Learning How to Create Art Doesn't Have to Be Boring

I remember going into my art class in high school thinking, "well isn't this great? Here I am taking this art class, it'll be an easy A and give me a chance to find my creative genius while I'm at it." Boy was I wrong. Could it have been that I wasn't that interested in art to begin with? I thought I knew plenty about artists and art history, was I artistically illiterate? The answers to these questions are both no. My expectations for the class were unrealistic for a high school elective. The class wasn't that hard but was filled with endless boring history, unexciting projects, and Georgia O'Keefe. If anything I walked away from the whole experience knowing that if you want to get better at art, don't waste your time with academics.

Now I know there are plenty of art students out there getting fancy degrees who would disagree with me. If art school is working out well for them, fine. Just remember I never had nor will have plans of making art my career. I was just interested in learning more ways to express myself through art. Therein lies the problem with art classes and academic curriculum in general: if it won't allow you the freedom to find your own style it is a waste of time and money.

Art at a young age

When we grew up almost every one of us undoubtedly has picked up a crayon or pencil at some point and started drawing. Even the most artistically inept of us played with art at a young age. We begin as infants to grasp objects and wonder what we can do with them, and as toddlers we are given those thick wax crayons and some paper. Some psychologists say at that early stage we are mainly discovering texture and enjoy the way the crayon feels scribbling over the paper (and walls and anything else!). Eventually we discover we can recreate what we see.