I just taught a workshop to child educators on Process Art
Making. Process art is making art with focusing on the process not the product.
It is important because it encourages children to find their own unique
expression in a relaxed, playful atmosphere. Children are encouraged to be
experimental, curious, playful, open, and adventurous in their exploration of
art materials, techniques, instruments and methods of working. This way of
creating is body and emotion centered where children are welcome to use their
whole body and emotional response in their creative work. The group I worked with did the art
activities that I often do with children so they could experience the process.
Central
to this way of working, is to provide children with interesting materials and
enough instructions that they feel confident to create but not so much that
they feel that there is ‘one way or a way’ to create. The teacher is not the
director or authority in this process, they are there to assist or help the
child’s emerging process. The teacher needs to be playful, open and free of
their own judgments or ideas of how the art or creative process should unfold.
The creative work does not have to be anything, it may have been an experiment
with the tools, or a hour of interest in mixing paint or an interest in how one
thing leads to another thing when working with art materials. To be asking
children what something is, limits the creative process of discovery, which
takes time and is necessary before a child arrives at a finished something. To work in this way, it is helpful to have
uninterrupted time in order to experiment with materials, come back to the work
and rework. The environment should be inviting and free of restrictive
materials that don’t allow the child to move around and create freely. Children may want to communicate to
each other while they create, dance, sing, move and or use other means of
communicating to get deeper into their process. There is no ‘right way’ to
create.
In process art making children may be faced with what they
think is a problem, ie. the materials not working they way they thought, and
they should be allowed the space and time to problem solve on their own. This
is important life learning that later becomes applied to problem solving in
other areas in their lives.
When children are creating, they are forming their own sense
of identity, They are figuring out how their externalize their feelings and
thoughts. They try on different persona, roles, and they copy others. This is
important to allow for identity formation through the creative process. They
learn agency, autonomy, and empowerment through taking ownership of their
creative process and ability to freely explore and grow.
I did a
activity that I call “Creativity Musical Chairs.” I set up 40 different art
activities that they could move around the tables and experience. I played
different kinds of music and after each song (about 5 minutes) they move to the
next activity. After awhile people become playful, open and in the flow. They
found that different music inspired them to create differently, as did the
materials, and the people that they are working beside. Once in awhile I would
interrupt the process and have them close their eyes and image a favorite place
and then return to their art making, get them to use their non-dominate hand,
or hop on one foot, etc. People find that having a variety of materials to
explore, different music to inspire them and no rules opens up their creative
abilities in amazing ways.
If you are interested in Arts in Education this is an interesting story "10 Salient Studies on the Arts in Education."
3 comments:
This is really cool. I've been having trouble breaking the perfectionism bar I seem to hold my creations to. I think I may just try this; love the musical chair, hopping on one foot, eyes closed, ideas. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for leaving a comment Elena, I always love hearing from you. Hugs Karen
What a great way to conduct a workshop in art and creativity Karen!! I wish art instructors at the college level could retain a little sense of play in the classroom.
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