The Dawning Realism Stage (Ages 9-11)
Art of the dawning realism stage marks the transition between art as purely symbolic to art as a creative outlet. Children at this stage will focus on developing an expertise in art and may often get frustrated throughout the process. Artists may begin to depict their subjects from multiple viewpoints and often multiple baselines are shown. Color is true to life in drawings from this stage, but elements of fantasy and illusion may be included in the form of world-making.
Oftentimes during this stage young artists will make certain aspects of a piece extremely detailed and resolve the remaining space with shorthanded symbols. The details of the piece, rather than the objects as wholes, are viewed as the identifying features and much of the focus of the artist is guided by this ideal. Additionally, artists at this stage begin to change the size of objects depending on their location allowing for the illusion of a receding space.
Children at this stage have the ability to think logically, allowing them to find multiple ways to solve problems. Individuals develop personal sets of rules and govern themselves based on those rather than what has been set forth by adults. Additionally, children at this stage place great emphasis on their social interaction, oftentimes negatively comparing themselves to others. A facet of dawning realism is the Gang Stage in which artists become anxious to conform to peers.
Oftentimes during this stage young artists will make certain aspects of a piece extremely detailed and resolve the remaining space with shorthanded symbols. The details of the piece, rather than the objects as wholes, are viewed as the identifying features and much of the focus of the artist is guided by this ideal. Additionally, artists at this stage begin to change the size of objects depending on their location allowing for the illusion of a receding space.
Children at this stage have the ability to think logically, allowing them to find multiple ways to solve problems. Individuals develop personal sets of rules and govern themselves based on those rather than what has been set forth by adults. Additionally, children at this stage place great emphasis on their social interaction, oftentimes negatively comparing themselves to others. A facet of dawning realism is the Gang Stage in which artists become anxious to conform to peers.
Figure 1
Alexander's drawing of a roller coaster is an example of a drawing from the early dawning realism stage. There is a single baseline in this piece and it is drawn strictly from observation. His attempts to draw the roller coaster accurately result in a flattening of the form. There is an emphasis on the details of the wood and the tracks causing an optical illusion for the viewer. The sky and corner sun remain solely at the top of the page. Additionally, there is only color present at the top of the page, likely for fear of ruining the graphite drawing.
Figure 2
Alexander's drawing depicts a view of New York City. He includes a sidewalk in the foreground, a taxi on the street for the middle ground, and three skyscrapers in the background. Through the use of overlapping allows for the illusion of a receding space. Although the city view is simplified, what he has chosen to draw has been created with great detail.
The focal point of this piece is the yellow taxi which has been rendered with great detail. He shows it from multiple viewpoints at once in an attempt at a three-quarter view drawing. Alexander portrays the sky as existing only at the top of the page and has drawn the customary sun in the corner of the paper.
The focal point of this piece is the yellow taxi which has been rendered with great detail. He shows it from multiple viewpoints at once in an attempt at a three-quarter view drawing. Alexander portrays the sky as existing only at the top of the page and has drawn the customary sun in the corner of the paper.
Figure 3
Alexander's second drawing from his trip to New York City focuses on the buildings themselves. Although they are neither drawn to scale or proportionally accurate, he emphasizes them by drawing the individual windows that cover its surface. He also includes an arrow pointing to them with the writing "8000 feet tall" to help the viewer understand the enormity of what he was viewing. Alexander includes multiple base lines and attempts to show a structure at an angle under the "Park" sign, indicating his experimentation with viewpoints.
Figure 4
My drawing shows a girl having a tea party with her bear. I put great detail into the creation and design on the table decor and painting on the wall and left the remainder of the room empty. The chairs are at opposing angles showing an attempt at realistic perspective drawing. There is no color used in this piece, put shading is used to indicate light and dark. Additionally, this drawing is of an imagined space but combines realistic elements of a room.
Figure 5
Alexander's drawing depicts the front view of his house. There are trees and bushes in the foreground, a white truck in the middle ground, and the house and its entryway in the background. He uses overlapping throughout the drawing to indicate a receding space. Alex also puts a tremendous amount of detail into the brick doorway in order to make sure that the viewer understands its function. The entire drawing looks to be drawn with colored pencil; there is attention paid to the choice of realistic colors, but the technique of coloring indicates a short handed approach.
Figure 6
This piece is an attempt to render an accurate observational drawing in graphite pencil. It includes a table, plant, and three picture frames drawn with great detail. The table is shown sitting on the floor and with a three-quarter view, indicating a depth of space. There are no indications that there are other elements in the room, putting the focus of the piece on the central objects. Additionally, there is a mixture of flattened and nearly dimensional objects indicating that the artist is learning how to resolve the problem of depth in her art.
Figure 7
Alexander's drawing depicts what he remembers from his road trip to New Hampshire. Through world-making he draws how he saw his surroundings as they were passing by. The main elements of this piece are volcanoes, mountains, cars, trucks, and a highway. There are multiple baselines evident throughout this piece, allowing for the vehicles to be understood as moving on a highway. Additionally, Alex uses overlapping in areas such as the mountains to create a depth of space.
By taping five sheets together he was able to expand his picture frame while still condensing his memories of the trip into a single drawing. The piece is rendered primarily with graphite pencil and crayon, but he has also included stickers that relate to the shapes in his drawing.
By taping five sheets together he was able to expand his picture frame while still condensing his memories of the trip into a single drawing. The piece is rendered primarily with graphite pencil and crayon, but he has also included stickers that relate to the shapes in his drawing.
Figure 8
Alicia's drawing revolves around the idea of world-making and imagination. The focal point of this drawing is a large stone castle colored with colored pencil. There is a gated wall in the foreground with Princess Alicia and her brother Alex entering the castle grounds. The middle ground has flowers, grass trees and a mote, with the castle in the background. While creating this piece, Alicia focused on the fine details such as the flowers and curtains in the windows and the pattern of the bricks. Elements of this piece, such as the trees, are still drawn symbolically rather than realistically.