Art has its place in child development<\/p>\n
By Rosemarie F. Oei<\/p>\n
UBUD, Bali (JP): \"Art is a mirror of mind and emotions, a
\nspace for completing the need of matters of inner and outer
\nworld,\" S. Fitzgerald wrote in 1991's Education and the
\nAustralian Mind.<\/p>\n
\"In all societies, the arts provide us with important ways of
\nrepresenting and expressing ideas, values, emotions and religious
\nbeliefs, as well as ways of recognizing, valuing and, at times
\nchallenging traditions.\"<\/p>\n
This quotation was cited at the opening of a recent seminar,
\nMy Place, to discuss children's education in arts and its
\ndevelopments at Museum Puri Lukisan Ubud.<\/p>\n
The seminar was held by the museum in cooperation with the
\nUniversity of Melbourne. They concurrently presented a workshop
\nfor children, in which children were asked to draw the most
\nbeautiful place in their life. The paintings would be exchanged
\nwith Australian children's works.<\/p>\n
The workshop, held in an exhibition building, was attended by
\n110 children between 5 and 12 years old from different schools in
\nUbud and Denpasar.<\/p>\n
The seminar was held in the garden to discuss children's arts
\nand education on a deeper level. The speakers included Australian
\nMargaret Stephens, who has been researching children's education
\nin Bali since 1995, Balinese psychiatrist Prof. Ni Luh Ketut
\nSuryani, Balinese artist I Dewa Nyoman Batuan and Ni Made Rinu,
\narts education lecturer at the University of Udayana, Denpasar.<\/p>\n
The event drew 63 participants from the education and arts
\nworlds.<\/p>\n
During the seminar it was clear that Australian education
\nfaces the same problems as Indonesian education with the time
\nconstraints, lack of student interest in arts and material
\nlimitation.<\/p>\n
Educating children about arts is not always easy, especially
\nwhen today's children are used to electronic entertainment, such
\nas video games and television. This has resulted in a way of
\ncommunication which is difficult for teachers to handle.<\/p>\n
How can we pass on the values and appreciation for arts to
\nchildren?<\/p>\n
The solution depends on the skill of the teacher. The arts are
\nobviously not mathematics. At every level of arts, we are unable
\nto judge right or wrong.<\/p>\n
Margaret suggested that parents and teachers try to invite the
\nchildren to use examples from their daily life and experiences
\nwhich are interesting enough to talk about.<\/p>\n
Exhibit<\/p>\n
\"Ask the children to draw something they like from their
\nexperiences and environment and give them the freedom to create,\"
\nshe added.<\/p>\n
Although the children get the freedom to create, Margaret
\nrecommended that adults guide them in the technique and skills
\nneeded to get a good result.<\/p>\n
It is also important to exhibit the children's artwork
\nregularly and to invite other children and their parents. \"This
\nis to create self-confidence in the children and at the same time
\nto develop other children's creativity,\" she said.<\/p>\n
From a psychiatrist's point of view, Suryani said parenthood
\ncould have a great influence on the child's development of
\nexpression through paintings.<\/p>\n
Parenthood in Australia and Indonesia differs. An Australian
\nparent gives the child more independence, logical understanding
\nand the chance to express their emotions in an individual way.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, Balinese parents are more likely to protect
\ntheir children. Balinese children have to suppress their emotions
\nand through intuition and observation understand others.<\/p>\n
Different styles of parenthood apparently result in the
\ndifferent artwork from the children, according to Suryani.<\/p>\n
An important question raised during the seminar was the
\ninfluence of the adults' way of painting on the child's
\ncreativity. As we have to guide children in their freedom to
\ncreate, how can we avoid these influences?<\/p>\n
Ni Made Rinu believes that the environment will influence the
\nchildren, but experience shows that children's interest in
\npainting will develop. They will express their own mind and
\nfeelings about reality in the paintings in a different way from
\nadults, who have more awareness of the community's values and
\ncare more about the environment.<\/p>\n
As an artist, I Dewa Nyoman Batuan finds traditional art to be
\na part of his daily life. Art is related to literature and this
\nresults in a personal relationship between an artist and
\ndifferent elements in his life such as religion, place, time and
\nsituation.<\/p>\n
Art is a mirror of people's minds and a medium to express
\nfeelings. It also completes the need of matters of the inner and
\nouter world. According to I Dewa Nyoman Batuan, art will not have
\nany meaning if there is no philosophy about art. The new
\ngeneration has to have the guts to change without letting the old
\nprints from the past die and vanish.<\/p>\n
The writer is curator of Museum Puri Lukisan Ubud<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/art-has-its-place-in-child-development-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }