Foundations for Art and Design.

[This Eastwood Education section is presently presented as a brief introduction which will be enhanced with further detail at a later date.]

The very nature of art and design needs to be a spontaneous and personal experienced and therefore, cannot be presented prior to a genuine personal endeavour. Eastwood Educationpresents a compendium of creative activities that are designed to encourage foundations for Art and Design.

Helena is encouraging both adults and children to participate in the activities for themselves in order to gain a personal experience of enrichment, through the Eastwood Approach. Therefore if anyone wants to take up the outline of activities presented in this section Helena would like to request that they explore the activities in person before setting them up as art and design activities for children or groups. This prior experience of personal creativity will hopefully release the adult from any preconceived results; and subsequent limitations on creative exploration that may otherwise be judged as unsuccessful attempts to meet a set criteria.

A progressive compendium of illustrations and activities will ‘at a future date’ be presented in this section of the Eastwood Education website. Helena does not consider that pre-structured art and design activities are suitable for children under seven. She considers that children under seven should be offered a wide range of activities and materials to use as free play resources for their own creative expression. Adult instruction should be presented as a purely personal presentation of authentic creative activity. This idea that young children can gain encouragement and inspiration from others artists actively embracing their own work is presented as an essential part of the Reggio Emilia schools. Every school has a resident artist included within the school campus and children are free to be sharing alongside the artist in the craft studio whenever they wish. The resident artist is keen to facilitate any of the children’s desires to produce their own art work within the practical limitations available within the studio.

Experience gained from direct association with a skilled craftsman, artist, musician, or any other field of specialised mastery of skills, is commonly seen as highly influential to the future skills of young children. In these situations the individual child is not given a simpler child level of interaction. The child experiences the adult’s fullest level of skills. For example when professional musicians are at home, they do not only play simple musicespecially selected for the baby. However, musical activities at home that the young child especially enjoys, may be repeated for their pleasure. Also, any interest shown in wanting to play a certain musical instrument may be supported with a child-size instrument and spontaneous illustration of how to play different notes.
This approach is equally rewarding when young children are allowed to witness adults working with their own art and design passions and skills.