What I didn't learn in high school about making art

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[@catherinescorner716]

I’m an English teacher, and I wholeheartedly agree with you! The curriculum I use has a great lesson on symbolism and actually says that we, as the audience, can make symbols out of objects that the author never meant to be symbols, and that’s ok! I always tell my students that I will not mark them down for disagreeing with my (or the “official”) interpretation as long as they show me how they got there. I think we forget that individual interpretations are important and valid, and while learning what symbols were common in different time periods, as well as how to find and connect them can give us a richer experience as the audience, I also think it’s important to remember that the stories we remember are the ones that were well told, not the ones that hit us over the head with symbolism and the author’s agenda. The art that we treasure is the art that we find beautiful or that speaks to us, not the art that spells out exactly what the artist wanted the audience to take away.

[@ChrystiLove]

I am starting my drawing at 70 years old. Goodbye to the “nay-sayers”. If I’m happy, that’s all that matters. Thank you for your encouraging words.

[@JoAnneSmith-di8ok]

I am 65 years old. I am trying my best to enjoy almost every moment that I have left. Life is too short to waste not having a good time doing my art. Thank you for encouragement.

[@madebylora]

I feel a similar way about the over analysing of art and literature. In some cases there is recorded evidence of their thought process and purpose (ie. Van Gogh’s letters or artists whose preliminary sketches survive, showing a carefully planned composition) or if they were part of a particular art movement or a time period when things were done a certain way. I studied art history and I enjoyed it, but for the most part when I hear people talking about the meaning behind artworks as if they know it for a fact, it makes me cringe! Fair enough to express how it makes you feel as an individual when you look at it, but we can’t say for certain what the artist was thinking, unless they expressed it themselves.

[@elisabethseeger5837]

I absolutely agree either with you! I am a priest and an oil landscape painter. I only paint what i love and dont have a need to try to copy what other people do or fit in with a crowd- i paint as an appreciation of nature and because it is a joyful practice. I like your essays!

[@Ginal2011]

OMG, thanks for saying this! I almost failed my senior year of college because I hated my art history class so much. So much assumption about what the direction of brush strokes meant or what an artist was “saying “ (even though the artist themself said that there was no meaning behind a particular thing). It drove me crazy.

[@ewwwobbie]

Danny, I could not agree more with everything you just said! If teachers only knew the roadblocks and obstacles they put up that destroy a persons confidence in their own talent, they would shut up and get out of the way! I have always had talent for writing, but could not write my stories the way teacher said, so I would write and finish the story, then make an outline, title and plot out of the finished piece! I always got top marks and teachers never knew the difference! The thing is to start! Now at age 70, I am into watercolor! I never had confidence to make art because of the rules around it! Now I just do it. I started in my 60’s and actually taught developmentally disabled adults! They were amazing, because they didn’t know the rules and had no problem doing their own thing! I’d like to know what experts would make of their art!

[@sunnycharacter]

Man, I wish you could have been my “every teacher” in a junior high and high school! I had a few like you. There are teachers who tie you to a post like a tomato plant full of strings and cages and timed watering systems. They don’t let you grow to your potential. Then there are those few who only trimmed what was needed, provided us fresh air, sunshine and rain. Just enough to let our imaginations take root and produce fruit pure and true. My husband had an art teacher in high school who would flunk you of you didn’t draw a piece exactly, to the last millimeter, like her example. I can’t imagine how a young talented artist like my husband must have felt. That teacher totally missed what teaching art was all about, and what an artist is, or can be. Thank you so much for all you do!

[@rhondahunt9888]

Loved this because i thought like you. Did the writer have to think that hard to write a great story? No, i think you need certain parts/formulas but the depth of the writer created a great story! My best friend, who thought she could not draw, drew the best picture in her one and only art class one day! My sister who thought she was not creative, scrapbooks her grandsons’ pictures so beautifully! My six-year old granddaughter makes such great pictures, i wish to save each one! My brother used to draw war scenes where you saw the bullets fly till they hit the target and then he showed the repercussions! All great works!

