So much of who we are can be altered as children...all my life my sister was the 'artist'...while I was the musician. I wanted to draw & paint, but was told that I should stick to the piano since that's where my 'talent' lay. (Never mind that my grandfather was both a professional artist & musician) .....At the age of 28 I discovered gardening and landscaping & THAT became my 'palette'. I became obsessed with flowers & color & design.....my sister was murdered a few years ago, and I still would not paint because ,well, SHE was the 'artist'.. but, after admiring a beautiful painting one day, things changed...and now, at the age of 53, I have decided to paint...I bought paints, canvas, brushes and am watching Stefan Baumann on UA-cam!....I am learning so much!. Thank you Stefan!
I am very moved by your post. I am 58 and am taking my paints and moving my "art stuff" into my living rm, AND I am going to set up my studio this week. And that is because I moved, away up on top of my list, the priority of "doing art". And I am going to draw for one hr/dy. I have decided that I will play my guitar at least once/wk. Sad new of your sister. I am the middle child of five children and we were labelled. I used to play a couple of instruments. My father asked me how many paintings could I paint in a day... :(
I am so sorry to hear about your sister... please Express yourself through your art. Never be afraid to paint how you feel and what you see. I'm not sure how you want to paint but Bob Ross on youtube is a good start to finding your own way.
Yes, I am one of those kids who's life as an artist was blocked by this way of thinking. What were THEY thinking?! Thank you Stephan for enlightening my subconscious. I am truly grateful.
I was encouraged by others to go to Art School, but I enjoy 'my' art and I didn't want to be told what to do and how to do it, so I didn't go to Art School. 35 years later I still enjoy my art, it may not be the best but it gives me pleasure. I also find that the types of people that view someone's creativity and say "it doesn't look like...", "I would have..." do not paint or draw at all! I have recently discovered your channel and I am thoroughly enjoying your guidance - thank you for sharing with us.
I sat next to a real artist in fourth grade. We were told to paint flowers. Yes! Flowers were great to paint. He painted his green. I thought they were marvelous! The teacher walked around the class. Got to his. Told him flowers are not green. Made him redo them. It always stuck to me. He drew great flowers. He drew every minute he got. He moved not long after. I always wondered if he kept drawing after that.
lol, Peter and the Wolf as a backdrop to this is perfect, lol. and boy do I understand the way teachers try to "mold" the student... I was talking with the director of an art school near my home and she was telling me the biggest struggle she had with the after school program that was part of the school system and the students were brought directly from school with their teacher, was in getting the school teachers to stop telling the kids the grass had to be green, the sky had to be blue and that sort of thing.... it made her so sad...
This is the most profound insight I have heard articulated by an artist/teacher regarding recognizing the fear of art in oneself and overcoming that fear. Thank you very much, Stefan. I see myself in that little child and the adult you are describing. I will not blame anyone but myself for this debilitating behavior when it comes to the agony to get my thoughts and feelings on the paper I have decorated with paint and ink (I am a calligrapher) and the stage fright I go through to accept what I have put on my paper. If you dont mind, I would like to transcribe in my art journal some of those golden nuggets of wisdom and encouragement. I recently subscribed to your channel and in these few days have been able to absorb your lessons and vision. Thank you so much.
My boyfriend loves to paint, but he's had no formal training. I love the work he comes up with because it's just so beautiful and real and not over-thought. I try to show him things to make it easier to do what he already does. His style and attitude is a unicorn to me - preserve, preserve, preserve! I love this video!
So many times I will get inspired, set up, and by the time I sit down at my easel the momentum has left me. I'm chasing UTube videos to regain some semblance of the inspiration I had only a half hour prior! It's as if I am waiting for that instructor to say "go" or "start here" and now I know the why let's see if I can break-through to the other side now! Thank you so much for posting! It's just what I needed this morning!
This. Video. Is. Amazing. I am an amazing artist. I really am! I've done clay, glass blowing, figure drawing, realistic oil and acrylic paintings of scenery and portraits, polymer clay sculpting, all of them absolutely amazing! I have a real talent and a knack for exquisite detail! I've graduated with a Studio Art degree from a private University with professors praising my works. But I have done absolutely nothing with my talent since I've graduated. I just have this hurtle of "what should I do?" that I can't get over. I even had a year I was able to focus entirely on my art, but nothing became of it. Nothing! I instead learn new forms of art and am mentally stuck trying to recreate other people's amazing creations. Since I've graduated, I learned how to sew clothing in original ways, how to paint with plaster of paris, how to wood carve, and many other mixture of mediums, but I have created nothing of my own! I have a plethora of knowledge that I have no idea what to do with. Before this video, I could never pinpoint exactly what was holding me back. I thought it was a motivational problem, or an issue with my self esteem, but none of that seemed right. Now I know that it was the absolute direction that doomed me! As the story of the boy progressed, I saw myself in him as a small child, taking too long on projects given to me, so I was made to instead follow the direct instruction of the teacher. It helped me learn how to learn, but took away all of my originality. Now I get anxiety and become stumped when I sit down with all my materials and knowledge to create my own masterpieces. Nothing to me seems right because it doesn't look like what was already created. There's always something wrong. Maybe I can work on this issue now that it's been laid out so clearly for me, and maybe I can find and be happy with my own style. Thank you so, very much for making this video. I hope it helps others like it has helped me.
