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The value of art images for children

 

The value of art images for children – imagination and creativity.

ARTICLE FOR ART FOR KIDS – Miranda Hobart – MA, BSC  – Academic director

The value of art images for children – imagination and creativity.

Looking at images helps children to understand their world. When children look at art they are learning to make meaning out of shapes and symbols that communicate ideas, feelings, relationships and experiences. Art and images can help children make sense out of the world around them in a safe way, whilst stimulating their imagination. Why you may ask is this?
Art has been a part of the human culture since prehistoric times. Some of the oldest drawings found in South Africa and are estimated to be around 73,000 years old. Rock paintings and sculptures have been found dating back more than 40,000 years.
Humans are very visual beings, as a large percentage of the human brain is dedicated to processing visual images. Images draw attention easily, which is why advertisers use visual images so actively to market their products. Children are able to easily grasp messages, meaning and connections when concepts and ideas are presented as images. Visuals are a good way of engaging children’s interest and attention and helping to build their understanding, allowing them to use their imagination and to explore their own creativity.
Bright colours in particular capture attention, as the brain is wired to react to them. Our vision is the most active of all our senses as we have evolved to be visual creatures. Not only do images capture attention, they also have the power to create emotional responses. Images have the power to tell a story and to stimulate thoughts, emotions, beliefs and ideas. Psychologists often use images to help children to understand their world and their experiences, and teachers use creative art as part of the education process.
Art also helps children to explore the ‘mysterious’ or the mysteries of the world around them, and to draw on this to build their own sense place and identity. Art is an expression of imagination that is not tied to the formality and structures of spoken or written language, rather it provides children with opportunities and the stimulation to draw their own meaning from what they see. As Albert Einstein wrote in his essay ‘The World as I See It’ in 1931, ‘the most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science’.
About the artist.
Artist Fiona Scott-Wilson set up ‘Art4kids’ to provide a range of images to stimulate childrens’ imagination when her first granddaughter was born. She is a trained graphic designer, and one of the very few artists who works in cut paper, a medium which produces clear colourful images using small pieces of coloured card or paper. The pictures also provide a platform for storytelling using images of animals, plants and environments ranging from jungles, through pastoral scenes to the sea and the maritime world. These unique images are decorative, stimulating and beautiful and open windows to a world of possibilities and mysteries for children to explore.

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What Parents have said…

Parents Recommend Art4Kids

We love to hear back from parents and gift-givers! Here are some of the stories of the joy children have with Fiona Scott-Wilson’s bespoke works and cut-paper paintings.

Reactions to the site

Your designs are truly beautiful.
You are so talented.
They are fab!
I think your work is wonderful!
A reasonable price and [the beach towels are] a good size too!
[The cushions] are brilliant!

Parents who bought wallhanging art

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Teach your Children to learn to think like an artist

” All art is a kind of exploring” – Robert Flaherty

* Art stimulates both sides of the brain and creates a holistic world view. Children who are encouraged to create art are usually better readers and can excel in maths and science. When art is integrated with other curriculum areas, children become more engaged in the learning process. 33% of children are visual learners. Art develops hand eye coordination and direct observational skills, learning to see more closely than “ ordinary looking” and seeing things that otherwise might not be seen.

Art builds self-esteem and is empowering – “ look what I made” is a familiar statement. Children express themselves through creativity and learn about each other and the world they live in. Their art is unique and special, who says you cannot have a blue cow or a five legged dog?  Art is mysterious, enchanting, amazing, mesmerising and something all children easily do while adults often find difficult.

Art is something to share, It builds connections to family, friends and community. It teaches children a common ground to reach across racial stereotypes , social barriers and prejudices. Art teaches open-ended thinking, develops instincts, intuition and creates an environment of questions rather than answers. It helps show children  that there are more than one solution to the same problem.

Art awakens the imagination and allows the magic in.

” If you ask me what I came to do in this world, I, an artist, will answer you: I am here to live out loud” – Emile Zola

 

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What can parents do to encourage creativity?

“ Children are naturally creative. It is our job to give them the freedom, materials and space to let their creativity blossom to its full potential.” – Jean Vant Hul

By enriching your child’s experience and helping them explore different art practices and mediums, you enable  them to find a safe space to escape our busy world. Children immersed in the act of creating are able to open their minds to other possibilities and find solutions to challenges in other areas of life.

Ways Art can help children;

1. To make sense of our thoughts

2. To connect with our feelings

3. To explore our internal mind

4. To encourage play, stimulate our imagination

5. To relax , quieten our minds, aid concentration

6. To relieve stress, reduce anxiety

7. To help develop self awareness

8. To build confidence and self-esteem

9. To express what is hard to put into words

There are many art activities that help empower your children – Make them available for them!