[@MelodyMiroir]

another great video. Every time I almost want to cry because this style of video seems to come at the right moment every time. It’s true that as « young artist », we are sometimes drowned in advice on composition, color theories, depth, perspective… knowing why we paint, what symbol, what it means…. whereas… for my part, I paint just because I love it. because it makes me feel good, because it passes the time. there is nothing more to know. so thank you. I just deleted all the “how to’s” from my watchlist. all I have left to do is enjoy the process

[@itsdaksha]

This is reassuring. I’ve felt the need to know art history because I’m an artist, but I’ve never been able to remember it all.

[@rebeccacramer6333]

Love this message - I feel so seen and understood. Even better, I feel encouraged to keep trying! ❤ Thank you for being vulnerable and real. I appreciate it.

[@bonbeechler2323]

Your words help people. I appreciate you.

[@larenacornell5678]

Make what feels "right". I've been struggling to do ANY art...mentally, emotionally...stuck. Art is expression, inspiration....that squeezed out essence of who you ARE...that somehow shines through what you make. I'm pretty sure I have CPTSD from years of toxic abuse...which I've spent years trying to recover from. In essence they are saying...you're presence...your existence...everything you are is "wrong." You are not allowed to express yourself, your feelings...whatever it is that *you* think is "cool ." I feel that there are ppl who want the perks of my life...all the benefits...but without ME. So...now...I'm trying to express myself in my art....or even trying to ...start...& all this keeps bubbling up. Like ....I need permission for someone to say...do whatever you want...you're "good enough".... Someone to want the ME...behind all the art, hype, glitter, etc. I don't want me/my art to be worshipped. I just want genuine appreciation...not fakeness from other ppl. I know my heart is wresting with all of this. My mind knows all this is crap lies...but my heart is still hurting. They say time heals...but, some wounds take longer to heal than others. Thank you for the encouragement, Danny. I haven't given up. I may not be in a good spot right now....but...I'm not in a permanent spot, either. Everything changes...hopefully to the better. All we can do is to try.

[@perkinsdearborn4693]

Fortunately, we cannot really exclude ourselves from what we produce. Our experience colors and influences what we produce, even in the attempt to exclude ourselves from our creations. I write computer scripts. And how I do it, as dry and mechincally, shows a bit of myself, my take on the world. It's okay.How others interpret or find hidden meaning, that is for them, for what they bring with them. What is amazing to me is when artists so easily tap into what the audience brings with them. Perhaps that is just from doing the craft and art so well.Thanks for the video.

[@margaretgorski7947]

Thanks for the insight! I am struggling to get back into my creative self, which is where i am most happy. You're chats help me to take those steps i need to get back in the groove.😊

[@giselesmith7795]

Thank you for this perspective. As an adult, I went back and re-read most of the literature we had to read in school and I found some of it to have merit; others I absolutely hated as much as my first read at the age of 13. There were a few gems though, like a PG-version we were given in 6th grade of Flowers for Algernon (still one of my favorite books). The stories remembered are tales well written and told. Art is highly subjective but I absolutely love Maxfield Parrish's treatment of light and I can appreciate many paintings without knowing the entire story behind it.

[@susanshambrook8070]

Wow, thank you, I agree so totally and utterly, at last someone talking sense!!!!!

[@andrewbowman4573]

Thanks Danny. Your words ring true.

[@DenaJaq]

i agree with u 100%! Be free create!

[@lindaabraham8715]

The difference between your "feelings first" approach and the analytical is, I believe, the difference between intrinsic/haphazard/amateur and extrinsic/intentional/professional. For an extreme example, a religious person can express their religiosity by hypnotic trance, all inwardly directed and going nowhere regarding character, or they can study the history and application of religious texts and structure their life as an expression of religious principles. Another example: when getting dressed you can throw on anything you feel comfortable in with no thought of role or presentation, or you can carefully choose an ensemble based on appropriate design, color, and texture for the activity. I believe that if you want an art career, whether drawing, writing, music, or anything else, you should find out what "works" to cause an effect in the audience--you have to study from the past masters of your craft and practice. Because if you don't have an audience, you are an amateur, just hoping that by magic you will be a success.

[@christinalee7985]

thank you so much. YES! I found this wonderfully helpful. Love your channel and thank you for being you to help us be ourselves.

[@JudyJudyJudy-ny2ct]

I agree! I always thought in literature classes how in the world do we know 100’s of years later what an author was thinking!