Sometimes I wonder if I would be a happier and more confident painter now if I hadn't been 'taught' by various teachers many years ago at school and at college.
Yes, this story reminded me of when i was in 8th grade and a teacher of drawing didn't believe that my homework was my drawing and put a Sat. mark...But that was my drawing.. i was so mesmerized by the bird that i drew that it turned out the way for a grown-up woman who had 15+ years of schooling experience hard to believe in.
Just found this as a "reccommend for you". The title csught my eye so i stayed and watched. I was the little boy goung into college art classes. Now i want to be me again before college. Thank you so much. Also, I grew up on Hwy 50 at Kyburz. Best part of my childhood. My favorite season is Snow.
And I really thought its important that he identified this roadblock that happens to many people. My personal fear isn't that I can't draw or paint. My dad was an excellent oil painter ... never took any classes. Sold paintings at resorts. And gave me watercolors and paper at 8 and only taught me how to care for my paints and brushes. . My mom rarely let me have permission to paint ... called it doodling even though I was naturally very talented. And this waste mindset led her to remind me that if I wasted my paper I couldn't get more. So in highschool it really made me experience internal conflict and difficulty getting started. I made a beautiful watercolor and my art teacher laminated it and ruined it. I really struggled with a fear of not being good enough to use and spend money on supplies.
Thanks Alice. I do as much as I can. I've often come across opportunities where people need affordable artwork that I can provide freelance. And I have been called on to do art through my technical career. I have designed logos, artwork for marketing , training diagrams and graphics as well technical diagrams. And I painted a wall muriel for a church murser
And tell that voice in your head, that you are going to spend money $$$ on brushes, Period. These are the tools needed to paint. (I am loving every minute on this thread. Gotta love the internet and all those who post videos like this one. Glad I lived to see it and marvel at it! Free, and yet, priceless information.)
Thank you for your explanation of why people are afraid to start. Have watched this twice and found it so informative. Will pass it on to my students. I'm a fan!
Thank you Stefan, this is a lovely video. You are remarkably relaxed about the huge amount of destruction caused through outrageous or at least ignorant teaching.
Omg... that is exactly what happened to me in the last school years, when I chose art as an extended course and the teacher hated my work always and told me how to do it.. It killed all my interest in arts for 20 years and it now takes me a lot of mind work, to get away from the red flower with the green stem 😣
Excellent... and was nice to hear an authentic piece of history... Reminded me of the old science films we got in school.... it's a good point as well, I wish I still had the innocence of childhood to not care what color the flower SHOULD be... keep up the good work.
I have definitely met teachers like this...the creative ones really are the best, whether in art, English or whatever.....there is one artist I think of whose students end up mini-me's who take years after to develope their own style.
He (and story) good point. One thing he forgets is that until recently, children didn't have exposure to crayons or art. Keep it in perspective. Learning techniques from teachers can actually help you and influence you in your art in a positive way. You need to remember the masters studied, but they held onto their uniqueness. it can be very freeing to learn new technique because you learn how to apply that skill. you can still be mindful or desirous to add your own flare.
Stefan this is brilliant, I wish this recording was available to pass on to everyone in my young Art Club before they give up! It will definitely help me as a coach also! Thank you!
This is interesting and I agree to a point. The issue is often that students aren't completely aware of what a professor is expecting, while it's nice that you're open about it they will then attempt to repeat your method of teaching and have a negative experience with another professor because it's different and grades are impacted by this. If you want students to explore art making, that's great, however communicate to them that it's what's expected for your class. Other professors will have a strict method that they want to be explored which is fine, but this should be communicated properly to them.
Wow, thanks for sharing that! I am pretty sure that I heard that tape or one very similar to it a few decades ago in one of my art classes by an enlightened professor who was good at inspiriting us (yes, inspiriting* is a word). It is very good to hear it again and be reminded both to not inadvertently inhibit others when I'm teaching them something or let myself be inhibited while learning certain techniques. I think we all have to find our balance between being inspired and taught by others and finding our own 'voice' or style. I taught elementary art many years ago for a few years and I remember being so sad when occasionally a child had been so inhibited by their experiences in art already at that young age that they would not allow themselves to express themselves in art at all because they were 'bad at artwork' or had been told they were not an artist by someone. I had the same experience with music as a child myself; so, I know what it feels like firsthand.... Anyway, another elementary art teacher told me that some of her painter friends loved to see her students' work because seeing those imaginative images helped the adults get back in touch with that uninhibited side of creativity, which most of us lose as we get older. I remember in an advanced watercolor class at my university that a new professor at first tried to let us do whatever projects we wanted but she soon had to give specific assignments because most (or maybe all of us) had lost that uninhibited creativity that little boy in the tape had at first. I am relearning now how to allow myself to just freely experiment with my artwork at times and have fun. :) *Inspiriting - verb (used with object) to infuse spirit or life into; enliven.
