empowering to a child to have this understanding.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 3:34 pm:
Oh gosh. How awesome and I bet you loved the fact he picked some yellow in there. I’ve never thought of limiting the colors. Interesting to think about it and I would love to see the outcome of their work!
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 3:42 pm:
this would have to be one of the best posts I have ever read.
I love it!
I would love to be able to do this with my 6yr old son because he would value the process and love the outcome. But my 4.5yr old daughter wouldn’t listen to anything I say….and the point of the lesson would be wasted. Well, maybe not. {I have to get over some controlling issues I think!}
I just love the image in those first stages with all the negative space.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 4:14 pm:
i love this.
i love the painting. so so so good.
magic.
thanks martha and O for the lesson.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 5:20 pm:
this is such a wonderful and meaningful activity. i loved that you allowed him to work big. when he adds the red, the fourth color, the canvas really comes alive. maybe, the next time, he can use fewer colors and it won’t be such an big adjustment from the full box of crayons?
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 6:03 pm:
Genius. Pure and simple. What a fantastic idea to have your young child create fine art in this way. It perhaps could be done each January as his perspectives and understanding continue to grow with him. I love this!
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 6:30 pm:
I LOVE THIS! What a wonderful project. I have no art training of any kind but try to introduce my 3 year old daughter to art and creativity. I love the concept and restraints you set out and it’s instructive to me to learn more about how you teach your students. My daughter tends to cover an entire page in a single color (brown or black) and then it’s done–no white space ;). Thanks so much for sharing. I’m totally trying this.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 8:09 pm:
wow. i’m too tired to write anything further, but wow, great documentation, and thanks for showing us photos as he worked.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 8:12 pm:
Oh Martha, I think this is my favorite post to date. I love how you were so thoughtful in your approach and how you have “taught” O about art without directly “teaching” him. I’ve been wanting the boys to work on some large art pieces and I am totally going to steal this idea…it is brilliant. I wish you were J + j’s teacher…maybe someday?!?
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 8:27 pm:
It’s beautiful, what an incredible project! Just brilliant the way you set some boundaries for his approach, but set him free explore.
Maybe for him the gray was his ‘white’? Or, what if you gave him white paint? Or another tool to scrape with? This has endless possibilities!!!
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 8:37 pm:
Seeing these great images of O. reminded me of the documentary “My Kid Could Paint That.” Have you seen it? Really fascinating about prodigy painting child Marla Olmstead.
Check out the trailer here:
http://www.sonyclassics.com/mykidcouldpaintthat/
Not making any comparisons… just saying it reminded me of it.
on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 11:50 pm:
I saw your post earlier today and just was able to sit down and read all of it—-I (too) love this. It’s just been recently that my son’s teacher has noted that he is artistically inclined; he has never liked drawing or coloring, though he is very drawn to color and shapes. I love how you let the materials “tell” your son what to do. My son is on the autism spectrum, with limited language, and has a hard time processing verbal requests. And the large canvas—-to the art store we must go. Thank you so much.
on Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 at 1:09 am:
Such a large scale canvas to work on… how rewarding. I remember being given a two huge sheets of paper taped together to draw on at a similar age and how much (I am told) I loved it. My parents still have that drawing.
Here’s to a great year of adventure ahead. Looks as though you and you dear ones are off to flying start.
on Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 at 3:51 am:
this is amazing! Thanks for sharing! I love the result!
on Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 at 1:31 pm:
Great post .. very inspiring ..
You really remind me of when i started doing physical theatre. our director was always stressing on limiting possibilities …so as to be more creative … and also on documenting our creative process ..
i am now doing some work on creativity and education .. this post is by the far, one of the most interesting things i have read in the past few weeks .. thanks for sharing !!
and ohh i love the painting …
on Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 at 1:46 pm:
I saw this painting in your flickr stream Martha & wanted to say he did a wonderful job! What a great exercise in creativity and learning!
on Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 at 4:14 pm:
Linked to your post via SouleMama… Wonderful insights about limits. I just started homeschooling (unschooling) my daughter and I am struggling with this very question. Thanks for sharing your process… love the painting!
on Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 at 4:26 pm:
I love this post. It reminded me of a project I did with my boy a year ago, and that painting still hangs on our kitchen wall. He was a lot younger, so it was a different experience, but I did the same thing in that I limited the colours and mixed them, and he painted them as he wanted….and I didnt edit! Only, I only let him have one colour at a time, and made the paints of various transparency with acrylic medium so he could do multiple layers….This was a nice variation on what you did and we are really happy with the results! Im going to do another one soon, maybe I’ll try your method!
http://mammacomic.blogspot.com/2008/01/baby-painting.html
on Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 at 9:02 pm:
oMg martha, this is SO funny!!!
on Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 at 11:38 pm:
My partner, who is also an architect design teacher, and I spent a good while talking about this post last night. Thanks! Gave me a real insight into how I might go about a similar project with my daughter who is obsessed by painting and drawing.
We wondered what would have happened if you had given your son white as a fourth colour? Would he have painted some of the white canvass with white paint and been more OK with that? Do you think so?
on Tuesday, January 13th, 2009 at 11:49 pm:
amazing, martha! i love this project, and the resulting painting. it looks like you’ve got yourself quite a clyfford still there. you’re such a sensitive teacher/parent. it’s also so interesting for me to see - both from your post and from the comments - that children have such different approaches to their artwork.
on Wednesday, January 14th, 2009 at 6:04 am:
that is really, really cool, martha.
on Wednesday, January 14th, 2009 at 10:31 am:
This is the same idea that I’m trying with my 4-yr-old Emma’s art class. They are capable of so much more than glitter and construction paper, so i started a little kids’ art history class. We take an artist, look at his artwork, technique, and color choices, and they make their own art in a similar way. It’s cool to know that I’m not the only one doing this!
