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Drawing on the Right (or Left) Side of the brain
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Message
Posted
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/the-left-half-right-half-divide-in-human-brains-is-a-myth-scientist-says-a6900146.html
We'll all probably remember a book by Betty Edwards (I think: what I remember does tend to come and go a bit....) entitled Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. We still see articles about it, I'm afraid - I rather think there have been one or two even in our own esteemed organs. Well, I always thought the theory was bunk, and got rid of the book long ago. The Independent has an article today which reports on the debunking of this neurological myth, and I hope anyone planning to write or publish yet another article inviting us to get in touch with one side or other of our pink and squashy matter (it's only grey when it's pickled, I believe) will read it first. And then think of something else to publish. I was never sure how you were supposed to access one side or the other anyway - knocking yourself on the cranium to see if anyone was in, perhaps....
Posted
I do remember the book and the idea of drawing on the right side of the brain seems like a great strapline for a cartoon = now where's Athelstan? Being a realist I always thought the theory was a bit far fetched so must read the article later - thanks Robert. By the way I think my mush is grey already - pickled in wine? - and my wife is always saying 'Is there anybody there?'
Posted
I've tried it Syd, but quite honestly - what's the ruddy point? Why would we want to go and make things more difficult for ourselves than they are already?
It's GOOD for you, they say - yes, and so was castor oil, now take it away.
Half of these theories, or rather more, are just designed to sell articles to unsuspecting editors or books to publishers anxious to enter an already flooded market with more of the same; they're like cookery books, endless twists on old recipes (and if you go to the Guardian's food pages, full of ingredients you can't actually find outside of a niche little food boutique in Islington, but I digress...).
Edited
by RobertJones
Posted
Hee hee .... it does you good to come here after a difficult week (I'm still involved with a political party, full of prima donnas - just don't ask) - you do get to have a good snigger.
The only good thing I can think of about getting older, and I'm still a babe in arms compared to some, I know, is that you get to be totally dismissive of silly theories and can just laugh at them, raucously and finger-pointingly. Syd - you stick to your full-fat milk: if you don't know the secret of healthy living, no one does; and Sylvia, yes - that is just p*****g about on a grand scale.
I know only one thing for sure about theories - they're nearly always wrong.
Posted
Coming back to this subject, I do have this to offer.
I took a group of people who had not touched a paintbrush since they were at school. As they were quite mature in years this was a long time ago. I gave them a number of photographs to choose from. Mainly landscape stuff with buildings, tricky perspective in many of them. They each had an eighth imperial sized sheet of watercolour paper taped to a board. I made sure they had good watercolour brushes and and a decent set of watercolour paints and brushes as well.
I said they had to copy out the photo outline in pencil and paint it.
Taking the idea from the Betty Edwards book I insisted that they worked with the photo upside down both for the drawing and subsequently to paint it that way as well.
The only problems they had while they were working was to get help in knowing what colours to mix for greens, oranges and purples. They produced some remarkable pieces of work because seemingly they were able to see and copy just shapes upside down and not spending a lot of time identifying objects. Most of them were also very pleased at what they were able to produce.
It taught me that it's possible to gain useful ideas from almost any source if you try to keep an open mind about it.
John
Posted
The biggest part, I feel, of starting out - it the "it's gonna be crap" factor.
I won't tell people that it won't be crap - it might turn out good, it might look pretty damn horrible - what I will say is that it just doesn't matter a damn.
10p worth of paint, maybe 50p for the paper + their time... and then I say "did you have fun while you were doing it".. "yes, it was great fun" - "then its a bloody masterpiece!"
If it's not fun, don't do it - if it's fun then it's a good picture - even it it just reminds you to have fun.
I've done some right dirty dead dogs of pictures... but it was relaxing and enjoyable to do - I have pages of inky junk (yes, even I will admit it, they are junk) - but I had a buttload of fun making them... inky dirty washy wet throw the brush at the damn page FUN!
Next time they'll be a little bit better, and the next and the next...VERY few of us were brilliant when we first started (i know I wasn't!) - very few of the "masters" were painting gods when they started...
Edited
by Fluffbutt
