The Habits of Mind: Judge Art More Informed

[@octoberlassie]

An excellent, helpful video as always. I had an art teacher in high school who graded mainly on how realistic our paintings looked. She demotivated all but one student. She left though, and her replacement saw things much more like you, and everyone began working a lot better because their effort was recognised. Thanks for the great video!

[@MDCampbell]

Sadly, I hear a lot of stories about people having negative experiences in art class when they were young. I'm sure some of my former students didn't like that I actually gave tests in my class (they were actually timed sketch sessions)! lol!! But, yeah, that idea that art must look real is how a lot of people feel toward art. I wonder how Mark Rothko or Jackson Pollock would have done in a class like that! Thank you for sharing that and I'm glad you eventually got a replacement. I appreciate your time watching and especially for commenting! Stay well, octoberlassie!!

[@shaynedavisartanddesign]

Loved the video and essay. Beautiful image.

[@MDCampbell]

Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed it and I appreciate your kind words on the artwork. ~ Mark

[@LanaGoesArt]

Hi Mark, another wonderful video of yours. I wish you were one of my art teachers in school. Those points make so much sense and it would be great if this aproach to art projects would be taught everywhere. Or to any projects. Thank you so much!

[@CautionArtistatPlay]

So many great talking points, Mark! ❤

[@MDCampbell]

Thank you, my friend! I appreciate your time on this one. Hoping all is well with you! ~ Mark

[@3534538]

For me the vertical bars turned greyish and when I looked to the side of the yellow parts I saw the bars in bright purple - very interesting. I know such "games" but I wouldn't have tried the staring exercise without your hint 🙂 I still don't really like that kind of painting but I'd never disparage it. That's what I really dislike in some commenters on art(sy) channels, they have an attitude as if the content creater has to do only what suits the commenter's style and how dare the creators if they don't do that. Out comes the threat of "unsubscribe" 🤣 My favorite part of your drawing/painting is the girl hanging on the fishing rod doing the observing part. I hope I understood that correctly. Even if I didn't, I like the whole thing 😍 Thank you for the interesting "TED talk" 🥰

[@MDCampbell]

Thank you for checking this video out and leaving such thoughtful feedback! I think the yellow test works best in the physical world, or at least better than digital. But, it's an interesting test when you drive at night and see the yellow lines on the road. Sometimes, when the lighting is right, you can see the effect happen with those lines, too. It's kind of freaky! lol! As for commenters, I know what you mean. I always try to see the best in what people say, but sometimes I'm at a loss with some comments. I try not to take the negativity too seriously! And yes, the girl dangling from the fishing pole is "Observing!" I'm happy you caught that! You got me laughing at the "Ted" talks! lo!! Thank you!! ~ Mark

[@robineliason7850]

Oddly, I could not get the purple illusion, no matter how long I looked, but the yellow bard did start to take on a motion and sort of dance in front of my eyes. No idea. As to the pass/fail grades, the high school I went to worked on that system in all classes (progressive school, late '70s). At first, yeah, I was kinda irked because I was putting in work that others weren't, yet we were all passing. Then, I began to realize that it allowed for a great deal of freedom and room to experiment that I would not have if every thing was graded on points and counted for a final grade. I was heavily into creative writing at that time, so that is where I noticed the effect the most, but I noticed it in other classes, as well. It allowed for a more interdiciplinary approach to learning, allowed for the forming of connections between things that I would have never seen had I been striving for high marks in my classes. When I finally went to college, in my thirties, I took everything I could on a pass fail option because I found I hated having to worry about a GPA, it interfered with my learning. This did not work with classes in my major, of course, but all electives and distributions I took pass/fail. And, somewhere along the way, I stopped caring what others were or were not doing, that my only competition was myself. I love all of the evaluation points you bring up here. I am going to take another run through this, after I have had a bit of time to think, to catch what i missed on the first run. And, on a totally unrelated note, I have found I have a new hobby lately -watching other artists work. Yes, I do it in part to see if there is anything I can pick up from their techniques to incorporate into my own work, but I find it an entertaining process over and above any take-aways I might get. I love seeing the process of creation, of seeing something take form under someone's hands. As always, a thought provoking and informative video, thank you for sharing it.

[@MDCampbell]

Wow, robineliason7850, your experiences really hit home. I was glad to read how at some point you stopped caring about what others were doing and focused your competitiveness on yourself. Unfortunately, I spent so many years in the corporate design field, that trying to constantly out-do my last project became almost as stressful as trying to out-do my teammates. As for watching other artists work, yes - that's honestly what got me into creating content in the first place, and I _still_ enjoy watching other artists create, especially younger artists who are still trying to figure it all out. When my kids went to summer camps, I always enjoyed the art exhibits. All those wild, uninhibited paintings, the quirky clay sculptures... so inspiring and fun. Anyhow, thank you for such wonderful feedback and sharing. I appreciate your time watching and especially the discussion. Hoping all is well on your end! ~ Mark

[@robineliason7850]

@@MDCampbell listening to this a second time through, I realize that I apply a version of your habits of mind to music far more that I do to the visual arts. I can hear a new song, not to my taste, and still be able to envision what went into it to create it. This was, oddly, a side benefit to the recent pandemic and shutdowns due to it. I was able to follow several musical artists that I like on Patreon, for example, and get a glimpse of how a song develops from original idea to worked out lyrics and bare bones accompaniment, then, as things started opening up a bit and people could get to the rest of their musical partners and begin to flesh out the songs further, and finally, to hearing the finished album and how it compared to the stages of development. Something I did discover is that a song that could stand on its own, with minimal accompaniment, was equally strong when fleshed out later, but one that seemed weak without the full treatment was usually still weak with the full treatment. Live and learn, I guess, and sorry for this digression from the topic of judging visual art. My brain is, unfortunately, often messy. I am going to try consciously applying these principles to visual artwork, both my own and others and see if I can achieve the same evaluations in art as I do in music. I think they are indeed a good lens to look through. ~Robin And PS, still darned if I can see that purple haze, I think I am having to quit looking at it too soon to get the effect because the dancing lines are giving me a headache.

[@MDCampbell]

@@robineliason7850 I'm sorry the effect isn't working for you! It's like one of those autostereogram eye puzzles (but not nearly as intense) where some people can see the image easily while others can't see it at all. I'm thrilled you were able to re-view this one and got something useful out of it! I really like your comparison to music and how a song is constructed - so true! Stay well and thank you, again! ~ Mark

[@ismailabdelhamid7114]

Dear mark, yes I enjoyed the video so much. It is really on how to see the work of others but we have to change our glasses. I mean we have to change our way of thinking. For me, art is fun and happiness. Happy to see others innovative pieces and their way of thinking and expressing. For sure I need more than 30 min to understand the yellow rectangles and it may take my entire life to understand but it deserve the tray to understand. The video today is remarkable but the subject you raised take us from the wounderful draw you made and illustrate in the video. I am feeling happy after I watch the video... thank you very much Mark.

[@MDCampbell]

I can't express properly how much your thoughts and feedback mean to me. I completely agree about changing our glasses and seeing how others create. I'm thrilled you enjoyed this one and I'm grateful for your time and continued support. Be well! ~ Mark

[@GingahSnapsArt]

Another excellent video Mark! These are reminders I think we all need time and again.

[@sketchingwithscot]

Often people say don't compare yourself to others. I always compare myself to others. I compare myself to the best artist on the planet otherwise how would I improve?