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Selected by the Ministry of Education
An Iwanami Film Production
What is this?
[inaudible]
What's this?
Rain.
This? What's this?
A mouse, squeak squeak!
CHILDREN WHO DRAW Understanding Children's Art
<i>We all enjoy doodling as young children.</i>
<i>But developing that into an expressive skill</i>
<i>requires some effort.</i>
April
<i>In the spring,</i>
<i>the new students arrive in outfits carefully picked by their mothers.</i>
<i>This is also the start of our year-long teaching of art.</i>
<i>--in school, in school</i>
<i>We study together</i>
<i>What a happy time</i>
<i>Their first art lesson.</i>
<i>As we distributed the sheets of paper,</i>
<i>we discovered everyone was terribly nervous.</i>
<i>When they receive their paper,</i>
<i>they first check what the others do with it.</i>
<i>Will they be scolded by the teacher if they draw what's on their mind?</i>
<i>They seem worried.</i>
<i>They have not become friends yet with the other children.</i>
What are you drawing in black?
<i>Some children are unruly,</i>
<i>as though they are still at home.</i>
Teacher! Teacher!
It'll be a flying butterfly.
<i>The anxious ones</i>
<i>finally begin drawing after some encouragement.</i>
<i>From this pose,</i>
<i>we can tell he's not yet grasped the spirit of a classroom.</i>
<i>Even after the class had warmed up,</i>
<i>there remained one student who was not drawing.</i>
<i>He seems to be curious at heart.</i>
<i>But he doesn't respond when we speak to him.</i>
<i>On this day, his paper remained blank.</i>
Okay, now,
spread your arms out wide--
<i>The lessons continued onward.</i>
Take some steps back.
Please line up with your neighbors.
Take the first bead, and here we go.
One.
Two.
<i>Their art during this period look very much alike.</i>
<i>They're timid,</i>
<i>and remain within a certain mold.</i>
<i>But even among these works,</i>
<i>we can find budding traces of originality.</i>
<i>We focus on the trees.</i>
<i>The work of a tough girl,</i>
<i>who holds her own against the boys.</i>
<i>That girl seems to have a lackey, and this is their artwork.</i>
<i>A level-headed and rather stylish child.</i>
<i>The feelings of a child are quite flexible.</i>
<i>They are very impressionable and easy to change.</i>
<i>Early on, I found this boy</i>
<i>to be the most active and roughest in the class.</i>
<i>But one day,</i>
<i>he appeared with a clean shaven head.</i>
<i>Everyone teased him.</i>
<i>His attitude has changed ever since.</i>
<i>This is his drawing.</i>
<i>In it, I find him expressing</i>
<i>his vulnerability and isolation from others.</i>
Go!
<i>The moment that left the most lasting impression on us,</i>
<i>took place during a physical education lesson.</i>
<i>The pressure of a race.</i>
Go!
<i>When she fell behind the others,</i>
<i>it must have made her very sad.</i>
<i>Ms. Tagawa, late from crying,</i>
<i>hurried in to her art class.</i>
<i>She first drew the sun,</i>
<i>but it was engulfed by the other colors.</i>
<i>Her strokes were intense,</i>
<i>pressing hard against the paper.</i>
<i>She drew a red flower in the center of her canvas.</i>
<i>Lastly, using a deep purple crayon,</i>
<i>she fenced everything in.</i>
<i>Purple is often used to represent physical injury,</i>
<i>or to express unhappiness coming from one's failings.</i>
<i>This vivid red might reveal the intensity of her anguish.</i>
<i>But once she drew this picture,</i>
<i>she appeared to be much more at ease.</i>
<i>This is the drawing on the back of her paper.</i>
<i>The colors are brighter and more refreshing.</i>
June
<i>As I look through the children's drawings,</i>
<i>I learn a lot from them.</i>
<i>We gather each child's work, and sort them chronologically.</i>
<i>We also make sure to stamp them with the date.</i>
<i>Here's the work by Machino,</i>
<i>who didn't draw on the first day.</i>
<i>This is his first piece of art, a lonely looking house.</i>
There's a good picture!
<i>For about five weeks,</i>
<i>drawings of the house continued.</i>
<i>Machino's house is located to the south of the school.</i>
<i>She must be an acquaintance.</i>
<i>His family does not own a house,</i>
<i>but rents a room in this small apartment building.</i>
<i>Machino tells us,</i>
<i>he is often alone by himself in this room until night time.</i>
<i>A drawing of the house at night.</i>
<i>Children often incorporate emotion in their art in this way.</i>
<i>This picture evokes something frightening.</i>
<i>Machino now enjoys art.</i>
<i>But instead of color,</i>
<i>he elects to draw detailed pencil art.</i>
<i>He catches fishes from the sea.</i>
<i>He first puts it in the tank behind him.</i>
<i>The ones that overflow are stored in the bottom of his boat.</i>
<i>It's his first major work.</i>
<i>I believe these repetitive elements</i>
<i>indicate that he has yet to overcome his worries.</i>
<i>Ms. Tagawa, who cried after her sprint.</i>
<i>In contrast to Machino,</i>
<i>she drew imaginative pictures from the beginning.</i>
<i>I get the impression that she was raised by a warm and nurturing family.</i>
<i>Her father is a hard worker, employed at a lumber mill.</i>
<i>The mother appears to be diligent as well.</i>
They didn't have the sweet roll? So what did you buy?