[@raggedyantoinette]

Our art teachers in high school in the 80s ... I feel like they tried to NOT help us appreciate or do art. Lol got in trouble drawing and painting a motley crue logo instead of some dirty shoes she wanted us to interpret with pointillism

[@suzannedesylva3805]

This is beautiful. I have just re-read Art & Fear by Ted Orland and David Bayles for the fifth time. Thanks.

[@SketchBookSkool]

I love that book!

[@jessicaerke691]

Another great essay. Thank you for the time and effort to make these happen. I agree that creativity springs from somewhere within. Sometimes it feel like someone or something else is speaking through me. It's so intuitive and sometimes elusive. Thank you.

[@tylergibson6537]

Thanks! Good to hear this lesson.

[@dogberry20]

I think this is really interesting. I've recently started drawing, but I've written a lot of poetry, and my stuff is frequently filled with symbolism and allusions to other works. But there is really no great plan to it. My imagination is filled folklore, tall tales, parables, and legends. They pop out all over the place. To me it makes perfect sense to put an oil lamp and a skull on the table if I'm drawing a young woman sitting at a coffee shop, but honestly, explaining why I used those images would kind of ruin the impact. It's like explaining a joke; you can do it but it's not funny anymore. And I don't have a grand design, it basically adds itself.

[@theresapalmer7892]

This reminds me of my high school teacher who would ask us to read and then ask our opinion about what we read. Then she would tell me I was wrong, I was in Catholic school and got sent to the office when I said, then why did you ask me what I thought. Its the same with my art, my creating is mine not yours. I don't care if you like it or not.

[@SketchBookSkool]

Right on.

[@countesschewi2399]

I personally think for most people it's something of a middle ground between planning and disovery rather than an all-or-nothing dichotomy. I'm sure there are plenty of artists who just let their creativity flow onto the page without any thought. But I do think it's somewhat downplaying the amount of thought and (importantly) care that a lot of artists DO put into their work. Not out of a desire to be a great work analysed by scholars for years to come, but just because they love the story they're telling and want to imbue it with the things that think will make it better. And hey, even if an artist is more of an explorer, what they make doesn't lack the finer details, they've just been carefully honed over a long time. Of course, it is ultimately up to the artist in question what systems they choose to use or not use. Some artists thrash beneath restraint fruitlessly, while others do actually flourish with them. I'm still trying to figure out where I fall on the spectrum, but having some kind of guiding light has definitely helped rather than hindered. Thanks for your thoughts danny, always love hearing them.

[@ThePhobosAnomally]

I too agree that the symbolism and all that was not really thought about and I am sure that teachers are wrong on many things regarding poetry and storytelling. I do however believe that one can not help but bring certain truths one believes in - without planing or much thinking. After all art is the expression of an artists who makes it and many times beliefs transform people to the point that it is a part of them - when there is no longer any difference between beliefs and experiences and one can not help but to have that shine through his or her work.

[@christinehucks6997]

I think maybe writers of the older classics were steeped in Classical mythology and Biblical teachings that it was natural for them to incorporate those allusions organically into whatever they wrote.

[@deboswald]

I have ALWAYS thought this about writing specifically! I went from adoring my HS english classes to being stressed out over my college lit class. I kept thinking- where are they coming up with this stuff. Turns out they were drinking the academic koolaid. Lol. But I found value in every class I took, even if it was hard for me to conform to their standards.

[@jilllusey7001]

100%

[@BonsaiZenGirl]

My problem is to be me. A truer statement has not been uttered about the path I've traveled. I have learned that I am happiest when I am me. Funny just how hard that can feel sometimes. I call it flying my freak flag.

[@sylviaanna]

„What I wish I knew in high school.“ Oh, I didn’t know you’re still in high school.

[@SketchBookSkool]

Uh, I’m not. 🤔

[@sylviaanna]

@@SketchBookSkool Then you wish you had known whatever in high school. 👩🏻‍🎓

[@MrsBarnabas]

@@sylviaanna 🤔 Sylviaanna, what are you talking about? It isn't exactly the King's English, but Danny's title is perfectly clear. It meets the need to be brief, as is necessary for a YT thumbnail. and that's all that matters. After all, this is KZbin, not an examination in semantics😄 However, your own reply is confusing, I think that you meant, "It should be, 'I wish I had known [x, y, z / these things] when I was in High School.' " Definition quotes: _What does arguing over semantics mean?_ _Semantics, in the context of communication refers to the meaning of words. It is how we personally interpret a word. Ever heard of the term 'Let's not argue over the semantics' - this means that people are not disagreeing on the material facts, they are disagreeing about the definition of a word or phrase."_ Aka nit-picking. _What is the meaning of nitpicking?_ _nitpick. verb. nit·​pick ˈnit-ˌpik. : to criticize for tiny faults that are usually of little importance._"

[@sylviaanna]

@@MrsBarnabas There is a difference in meaning between „I wish I knew“ and „I wish I had known“.