Wow! You just seem like a wonderfull human and a wonderfull teacher and I so wish I could attend your art classes! I love your videos and thank you for uploading them!
Yes! Last year i took an acrylic workshop and the teacher suggested to work on 2 designs only! The result was hilarious i never knew where my canvas is untill i look closer, its was a stupid thing to do but i needed to learn the basics. which reminds me when i was a kid at school its common to have a suggested designs from art teachers but i 've always done my work diffrent than everyone i didn't care what the teachers or the students gonna say
Brilliant :) and makes me sad......and I so agree! I teach art and try to never impose my style and ideas on the student...I offer help when they are stuck....but hope to be more of a guide not a clone maker ;) Thanks for this!
So many times teachers or parents stifle children. I remember my teachers saying again and again over lots of subjects: 'you can't do that'. I left school, went to college, and did some of the things they told me I could never do and did them really well. Sadly I haven't quite mastered the art bit yet.
I had the opportunity to teach art to children for a while, the worst thing I would hear, without fail, from the children (and adults that came in and participated in my program) was "I Can't Draw".. so I began with a strategy to judo this.... headed it off at the the pass so to say... emphasizing that whatever they did would be OK, that all they needed is what they already had (at least one eye and at least one hand to hold a pencil with)... and I could SEE beauty in all of their work, I did lessons where all the kids' work was individual and unique. Everyone should know that most art-teacher certification programs teach (taught me) to operate in this fashion... to promote individual creation.
My daughter is 3.5 and she’s moved from being purely expressionist in her art to trying to be representational and it makes me miss that wild pure expression. Once that starts to go it is so hard to get back.
My art teacher told me to repent once for cursing my art. It help me realize my art was innocent in nature and I can embrace it. I'm free to doodle and be myself. From there I felt the Lord told me that knowledge in art is to just grow my creativity. Not to control my creativity, not to limit me ect.
Working without fear is valuable but it cant be all about 'just do anything' or we would all be constantly reinventing the wheel. There has to be a balance of creative freedom and reverence for the previous subjects/methods/styles/materials etc etc in your medium
I haven't forgiven my mother (I have forgiven her heehee) for taking apart the Chinese coat I made in Home Economics back in the 80's. She didn't like the way it was sewn together. I had gotten an A on it though. That said, my dad was the one who supported my thoughts, my artistic expressions, etc, and he's always with me in the back of my head telling me good job, keep going, and you should make a career out of it. :D
India got Himalaya mountain range. Western ghat mountains. Huge Thar desert. Kerala tropical coconut forest. Brahmaputra, Ganges and hundreds of other rivers. Indian Ocean. Hundreds of islands. Plenty of huge forest reserves with tigers, lions, elephants, rhinos, crocodiles.
Wouldn't it be great if parents, grandparents, teachers, etc. banned kids from using coloring books and instead gave them blank pads of paper and lots of colored crayons or colored pencils instead? This video also reminded me of how I hate the Lego sets sold today of a particular spaceship or castle. I always thought the best Lego gifts were those packages of just plain, blank bricks where you're forced to use your imagination to create the spaceships (or whatever you like to build).
this is a late reply. But the beauty of Lego is that it is a SYSTEM. Bricks from one set are compatible with another. Buying multiple sets can give you more freedom to create what you want. Also, they may have parts that are only available to that set which can be used in one's creation. Check out the brothers brick to see what i mean.
We had this in a children’s spirituality course, so sad! We are all individuals and so many times we don’t nurture but imprint our own values on them. There is that saying ; out of the mouths of babes
Schools do not teach one to think they teach them to memorize. This is why they do not know how to study because they do not teach how to study. Home room should teach how to study. Moms and dads that work they work their 8 hours come home sit in front of tv or whatever, but kids go to school 8 hours and then they come home and have to still go to school doing homework and this is one reason they hate school, and I do not blame them. They should go to school all year long and not given homework. But government does not want all kids to graduate that is why they say they can quit at age 16 which also sets up the kid to quit things all through their lives. Word to the wise, do not let your kit quit anything. Teach them how to study. I had a hard time with spelling so I asked my dad and he told me to write the word 10 times and I greatly improved my spelling. My teacher just gave me bad grades but never once told me how to study. Memorize these words is all she said. I had a hard time with math and asked if she would help me all she said was sit down and do the best you can so I said, then the best I can do is an F because I do not understand. You see I thought she was a teacher, but she was not. She was so busy correcting papers so she would not have to take them home to correct she had no time for me.