[inaudible]
- Oh. - This has bean paste in it.
Please put it over there.
Please put away the shopping bag, too.
<i>I'm told Ms. Tagawa is a kind child who helps with her mother's tasks.</i>
<i>She always looked cheerful at her home.</i>
<i>But she just can't seem to fit in with her friends.</i>
Yeah, I only have that one.
- This one? - That's 10 yen.
- That'll be 10 yen too. - I'll get one too.
[inaudible]
- It's 10 yen. - I gave you 10 yen, too!
Okay, thank you.
Thank you very much.
<i>Even in the classroom, she was often seen by herself.</i>
<i>Early on, she drew a single flower.</i>
<i>With its warm colors, the drawing suggests a reliance upon others.</i>
<i>A flower growing atop a cold-colored mountain.</i>
<i>With this, the sense of reliance is diminished,</i>
<i>and perhaps she wishes to be more independent.</i>
<i>Soon, as if they represent more knowledge,</i>
<i>there were more flowers.</i>
<i>It must have taken her a lot of courage to draw these people,</i>
<i>consisting of such complex shapes.</i>
<i>It's still a juvenile piece of art, yet it's an avidly drawn one.</i>
<i>Perhaps the children in the drawing were Ms. Tagawa's little sisters,</i>
<i>whom she always looks after.</i>
<i>The children's art, which used to be timidly drawn,</i>
<i>started to contain a variety of subjects.</i>
"Shot him"
"Rabbit"
<i>A drawing with detailed, written explanations.</i>
"Was hit"
"Shot him, bang bang"
<i>Although the shapes are well-drawn,</i>
<i>some pictures are copied straight out of a book.</i>
<i>This one shows more of the child's own feelings.</i>
<i>However,</i>
<i>what conjured such grotesque creatures within this boy?</i>
<i>Images of war are another popular theme.</i>
<i>However, if we encounter such a child,</i>
<i>who focuses on war drawings,</i>
<i>we should examine if he has reasons to bear such resentment or anger.</i>
<i>Meanwhile, here is Machino's drawing,</i>
<i>of a baby whale suckling on its mother whale.</i>
<i>As his parents are often away,</i>
<i>he stays late after school wishing to spend time with us,</i>
<i>which is perhaps reflected in his art.</i>
July
<i>We start by encouraging the children,</i>
<i>no matter what they choose to express.</i>
<i>That is because we value their courage to honestly reveal their feelings.</i>
<i>Soft clay, for instance,</i>
<i>is another material to aid their creative expression.</i>
<i>Any new material</i>
<i>first appeals to their sense of curiosity.</i>
Take it with your hands.
[inaudible]
- I'll give you a little more. - One more, teacher!
Here.
<i>Some children,</i>
<i>upon discovering the ledge by the coal storage, worked standing up.</i>
Make it even longer.
Gotta put water on it.
One two, one two...
Pat, pat, pat...
<i>Even this boy, who had been quiet since he was shaved,</i>
<i>looks to be having much fun.</i>
<i>Moreover, the slithering snake</i>
<i>bears a significant meaning for children.</i>
The snake's getting long.
It's gonna break apart!
Should I stretch the snake all the way here?
Don't.
Here to over there?
Don't take mine!
If it flips over, you're gonna pay.
Wow, the snake turned the corner.
<i>The enthralled children use all of the muscles in their body</i>
<i>to make things with the wet clay while enjoying its texture.</i>
Teacher!
I made it!
I made a whale!
Oh, I like that one!
Ah, a whale?
That's impressive!
It's wonderful.
It's the one I drew in class that other day--
It's the one-eyed monster that I drew in class.
- Oh, the one-eyed one? - Yeah.
<i>Whether it is a snake or a monster,</i>
<i>when it frightens the child,</i>
<i>he lacks the courage to reproduce its form.</i>
<i>Even if a child still fears the dark,</i>
<i>once they can create ghosts from clay and in their drawings,</i>
<i>they must be gradually getting over these fears.</i>
<i>Finger painting.</i>
<i>This is yet another material that promotes the children's development.</i>
<i>By getting their hands dirty, we often observed the children's preconceptions</i>
<i>naturally melt away through their fingertips.</i>
<i>As they gain more confidence,</i>
<i>the children are eager to test their own strength.</i>
<i>Just drawing swordfights becomes inadequate.</i>
<i>It is at this age, it seems,</i>
<i>that they are most drawn to physical strength.</i>
<i>Perhaps they can't keep a handle on themselves.</i>
<i>We thought about drawing on the large chalkboard</i>
<i>as a way for the children to make use of their newfound strength.</i>
<i>If we simply scolded them,</i>
<i>it would only hinder their hardy development.</i>
Hey, Nakazawa.
