Hull artist and Fish co-director Lauren Saunders engaged in a short residency at Elloughton Primary School in November 2022.

Year 3 and 4 pupils were introduced to some of the theoretical ideas and drawing techniques present within Lauren’s work through Artist-Talk-Come-Crit sessions, handling and discussing artworks, and in developing their own written critical evaluations on Lauren’s work. They learnt about Lauren’s approach in collaborating creatively with nature, how drawing from nature can help us connect to it and about different eco-sensitive drawing techniques Lauren uses.

 

Pupils were supported to think about material, process, context and the reasons behind whether they liked the work shown to them, or not.

Combining the aims of KS2 artistic development with the creative expertise of a professional artist, Lauren taught pupils explorative drawing techniques that encouraged a relaxed confidence and control in and looseness of line, increased dexterity, heightened creativity and willingness to play and experiment.

According to Viktor Lowenfeld’s ‘Stages of Artistic Development’, children at this age (7-8 years old) are in the ‘Schematic’ period; they have a greater concept of space and their drawings reflect this new awareness. They are also still more interested in making work than the final product, which makes this an opportune age to experiment with unusual artistic processes and creative techniques that they may not have encountered previously in their primary school art education.

Lauren showed them the playful and sensory drawing techniques that she uses throughout her work, demonstrating that there is more than one way to draw (i.e. representationally) and that explorative drawing methods – such as contour drawings, sensory works, human:non-human creative collaborations, and ‘intentional scribbles’ – are not only fun and expressive but importantly, a valid form of mark-making.

 

The ‘Dawning Realism’ stage of Artistic Development is when children begin drawing with more detail and show an understanding of perspective. However, the resulting drive for more and more ‘accurate’ representations can cause a child to be more aware of their self-perceived lack-of-ability… leaving them feeling frustrated and highly self-critical. This confidence-damaging creative frustration can easily cause a child to give art up entirely and/or believe they ‘can’t draw’… a narrative that often follows them into adulthood. Adults often draw at this level or slightly below because this is, in effect, where they put up defensive barriers and ended their art education (Michaeli, 2012).

However, showing a child before they reach this self-critical stage that alternate ways of drawing – and making – are as equally valid as ‘accurate’ drawings may help their creative self-confidence stay longer within them than if it had not. Artists are specialists of creativity and are best placed to nurture and expand these abilities in others, and as such, the developments of local Local Cultural Education Partnerships (Generation Hull and the East Riding LCEP) are vital in supporting the creativity, confidence, voice and agency of future generations.

 

 

After Lauren’s visits to Elloughton Primary, pupils developed their own art pieces in response to her ecological and experimental approach to drawing and thinking… some of which are shown below. I think we can all agree how fantastic they all are! Well done to everyone at Elloughton Primary for their creative endeavours!

References

Michaeli (2012). Children’s Growth Through Art. [online] SocialWork.Career. Available at: https://www.socialwork.career/2012/02/childrens-growth-through-art.html [Accessed 11 Feb. 2023].

Umn.edu. (2020). LOWENFELD. [online] Available at: https://www.d.umn.edu/artedu/Lowenf.html.