I strongly disagree with this. The problem in inadequate training, you don't say what colour the flower is and what colour the stem is, you teach colour theory and then you can say how do you paint the flower with your knowledge of how it works. You don't say it needs to be bigger or smaller, that's useless to a student, you teach proportion and anatomy and ask how big is that compared to that. No training + incorrect training = bad habits. Correct training = Good Art.
This video would have been far more effective if Stefan would have memorized the story and told it simply, without the CD of the original. The on-screen words are a distraction. The moral is pretty good, though. My wife would have gone to a local art college while still in High School were it not for her art teacher, who prevented her from going because he was jealous of her work. He later apologized to her when she returned for a visit after she graduated. The incident soured her on the worth of her art since then, which is a shame since she is very talented and could be professional. Who knows how far she would have gone had she been given the chance to continue with her art?
Ron Roffel Ron I think that its about the message and the music and the fact that this recording was found in an old army compound if you just look off the screen you can listen to it. the words where there only to help people hear the old recording. AS for myself I loved the old style of delivery and I have enough things to do then to memorize a script and put it to music. after all UA-cam is free and there is no money in it for me to produce such a tape. but what you said about your wife is the message that it is to bad that teachers can destroy lives with what comes out of there mouths.
That's exactly what I did. As far as art teachers go, it was very nice of him to admit his mistake. She is still doing her work, including jewelry but her passion is managing non-profit organizations. She just got a job as the Executive Director for the Alberta Debate and Speech Association. Luckily for her, her daily commute is just 30 feet down the hall from our bedroom. Save on gas. Keep on teaching. The world needs more art that speaks to our hearts. Have a great day.
sorry, but with all due respect for Mr. Baumann, I fully disagree with this assertion. The craft of painting should be taught and done so rigorously, just like any other skills we learn in life such as cooking, music, poetry, driving, etc. The reason the whole concept of innovation dies in us is because these forms of self expression such as painting and drawing and sculpture are rarely developed in us by qualified instructors and never taken too seriously by our education systems. Sorry, I don't believe in "let it all hang" theory for learning any craft. There is an artistic aspect to it all too, but first let's learn the draft rigorously!!!.
A pleasure to listen to you. I might get rid of my fear!!! What a great teacher you must be. Many many thanks. Blessings
So much of who we are can be altered as children...all my life my sister was the 'artist'...while I was the musician. I wanted to draw & paint, but was told that I should stick to the piano since that's where my 'talent' lay. (Never mind that my grandfather was both a professional artist & musician) .....At the age of 28 I discovered gardening and landscaping & THAT became my 'palette'. I became obsessed with flowers & color & design.....my sister was murdered a few years ago, and I still would not paint because ,well, SHE was the 'artist'.. but, after admiring a beautiful painting one day, things changed...and now, at the age of 53, I have decided to paint...I bought paints, canvas, brushes and am watching Stefan Baumann on UA-cam!....I am learning so much!. Thank you Stefan!
I am very moved by your post. I am 58 and am taking my paints and moving my "art stuff" into my living rm, AND I am going to set up my studio this week. And that is because I moved, away up on top of my list, the priority of "doing art". And I am going to draw for one hr/dy.
I have decided that I will play my guitar at least once/wk. Sad new of your sister. I am the middle child of five children and we were labelled. I used to play a couple of instruments.
My father asked me how many paintings could I paint in a day... :(
I am so sorry to hear about your sister...
please Express yourself through your art. Never be afraid to paint how you feel and what you see. I'm not sure how you want to paint but Bob Ross on youtube is a good start to finding your own way.
bluesageful Wow, my condolences about your sister, and I hope the murderer was found, convicted, and put away for life.
Yes, I am one of those kids who's life as an artist was blocked by this way of thinking. What were THEY thinking?! Thank you Stephan for enlightening my subconscious. I am truly grateful.
your welcome
I was touched by your words to your class......ive never heard anyone explain that concept so clearly and truthful. very well articulated.
Alex Ruiz Thanks
I was encouraged by others to go to Art School, but I enjoy 'my' art and I didn't want to be told what to do and how to do it, so I didn't go to Art School. 35 years later I still enjoy my art, it may not be the best but it gives me pleasure. I also find that the types of people that view someone's creativity and say "it doesn't look like...", "I would have..." do not paint or draw at all! I have recently discovered your channel and I am thoroughly enjoying your guidance - thank you for sharing with us.
there's more to come
I sat next to a real artist in fourth grade. We were told to paint flowers. Yes! Flowers were great to paint. He painted his green. I thought they were marvelous! The teacher walked around the class. Got to his. Told him flowers are not green. Made him redo them. It always stuck to me. He drew great flowers. He drew every minute he got. He moved not long after. I always wondered if he kept drawing after that.