* keep a wide range of art supplies available, from pencils, crayons, paints and other age appropriate materials

* Have an art station with an easel blackboard so your children can be creative when they feel inspired.

* Provide a wide range of choices – chalks, play dough, unexpected materials like dry pasta, beans,

* Always appreciate your child’s creativity by displaying their art work or keeping it in a special place.

* Always ask open -ended questions like “ tell me about your picture”

* Let them experiment , make a mess , use their imagination- its all part of the creative process.

* Look out for books that teaches children about artists and styles of art, for example Matisse, an artist who made cut paper a new and exciting medium to work in.

“ The expert in anything was once a beginner” – Helen Hayes

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Why Art is important for Children.

Why Art?

Art is very important for our children and greatly benefits them in a variety of ways. Art has been shown to improve the development of a child’s motor skills, language development, decision making, cultural awareness, and encourages neural connections. Exploration through art encourages children to try new ideas in other areas of life, leading to the formation of well-rounded personalities and self esteem, which sparks further creativity and imagination.

Children are curious from an early age about their environment and how they fit in the world around them by exploring, observing and imitating. By encouraging children’s interest in art it helps them to develop motor skills to hold a paint brush, a crayon, and to learn concepts like size, shape, spatial reasoning. Language skills develop with active listening,and talking about art helps them gain more fluency with new vocabulary, expanding their vocal range.

Nurturing your child’s creativity helps them develop mentally, and boosts self- confidence.  By giving children a creative outlet for artistic pursuits it encourages artistic expression that helps fascilitate learning and new ways of thinking. Art is an important vehicle for emotion that allows children to work through ideas and problem solving by experimenting with different materials and making mistakes.

Art appreciation is not just a recognition of well known artists. It is introducing children to a new way of seeing. It helps them to become more aware of other’s point of view, visual expression and imagery around them.

This way of learning about art through parents engaging interactively helps children to engage in activities that develop a range of skills from emotional, social and cognitive skills.

In our technological age where everything is at a click of a button, it does not allow children to observe and take their time to enjoy the beauty in an artwork. That was one of the reasons for creating art4kids gallery. So parents and children could select a favourite artwork that inspired a story or an understanding of the living world. The idea that a treasured picture would hold memories of childhood and time spent together is invaluable .

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How Art4kids was created…..

What inspired the creation of Art4kids?

A spark of creative inspiration hit me when my first grandchild was born and my son asked me to create a large wall art to decorate her bedroom when she was an inquisitive two-year-old, full of wide-eyed wonder. As an artist, I wanted to design something special for my granddaughter and hoped to encourage a love of art as it is an important part of a child’s personal development.

My granddaughter Felicity loves creatures and my son suggested that I designed a jungle scene with lots of different animals so that her Daddy and Mummy could tell her stories about them and how they lived. I wanted the artwork to be a fun, visual stimulus as well as education about the natural world. Telling stories every night to children is how they learn about their world and Felicity and my second granddaughter Florence has had a story every night, they are both very bright, happy, sociable little girls who love hearing stories and never tire of hearing the same ones again and again!

This was the seed behind the idea. To create original, brightly coloured works of art that I hope would encourage parents to tell their children stories around the picture. I also wanted to nurture a desire for children to treasure a picture as a childhood memory, that grows with them as their understanding of the living world grew. I also think that it’s never too early to instill a love of art and design in your child, they will become the next generation of art collectors!

Art4kids.gallery was born and continues to evolve from the initial idea of a simple art gallery to creating the Three Worlds of: Creatures, Adventure, and Imagination. We hope they will inspire, excite and encourage children to nurture a sense of fascination in the world of creatures, a thrill for trying new adventures and a sense of wonderous belief in the magic of imagination.

By designing a themed room for your little ones it is a good way of creating a favourite and fun environment for children to grow and learn. We would suggest a wall art and perhaps a matching cushion or pillow, for example, Pirate Jim or Toys Take Tea.

Now, art4kids is growing and evolving to include many new ideas and have recently created child inspired designs from the three galleries on a range of products.

Bespoke Nameplates, as a unique gift for your child, based around your child’s name, favourite colours, and other precious things are now also available. This is a personalised gift and I would be delighted to talk with you about a commission.

Have a Look in the art4kids.gallery shop for fun gift ideas for your little ones!

I still believe in fairies at the bottom of the garden!

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Command Strips

If you rent a flat and do not own the walls, mounting canvas frames may not be easy. A better solution may be to get mountable foam prints. Mountable?

Command Strips can be used to safely mount the lighter foam print with no damage to your wall (provided you use Command Strips as instructed, they do not mark or damage common white wall surfaces).

Here is an Amazon link if you need to order command strips.