Anna
on Wednesday, January 14th, 2009 at 4:25 pm:
wow! I love this idea. I am looking forward to trying this with my son when he is a bit older. Thank you!
on Wednesday, January 14th, 2009 at 5:03 pm:
[…] was quite taken by this > http://uniform-studio.com/journal/?p=771. The idea that setting limits is a good thing, allowing you to focus you something in more detail. […]
on Wednesday, January 14th, 2009 at 9:40 pm:
If you get the chance, I would love to see the links and read your other writing on the topic of limits and constraints. I teach digital art at UNC and I employ constraints to help us focus on the work, instead of getting overwhelmed by the endless possibilities of the software. We also watch “the five obstructions”… Thanks!
on Thursday, January 15th, 2009 at 5:42 am:
I would be walking on cloud nine with a response like that to an organised art project - that’s fantastic. I often - and with a great deal of guilt sometimes because I’ve been pulled up by some people for imposing colour limits and therefore restricting my sons freedom of expression… - restrict colour choices of pens and crayons in artwork for my children because I think it does force them to focus much more on form and balance and idea rather than colour detail - I find the story being told is much stronger when the colour is more directed.
Such a wonderful experience
[we would have had a pirate ship and canons going off]
on Thursday, January 15th, 2009 at 12:41 pm:
love it a lot. my daughter is painting a lot, i often restrict her colour pallet to four. but in contrast to your son, she loves white spaces…. this often creates a bit of a push on my end to encourage her to not leave as much white…. i guess i should learn to be more quiet, more just an observer…
our latest change is, that she is painting with an easel, this also changed her perspective and who to hold the brush. it created some new and beautiful works.
on Friday, January 16th, 2009 at 7:46 am:
This is wonderful! Thanks for sharing.
on Saturday, January 17th, 2009 at 10:18 pm:
I absolutely love this idea, and love how it looks. I find that when I’ve given my kids big canvases (or really big, limitless things to create on) that they really seem to step back and think more. Its fascinating to think about. You’re good Martha! xo
on Thursday, January 22nd, 2009 at 4:12 pm:
[…] Den v?ien af gr?er , udtrykt gennem processen med en fire-?g g?et maleri. ENSARTET Studio Journal er skrevet af Martha, der laver t?amt arkitektur, og registrerer de processen bag hendes t?esign sammen med overvejelser om de ting, teksturer, lys og ideer omkring hende. […]
on Thursday, January 22nd, 2009 at 7:55 pm:
cool, it is really nice to let them paint freely, nice idea
on Sunday, January 25th, 2009 at 6:50 am:
Fantastic and inspiring project- I love the result (You have a talented artist on your hands I imagine), and the process and thought you put into it.
I agree wholeheartedly about the importance and value of limits in setting a design project- when I used to teach (maybe one day, again- you’re reminding me of how rewarding it is!) I found the same thing- students might feel constrained but the right limits enable them to focus their mind on exploring other issues.
on Monday, January 26th, 2009 at 9:10 pm:
wow, this is wonderful. i think you are soooo right, my kids make “mud” with too many color choices.
on Tuesday, January 27th, 2009 at 2:01 am:
[…] limits at U N I F O R M Studio journal […]
on Tuesday, January 27th, 2009 at 1:14 pm:
what a great project. i’m going to try it with my five-year old this sunday.
thank you for the inspiration.
joslyn
on Sunday, February 1st, 2009 at 9:40 am:
thank you so much for this fabulous post. I have a four-year-old daughter, so this topic is of huge interest to me. I love your approach and would love to read more about your thoughts/ideas on this. thanks again!
on Wednesday, February 4th, 2009 at 3:56 am:
I really enjoy how you have documented this. His process is amazing to see. Already an inspiring artist at 4! I appreciate your thoughtful approach.
on Wednesday, February 11th, 2009 at 8:36 am:
Such a FANTASTIC post and tutorial .. thank you so much for helping us with your information and your son has done a marvelous job! You must be very proud.
on Friday, February 13th, 2009 at 12:02 pm:
It’s interesting to read about how you support your son’s painting process. As a PreK teacher, I’m always thinking about the colors I put at the easel, how many brushes, and wha the paper size and shape will inspire the children to do. I’m glad I’m not the only one who plans ahead!
on Friday, February 20th, 2009 at 2:18 am:
My god but this is inspiring! I’ve been working on an essay on limits and rediscovered Wordsworth’s poem on the subject. Do you know it? The couplet that has haunted me is “Nuns fret not at their convent’s narrow room; And hermits are contented with their cells”. And really, who hasn’t “felt the weight of too much liberty”? Your son’s painting is gorgeous.
on Wednesday, March 4th, 2009 at 10:40 pm:
wow - so amazing. The constraints. The changes in scale, size, tools. Forcing unconscious decisions. The result is amazing.
on Friday, March 6th, 2009 at 2:26 am:
[…] they were tiny, something they can hold on to when they grow up. Martha from Uniform Studio wrote an inspiring entry in her journal on limits and contraints in art and design, and how to convey this to children when […]
on Tuesday, July 14th, 2009 at 9:22 am:
This is truly inspiring.
What time does Wet Paint open? I want to do this today!
on Friday, January 28th, 2011 at 10:08 am:
Wow, I am truly inspired as well. What a great post and thanks for sharing a peak into your life and family with us.
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on Monday, July 11th, 2011 at 6:49 pm:
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