You should check
Bells of Ireland are green flowers. There are also green roses and zinnias. Stupid teacher.
lol, Peter and the Wolf as a backdrop to this is perfect, lol. and boy do I understand the way teachers try to "mold" the student... I was talking with the director of an art school near my home and she was telling me the biggest struggle she had with the after school program that was part of the school system and the students were brought directly from school with their teacher, was in getting the school teachers to stop telling the kids the grass had to be green, the sky had to be blue and that sort of thing.... it made her so sad...
This is the most profound insight I have heard articulated by an artist/teacher regarding recognizing the fear of art in oneself and overcoming that fear. Thank you very much, Stefan. I see myself in that little child and the adult you are describing. I will not blame anyone but myself for this debilitating behavior when it comes to the agony to get my thoughts and feelings on the paper I have decorated with paint and ink (I am a calligrapher) and the stage fright I go through to accept what I have put on my paper. If you dont mind, I would like to transcribe in my art journal some of those golden nuggets of wisdom and encouragement. I recently subscribed to your channel and in these few days have been able to absorb your lessons and vision. Thank you so much.
Thanks for you kind words and enjoy every part of what I have to say and you may use them
"There are no rules in art" great example thank you.
Your welcome
Thanks You for your comment
in kindergarten I loved finger paint. Other kids drew houses etc. I just wanted to mix paint to see what colors I could make.
My boyfriend loves to paint, but he's had no formal training. I love the work he comes up with because it's just so beautiful and real and not over-thought. I try to show him things to make it easier to do what he already does. His style and attitude is a unicorn to me - preserve, preserve, preserve! I love this video!
So many times I will get inspired, set up, and by the time I sit down at my easel the momentum has left me. I'm chasing UTube videos to regain some semblance of the inspiration I had only a half hour prior! It's as if I am waiting for that instructor to say "go" or "start here" and now I know the why let's see if I can break-through to the other side now! Thank you so much for posting! It's just what I needed this morning!
This. Video. Is. Amazing. I am an amazing artist. I really am! I've done clay, glass blowing, figure drawing, realistic oil and acrylic paintings of scenery and portraits, polymer clay sculpting, all of them absolutely amazing! I have a real talent and a knack for exquisite detail! I've graduated with a Studio Art degree from a private University with professors praising my works. But I have done absolutely nothing with my talent since I've graduated. I just have this hurtle of "what should I do?" that I can't get over. I even had a year I was able to focus entirely on my art, but nothing became of it. Nothing! I instead learn new forms of art and am mentally stuck trying to recreate other people's amazing creations. Since I've graduated, I learned how to sew clothing in original ways, how to paint with plaster of paris, how to wood carve, and many other mixture of mediums, but I have created nothing of my own! I have a plethora of knowledge that I have no idea what to do with. Before this video, I could never pinpoint exactly what was holding me back. I thought it was a motivational problem, or an issue with my self esteem, but none of that seemed right. Now I know that it was the absolute direction that doomed me! As the story of the boy progressed, I saw myself in him as a small child, taking too long on projects given to me, so I was made to instead follow the direct instruction of the teacher. It helped me learn how to learn, but took away all of my originality. Now I get anxiety and become stumped when I sit down with all my materials and knowledge to create my own masterpieces. Nothing to me seems right because it doesn't look like what was already created. There's always something wrong. Maybe I can work on this issue now that it's been laid out so clearly for me, and maybe I can find and be happy with my own style. Thank you so, very much for making this video. I hope it helps others like it has helped me.
thanks for your story
you might want to consider coaching it does make a difference in people if they are working with someone every week
Sometimes I wonder if I would be a happier and more confident painter now if I hadn't been 'taught' by various teachers many years ago at school and at college.
Thank you so much for sharing thie, Stefan. This is why you are how your are. You give so much to others.
Yes, yes, yes! So true! And it is hard to find the way back... always this little voice in my ear, telling me it has to be perfect....
Yes, this story reminded me of when i was in 8th grade and a teacher of drawing didn't believe that my homework was my drawing and put a Sat. mark...But that was my drawing.. i was so mesmerized by the bird that i drew that it turned out the way for a grown-up woman who had 15+ years of schooling experience hard to believe in.
What a blessing this video is! And the internet is forever.Thank you so much.
I'm glad you like it
Just found this as a "reccommend for you". The title csught my eye so i stayed and watched. I was the little boy goung into college art classes. Now i want to be me again before college. Thank you so much. Also, I grew up on Hwy 50 at Kyburz. Best part of my childhood. My favorite season is Snow.
This tutorial needs a LOVE option! Give me freedom!!!
I needed to hear that right now, this very moment. Thanks.