Why don't you draw the rest of this boat?
<i>Even Ms. Tagawa, who had not been too attached to us,</i>
<i>has become quite lively.</i>
<i>Her art has developed as well.</i>
August
<i>Summer break, by the river.</i>
One two, three four.
<i>The river is shallow and moves slowly here,</i>
<i>but the children's imagination transforms it into a grand ocean.</i>
<i>The ocean is a place with strange creatures.</i>
<i>At the bottom, there is a house of fish.</i>
<i>There's something taking a nap.</i>
<i>Could it be a large whale?</i>
<i>These are its eyeballs.</i>
<i>They look pleased with their first collaboration.</i>
<i>Ms. Tagawa was digging a hole away from the others.</i>
<i>A shy girl like her,</i>
<i>and the hole that she dug herself.</i>
<i>By sitting there,</i>
<i>she must have found a safe, comfortable space much like her own home.</i>
October
<i>The new semester has started.</i>
<i>In art class, the children begin using opaque watercolors.</i>
<i>This child, who successfully made a whale during the summer,</i>
<i>is now intensely working with this new material.</i>
<i>This child was engrossed with war drawings.</i>
<i>He's finding this new task difficult.</i>
<i>Here's the boy who picked on Machino.</i>
You're good at this.
<i>He is currently very interested in human faces.</i>
<i>This is his fifth work.</i>
<i>It's a portrait that is quite humorous.</i>
<i>Perhaps it's a self-portrait.</i>
<i>The desire to learn new things,</i>
<i>which continues to develop within each of them,</i>
<i>is also reflected in their other subjects.</i>
<i>Machino, too, is bravely progressing in his studies.</i>
"The picture--"
"He read to him from the picture book."
"The elephant, stretching its long trunk,"
"was picking up the nuts and berries."
Good, well done.
<i>The trip to the zoo, occuring during this period of intense curiosity,</i>
<i>left a strong impression on the children.</i>
Scary, scary!
Here it comes.
Machino.
It's here.
<i>How Machino has changed,</i>
<i>compared to his first day in art class.</i>
<i>But the use of color</i>
<i>is a brand new world that has just opened to him.</i>
<i>Hence it's a source of apprehension and worry,</i>
<i>but he's also happy about it.</i>
<i>A child's art differs from that of an artist.</i>
<i>Vividly expressing their own feelings is paramount.</i>
<i>This fat, round elephant looks to be enjoying himself.</i>
<i>It's hard to imagine</i>
<i>it's drawn by the same child who, four months earlier,</i>
<i>drew this timid, thinly-lined piece.</i>
<i>The brilliant color of this carrot</i>
<i>pulls the entire picture together.</i>
<i>We demand more, physically, out of the students.</i>
<i>But we make sure to post their hard work</i>
<i>on the wires above the blackboard.</i>
Machino.
This is your drawing, right?
This elephant's colored well.
<i>By doing so,</i>
<i>the children develop a sense of pride for their work.</i>
<i>It also draws attention to the other children's art.</i>
<i>This is by the boy who had his head shaved at the beginning of the year.</i>
<i>Being an intelligent boy,</i>
<i>his work has a distinct style to them.</i>
<i>On the other hand,</i>
<i>this drawing of a lion is charming in how plainly childish it looks.</i>
<i>A painting by the lonely Ms. Tagawa.</i>
<i>Imagining a life with little birds and her peers.</i>
<i>She must be feeling very cheerful at the moment.</i>
<i>Even during physical education, her most challenging subject,</i>
<i>she has been building much confidence.</i>
<i>Introverted children like her,</i>
<i>if they are properly encouraged,</i>
<i>have the capability to express a warm, tender beauty.</i>
<i>Despite using many colors,</i>
<i>the canvas remains cohesive and beautiful.</i>
<i>A fantastical way of viewing things is hidden in every child.</i>
<i>Turning now to the children who drew images of war,</i>
<i>or monsters with their rough strokes.</i>
<i>These strong children</i>
<i>continue to boldly illustrate the objects around them.</i>
<i>The picture on the left was drawn together by five friends.</i>
<i>Even among these tough children,</i>
<i>we see that each still retain their individual personalities and beauty.</i>
<i>Growing within each child</i>
<i>are the capacity to honestly and keenly perceive their world</i>
<i>as well as the ability to create new things.</i>
Your father takes his bag and heads to the office, right?
Or to the factory.
He goes to many places.
Maybe he rides the train to a workplace far away.
There are some people who must travel far to work.
Your older brother might work just like your father.
And your mother works, too.
And older sisters work as well.
Have you ever...
Helped out the grown-ups with their jobs?
The other day,
everybody's friend, Sakai,
helped out at his family's store, giving change to the customers.
And there's...
Ms. Mahara, another of your friends.
She was helping her mother glue things together.
So for today, think about the jobs that you've helped out at,
or the jobs you've seen, or jobs you've heard about.
Remember the job you think is the most fun, and let's draw that.
Okay, I'll give you some paper...
END Produced by Iwanami Films
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