Creativity involves a special relationship with the materials and with the creative moment.
~ Tai Situpa
Art is not about thinking something up. It is the opposite - getting something down.
~ Julia Cameron
Today the sixth grade students were asked to paint just one red dot on a piece of paper. They could place the dot anywhere on the paper they chose. Then they were asked to put their brushes down.
Here are some responses to reflection questions the students wrote after their experience painting the dot...
What thoughts went through your mind when you were asked to simply paint one red dot on your paper?
I wonder why we are painting this red dot. I wonder if it will be simple or am I going to make a horribly ugly red blob out of what used to be a simple task. There is a lot more complication in thinking than doing.
I was wondering how I would paint iy and where on my paper I would paint it. I was also wondering, why does she want me to paint a red dot?
"A dot? What are we doing painting a dot?" But then I started thinking of possibilities and I cam down to the conclusion that Ms. Pitman was going to walk us through a famous painting.
I thought it was wierd. I also thought is was really easy but I kind of like painting so I thought I might like it.
After painting your dot, and after looking at everyone else's paintings, did your thoughts change?
No, not at all. I kept thinking it looks like those things you put on a letter.
They all looked the same at first glance, but each one was unique, like a zebra's stripes.
Yes, my thoughts changed. I can't believeit. That was kind of interesting to watch that all of our thoughts were so different.
The change that I saw was that the dot means a lot more than just a dot. It just occurred to me that so many amazing things can happen from one dot. Invention, architecture, etc.
Did you find yourself comparing your dot to others? In what way(s)?
Not comparing such as to perfection, but how others were so different. Some made it at the middle, some at the sides.
I did find myself comparing my dot to others because my dot wasn't very round. I saw some really round ones and some not so round ones. But I thought mine was the least round.
Yes. I was comparing the size, the shape, how much paint was used on the dot, and where they painted the dot.
I kind of compared my dot to others' based on shape. I noticed how some dots were perfect or had stray marks.
The students also responded to the quotes at the top of this post and how they related to their experience with the Red Dot activity.
For homework this evening, students are working on creating a picture using the Red Dot as either the starting point or the center of their work. I have no doubt that tomorrow there will be forty-three completely different works of art making their way into the Creative Arts classroom.