And I really thought its important that he identified this roadblock that happens to many people.
My personal fear isn't that I can't draw or paint. My dad was an excellent oil painter ... never took any classes. Sold paintings at resorts. And gave me watercolors and paper at 8 and only taught me how to care for my paints and brushes.
. My mom rarely let me have permission to paint ... called it doodling even though I was naturally very talented. And this waste mindset led her to remind me that if I wasted my paper I couldn't get more.
So in highschool it really made me experience internal conflict and difficulty getting started. I made a beautiful watercolor and my art teacher laminated it and ruined it. I really struggled with a fear of not being good enough to use and spend money on supplies.
I sure hope you're giving yourself permission NOW to create art. It's never too late to begin again. :)
Thanks Alice. I do as much as I can. I've often come across opportunities where people need affordable artwork that I can provide freelance. And I have been called on to do art through my technical career. I have designed logos, artwork for marketing , training diagrams and graphics as well technical diagrams. And I painted a wall muriel for a church murser
And tell that voice in your head, that you are going to spend money $$$ on brushes, Period. These are the tools needed to paint.
(I am loving every minute on this thread. Gotta love the internet and all those who post videos like this one.
Glad I lived to see it and marvel at it! Free, and yet, priceless information.)
This was a good one, I luv the Peter in the wolf that accompanied the recording.. lol
This is - by far - the best teaching vid I've seen in a lot of years!!!
Brilliant.....up to the bit when you asked 'What where you thinking'!
Sparta Joe "What where you thinking" is a inside classroom working tool that my students understand what it means
Happy new year! Thank you for the video!!
Thank you for your explanation of why people are afraid to start. Have watched this twice and found it so informative. Will pass it on to my students. I'm a fan!
Thank you Stefan, this is a lovely video. You are remarkably relaxed about the huge amount of destruction caused through outrageous or at least ignorant teaching.
Glad you enjoyed it
Thanks so very much for the inspiration.
Someday I would love to see Mount Shasta!!
Thank you for this video brother, I needed to hear this. 👍🏻
Great talk.
Just loved this...
Excellent story!
How true this story is was in the same boat as peter when I was in school (1966)
Omg... that is exactly what happened to me in the last school years, when I chose art as an extended course and the teacher hated my work always and told me how to do it.. It killed all my interest in arts for 20 years and it now takes me a lot of mind work, to get away from the red flower with the green stem 😣
I'm the same way! Only recently have I been able to pick up the pencil to draw again.
entertaining...+ educational...brilliant Stefan..."Mt. Shasta" is what YOU are.....
This was really good advice. Really enjoyed it.
Very intuitive
This is so good! Thank you.
great reminder, noticed this in my art class whit some of the students. :)
Ronald Rademaker thanks
Excellent... and was nice to hear an authentic piece of history... Reminded me of the old science films we got in school.... it's a good point as well, I wish I still had the innocence of childhood to not care what color the flower SHOULD be... keep up the good work.
lurch180 Thanks But Im sure you can find the child within
Gosh that was so good - you make your lessons so interesting thankyou
I have definitely met teachers like this...the creative ones really are the best, whether in art, English or whatever.....there is one artist I think of whose students end up mini-me's who take years after to develope their own style.
Thank you for this , a great video in so many respects.
+sculpy puego I'm glad that you enjoyed it, thanks
Thank you so much for this inspiration :) I am loving your videos.
He (and story) good point. One thing he forgets is that until recently, children didn't have exposure to crayons or art.
Keep it in perspective.
Learning techniques from teachers can actually help you and influence you in your art in a positive way.
You need to remember the masters studied, but they held onto their uniqueness.
it can be very freeing to learn new technique because you learn how to apply that skill. you can still be mindful or desirous to add your own flare.
Kaleido Scope I agree
Stefan this is brilliant, I wish this recording was available to pass on to everyone in my young Art Club before they give up! It will definitely help me as a coach also! Thank you!
Your welcome
This is interesting and I agree to a point. The issue is often that students aren't completely aware of what a professor is expecting, while it's nice that you're open about it they will then attempt to repeat your method of teaching and have a negative experience with another professor because it's different and grades are impacted by this. If you want students to explore art making, that's great, however communicate to them that it's what's expected for your class. Other professors will have a strict method that they want to be explored which is fine, but this should be communicated properly to them.
I wish I could be in your classes! But thank you so much for the videos!
Thank you. ♥
Thank you!
Wow, thanks for sharing that! I am pretty sure that I heard that tape or one very similar to it a few decades ago in one of my art classes by an enlightened professor who was good at inspiriting us (yes, inspiriting* is a word). It is very good to hear it again and be reminded both to not inadvertently inhibit others when I'm teaching them something or let myself be inhibited while learning certain techniques. I think we all have to find our balance between being inspired and taught by others and finding our own 'voice' or style. I taught elementary art many years ago for a few years and I remember being so sad when occasionally a child had been so inhibited by their experiences in art already at that young age that they would not allow themselves to express themselves in art at all because they were 'bad at artwork' or had been told they were not an artist by someone. I had the same experience with music as a child myself; so, I know what it feels like firsthand....
