If you have ever read my previous articles or spoke with me about art for any length of time, you will know by now that I strongly believe every child is a born artist. While there are infinite reasons why you should encourage your child to draw, I want to discuss a few of what I think are the top reasons.
Patience is a virtue
Drawing anything at any level requires patience. The more elaborate the drawing, the more time it takes, as a result the more patience it seeks. As kids get involved in drawing, they tend to learn that patience is truly a virtue! Drawing takes time, effort and interest, more than pure skill. Some drawings just cannot be finished in one sitting. You can't help but take breaks or do it over a period of time. Eventually you realize that the more patience you have, the better the result!
The BIG Picture
In drawing, we always look for the big picture. Drawing teaches us to think outside the box, avoid looking through the key hole, step back and look for the bigger picture.
Maybe sometimes, the details don't matter much? Quite often in life, we get bogged down by the details and often miss seeing the big picture. Drawing constantly encourages us to get out of this habit and tells us to focus on the big picture and keep looking forward.
Make Mitsakes
One of the best things that I have learned by drawing is that is it OKAY to make mistakes! To quote Bob Ross, "There are no mistakes, only happy accidents". While this needs to be taken with a pinch of salt, it does hold true!
It is okay to make a mistake. Rather than trying not to mistakes, maybe it's time we learned how to make corrections! In a world where everything is expected to be flawless and perfect, I think having the flexibility of making a mistake is a breath of fresh air! It actually teaches us to try new things and experiment freely without the pressure of worrying about failure.
More than 1 way
There's more than one way to do most of the things in life. Drawing is no exception. One realizes very early that a drawing can be begun in multiple ways. Of course, starting in one way might be faster or easier than the other, but there is no one set way to start a drawing. The more one draws, the faster they learn that the key to drawing something is to......well, start drawing!
Time away from electronics
Come on now! Do I really need to elaborate this?
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