[@MrsBarnabas]

@@sylviaanna ​ We-e-ll, that depends a great deal on where we are from... Having so many friends around the world these days (one happy benefit of Covid 19!) and having read books from many different countries is that I have had to learn the differences between English UK / USA / Canada / Australia / S Africa, etc. Unsurprisingly, I have found that US and Canadian English especially differ quite a lot in grammar, expression, etc... This is just one example of those differences. As I said, it's nit-picking to make an issue of grammatical mistakes on any social media platform (especially in thumbnails), where the intention is clear, even if the grammar is incorrect. Social media often refers to this as 'the grammar police' - not in a nice way! There's a time and a place for discussing it, but picking up this kind of thing and making a public comment criticising a KZbin artist giving her / his time and creativity freely for all of us isn't it.

[@sagepremoe1565]

Diagrams and analysis is a left brain function. Art and creativity are a right brain function derived from the heart. No left brain can manifest that, only try to categorize it.

[@heikesiegl2640]

Its not THAT easy. Everything is a combination

[@MrsBarnabas]

You are behind in current scientific research, as most of us probably are just now. 😊. Check out the section on neuroscience in [S]* Renae Clark's research into "Is creativity dead?" _"A study by a group of neuroscientists led by Roger Beatty, where they wanted to find out if they could predict someone's creative ability by looking at the patterns and connections between different areas of their brain."_ It's chapter seven and eight at sixteen minutes in. It's fascinating!, and well worth doing some further research on this. * ([S] = Sarah. Chapters are in the 'more'' section under the title)

[@sagepremoe1565]

@@MrsBarnabas Interesting. Will check into it.

[@MrsBarnabas]

​@@sagepremoe1565 I've never really gone into 'left side, right side' because somehow it didn't 'feel right'. Maybe because it seems to be too simplist, too keen to categorise, put into boxes. It takes away any incentive for some people, because it doesn't encourage exploration, experimentation, the 'what if I...? " which is a fundament part of each and evey one of us. At least this 'new' research opens up the possibilities of the "What if I...?" again. That is, just as long as it doesn't end up putting people into a load of other boxes on the basis of a brain scan, instead of embracing the huge diversity of the creative nature of every living thing on this earth, including humans! For me, everyone is creative. We are born that way. It's just become a fashion to categorise 'creative' as meaning 'artsy / crafty'. Everything we do is creative. When we make the bed with clean linen, we are creatng a fresh, neat place to sleep. When we wash the dishes and put them away, we create a tidy kitchen where going to do the next task is a pleasure, not a chore. When we arrange a store cupboard, we are being creative, making it suit our own individual need for order. And so it goes on. Some people are good at and enjoy these ^^^ creative tasks, and others do not, but that, like attitudes to what 'being creative' mean. depends a lot on our background. But I've taught people to sing who have been written off by school as being 'growlers'. I've taught art to people who've told me "I can't even draw a stright line." Two girls who wanted to be part of our music group learned without realising they were being taught, the value of reading, listening, learning, and how who they are (not academically gifted) doesn't exclude them from the jobs of their dreams. I've taught a boy, sent to the firm I worked for by the educational powers-that-be as being hopeless, the value of reading, writing and maths. He was sent to my department for less-than-kind reasons, and after being with me less than a month, the change in him was phenomenal, as he realised that 'even filling supermarket shelves' meant the need to be able to read, rwrite and do basic arithmetic. Why? Because all these people had been victims of their circumstances. Put in 'boxes' labelled, "Useless at..." , been bullied because "You're useless at..." And why did I care, why did I bother? Because that was me, as a child... and because I was born stubborn, I just went on being 'me'. And because it hurts me deeply when I see people being denied something that is fun / useful simply because we have been ingrained with weird ideas - like left-side / right side...