Anyway, another elementary art teacher told me that some of her painter friends loved to see her students' work because seeing those imaginative images helped the adults get back in touch with that uninhibited side of creativity, which most of us lose as we get older. I remember in an advanced watercolor class at my university that a new professor at first tried to let us do whatever projects we wanted but she soon had to give specific assignments because most (or maybe all of us) had lost that uninhibited creativity that little boy in the tape had at first. I am relearning now how to allow myself to just freely experiment with my artwork at times and have fun. :)
*Inspiriting - verb (used with object)
to infuse spirit or life into; enliven.
I learned a lot! Thank you so much!
Wow! You just seem like a wonderfull human and a wonderfull teacher and I so wish I could attend your art classes! I love your videos and thank you for uploading them!
you might want to try my coaching
very interesting at all...
Yes! Last year i took an acrylic workshop and the teacher suggested to work on 2 designs only! The result was hilarious i never knew where my canvas is untill i look closer, its was a stupid thing to do but i needed to learn the basics. which reminds me when i was a kid at school its common to have a suggested designs from art teachers but i 've always done my work diffrent than everyone i didn't care what the teachers or the students gonna say
Thanks
Brilliant :) and makes me sad......and I so agree! I teach art and try to never impose my style and ideas on the student...I offer help when they are stuck....but hope to be more of a guide not a clone maker ;) Thanks for this!
That's why I call myself a coach
thank you so much :) it meant a lot.
Thankyou
+Caroline Loft Your very welcome
thanks...
So many times teachers or parents stifle children. I remember my teachers saying again and again over lots of subjects: 'you can't do that'. I left school, went to college, and did some of the things they told me I could never do and did them really well. Sadly I haven't quite mastered the art bit yet.
I had the opportunity to teach art to children for a while, the worst thing I would hear, without fail, from the children (and adults that came in and participated in my program) was "I Can't Draw".. so I began with a strategy to judo this.... headed it off at the the pass so to say... emphasizing that whatever they did would be OK, that all they needed is what they already had (at least one eye and at least one hand to hold a pencil with)... and I could SEE beauty in all of their work, I did lessons where all the kids' work was individual and unique. Everyone should know that most art-teacher certification programs teach (taught me) to operate in this fashion... to promote individual creation.
My daughter is 3.5 and she’s moved from being purely expressionist in her art to trying to be representational and it makes me miss that wild pure expression. Once that starts to go it is so hard to get back.
My art teacher told me to repent once for cursing my art. It help me realize my art was innocent in nature and I can embrace it. I'm free to doodle and be myself. From there I felt the Lord told me that knowledge in art is to just grow my creativity. Not to control my creativity, not to limit me ect.
Everything I ever needed to know about art I learned before Kindergarden.
cubomania3 Agreed. I tend to do realism things, but I really want to be more loose and free...
Maybe you shoulda learned to spell kindergarten after that
shoulda is not a word
This is good stuff.
Thanks
Some good points! (PS: Cassettes started in the 60's)
Literally this is the exact same as a song from the 70s
Edit:its called flowers are red by harry chaplin.
Working without fear is valuable but it cant be all about 'just do anything' or we would all be constantly reinventing the wheel. There has to be a balance of creative freedom and reverence for the previous subjects/methods/styles/materials etc etc in your medium
Confidence and direction can also come from knowing your craft
This is so good. It made me a little sad too. The little boy lost his free drawing spirit. :(
This is so good :) and so important stuffs Thank you for this video:) I like it :)
that CD narrator's voice is very familiar...cool
nice vid
you are a seller person, but your lesons are also good!
Harry Chapin wrote a song in the eighties I believe it was called flowers are red and it's the same story check it out
I was lead to believe by one of my art teachers, "You have to learn the rules before you can break them" 🤗🙃🤗🙃🤗
Thanks Well Said
Stefan Baumann Hey, I'm a young painter. Could i email you a picture of my work? I would like you honest opinion of it, and what could make it better.
Danke danke 👻👍
I haven't forgiven my mother (I have forgiven her heehee) for taking apart the Chinese coat I made in Home Economics back in the 80's. She didn't like the way it was sewn together. I had gotten an A on it though. That said, my dad was the one who supported my thoughts, my artistic expressions, etc, and he's always with me in the back of my head telling me good job, keep going, and you should make a career out of it. :D
India got Himalaya mountain range. Western ghat mountains. Huge Thar desert. Kerala tropical coconut forest. Brahmaputra, Ganges and hundreds of other rivers. Indian Ocean. Hundreds of islands. Plenty of huge forest reserves with tigers, lions, elephants, rhinos, crocodiles.
Harry Chapman had a song about this.
This is from the poem by Helen Buckley! I love it! home.bresnan.net/~cabreras/theboy.htm
Thanks!
Wouldn't it be great if parents, grandparents, teachers, etc. banned kids from using coloring books and instead gave them blank pads of paper and lots of colored crayons or colored pencils instead?
This video also reminded me of how I hate the Lego sets sold today of a particular spaceship or castle. I always thought the best Lego gifts were those packages of just plain, blank bricks where you're forced to use your imagination to create the spaceships (or whatever you like to build).
this is a late reply. But the beauty of Lego is that it is a SYSTEM. Bricks from one set are compatible with another. Buying multiple sets can give you more freedom to create what you want. Also, they may have parts that are only available to that set which can be used in one's creation. Check out the brothers brick to see what i mean.
Amen~~~~
u the man
Thank you. I've been wondering where my "8hIXIeG F4OWE" went... and now I think I can enjoy it again, sometimes
Funny to find something so non-conformist on a military base.
Children up to the age of 5 create houses that are true to the golden mean! It can be tested on any child.
We had this in a children’s spirituality course, so sad! We are all individuals and so many times we don’t nurture but imprint our own values on them. There is that saying ; out of the mouths of babes
lol - the quintessential "little boy"
Schools do not teach one to think they teach them to memorize. This is why they do not know how to study because they do not teach how to study. Home room should teach how to study. Moms and dads that work they work their 8 hours come home sit in front of tv or whatever, but kids go to school 8 hours and then they come home and have to still go to school doing homework and this is one reason they hate school, and I do not blame them. They should go to school all year long and not given homework. But government does not want all kids to graduate that is why they say they can quit at age 16 which also sets up the kid to quit things all through their lives. Word to the wise, do not let your kit quit anything. Teach them how to study. I had a hard time with spelling so I asked my dad and he told me to write the word 10 times and I greatly improved my spelling. My teacher just gave me bad grades but never once told me how to study. Memorize these words is all she said. I had a hard time with math and asked if she would help me all she said was sit down and do the best you can so I said, then the best I can do is an F because I do not understand. You see I thought she was a teacher, but she was not. She was so busy correcting papers so she would not have to take them home to correct she had no time for me.
I strongly disagree with this. The problem in inadequate training, you don't say what colour the flower is and what colour the stem is, you teach colour theory and then you can say how do you paint the flower with your knowledge of how it works. You don't say it needs to be bigger or smaller, that's useless to a student, you teach proportion and anatomy and ask how big is that compared to that. No training + incorrect training = bad habits. Correct training = Good Art.
Michael Vaughan If you watch Stefan's videos you will see that is what he does. Try them and I think you will like them.
This video would have been far more effective if Stefan would have memorized the story and told it simply, without the CD of the original. The on-screen words are a distraction.
The moral is pretty good, though.
My wife would have gone to a local art college while still in High School were it not for her art teacher, who prevented her from going because he was jealous of her work. He later apologized to her when she returned for a visit after she graduated. The incident soured her on the worth of her art since then, which is a shame since she is very talented and could be professional. Who knows how far she would have gone had she been given the chance to continue with her art?
Ron Roffel Ron I think that its about the message and the music and the fact that this recording was found in an old army compound if you just look off the screen you can listen to it. the words where there only to help people hear the old recording. AS for myself I loved the old style of delivery and I have enough things to do then to memorize a script and put it to music. after all UA-cam is free and there is no money in it for me to produce such a tape. but what you said about your wife is the message that it is to bad that teachers can destroy lives with what comes out of there mouths.
That's exactly what I did.
As far as art teachers go, it was very nice of him to admit his mistake. She is still doing her work, including jewelry but her passion is managing non-profit organizations. She just got a job as the Executive Director for the Alberta Debate and Speech Association. Luckily for her, her daily commute is just 30 feet down the hall from our bedroom. Save on gas.
Keep on teaching. The world needs more art that speaks to our hearts.
Have a great day.
i preffer text on screen with cd audio, sound like an old story.
reset1974 I agree, Its a vintage recording about a modern issue
I love the music and the old voice recording
I'm glad I got to hear it. But then I believe in magic :). Thank you :).
sorry, but with all due respect for Mr. Baumann, I fully disagree with this assertion. The craft of painting should be taught and done so rigorously, just like any other skills we learn in life such as cooking, music, poetry, driving, etc. The reason the whole concept of innovation dies in us is because these forms of self expression such as painting and drawing and sculpture are rarely developed in us by qualified instructors and never taken too seriously by our education systems. Sorry, I don't believe in "let it all hang" theory for learning any craft. There is an artistic aspect to it all too, but first let's learn the draft rigorously!!!.
I totally agree