Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
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the
Celebrating
BYGILLIAN FURNISS
^
of Children
(|H?
with
AutlSITl
article addresses
This
of some
celebrated
artists with
such as
autism,
Nadia (1977), StephenWiltshire (1987,1995), and Jessica Park (1967, 2001). There is
a limited amount
with
autism
of literature and
who
talent
demonstrate
reported
research
150 children
and
on children
is diagnosed
in the visual
with
arts. A
recent
in the United
autism
study
States
a student with
autism
in an
inclusive
some
art classroom
for
Artmaking
to learn in the arts, as well as an oppor
(Furniss, 2007).
What IsAutism?
Drawing of Mufasa from
the Disney movie, The
Lion King, by Benjamin, a
13-year-old with
Asperger's Syndrome.
is a pervasive
Autism
developmental
disorder,
and one
neurological
for diagnosis
origins. Today,
in social communication
skills, impair
impairments
ments
in interpersonal
skills, and repetitive and
restrictive
sensory
activities
are
information
are
symptoms
in processing
hypersensitivities
such as sound, touch, or sight. Often
ments
in speech and
sameness
and dislike
language
changes
with peers
(www.autism-society.org).
is a significant,
meaningful,
and pleasur
children with
process
autism
demonstrates
of self-expression,
a mental
imagination,
and physical
and creativity
There
over a
conducted
an extensive
long period
amount
of research
of time on
the artistic
it is critical
formore
research
to be conducted
individuals
autism.
with
autism
demonstrate
a remark
Dr. Oliver
Sacks witnessed
at some
later point
ARTEDUCATION/SEPTEMBER2008
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Jessica
Park:
is an artist with
Jessica Park
speech
and
autism. As a
she demonstrated
in
childhood,
Jessica Park engaged
at home and in the art classroom
artmaking
of her local public schools
inMassachusetts.
She frequently made drawings and paintings
that, as her mother
Clara
Claiborne
Park
explained,
visually recorded her unique
mental processes
(Park, 2001).
Clara
numbers,
she created
a
delay in
and
language development,
in social communication
skills
impairments
young
child,
"From
Claiborne
to her.
ingful and pleasurable
Although
were art skills that Jessica Park needed
learn, there were
also natural
there
to
talents she
such as those
of a church:
as
proved
innately such
hyper-sensi
tivity to color and patterns, and a sense of
in composition
(Park, 2001).
proportion
an adult,
art exhibits,
sponsored
and steady
every brick, every
curlicue of the Corinthian
capital, every nick
in the old stone,
and breakage
accurately,
hand
to have
Now
at various
realistically, recognizably.
Except that the
is a vivid, penetrating,
astonishing
"Bizarre becomes
green." Park continued,
capital
original
surreal"
in the
language of art, becomes
(Park, 2001, p. 4).
artist who
She
of Autism
Societv
of America
(www.
Children
withautismmust be taught
autism-society,
org). She has
artmaking;
theywill not learnartmaking
simplybyobservingothers.
lectured frequently
and written
numerous
articles
on autism.
Park
is
theauthorofThe
Siege:A Family'sJourneyintotheWorld ofan
AutisticChild (1967, 1982) and Exiting
Nirvana: A Daughters LifewithAutism
(2001). She isa remarkableindividual
because
she transformed
what might
have
autismmust be taughtartmaking;theywill
not learnartmakingsimplyby observing
others. Over
able
to express
in her artwork.
Park
stated,
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around
the celebrated
Wiltshire,
them. Stephen
artist with
British
demonstrated
that when
inspired he
more
in a
than just
reproduce
drawing
he had observed
but rather transform
autism,
could
what
the images
into "meaningful,
coherent
2001,
(Hermelin,
representations"
art
p. 147). Stephen attended a prestigious
school in England where he was able to
acquire skills to enhance his natural artistic
pictorial
the artwork
Sacks
in
An Anthropologist
On Mars (1995), asked the
as a
Is there such a
significant question:
thing
'distinctive autistic art'? He pointed out the
in the
accuracy
perceptual
drawings of
as 'most unchildlike
drawings
1995, p. 199) and "accurate, but not in
the least mechanical?on
the contrary, they
(Sacks,
10
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oddity,
life"
may
A Case
of Extraordinary
cars
years,
illustrations
Drawing
depicting
them
in a
way thatpsychologiststhoughtimpossible
fora child her age (Sacks, 1995,p. 194).This
book
in terms of its
understanding
in
itdocuments
general. However,
is dated
of autism
in perspective,
unusual
revealed
to draw horses,
able
for example,
and profile?all
so young. Her
drawings
motion,
for a child
ability to depict
sense of perspective
gifted
(Sacks,
1995, p. 194).
Nadia
of line and
its ability
to convey
art process?her
for
taped Nadias
preference
art medium,
subject matter, artistic surface
in
(such as paper and cardboard),
sequence
creating
drawing
addition
an
as
image (such
beginning with
the neck when drawing a horse),
in
to how
drew
frequently Nadia
(Seife, 1977).
drawn
that
made
communicate
experience
intentional,
though
satisfaction,
not to
but to record
it...
...
eager communication
successive
layers of explanations,
allowed
us
language?do
that
as
not (Lowenfeld,
There
communication
1999; Evans,
are able to
a visual vocabu
"develop
seems to both create and express
that
lary
for the child" (Kellman,
1999, p. 2).
meaning
autism
Visual Thinking
at Colorado
individuals
Grandin
based
Grandin
high-func
is a professor
State University, wrote thatmany
with autism are visual thinkers.
a
explains that she is not
language
thinker but rather a visual thinker. She
in her book
Thinking in Pictures, "I
are like a second
think in pictures. Words
1995, p. 19). She
language tome" (Grandin,
how other
argued that after questioning
stated
are
how
explained
in a particular
she processes
way because
she
1995,
extraordinary
use
practical
detailed
lifestock facilities
exhibited
on the
in New York City,
Spectrum
Pure
Vision
Arts.
sponsored
by
Artists
Visual-Spatial
Memory Skills
Some
and Visual
children with
autism
demonstrate
alternative
strengths
are sometimes
skills far
individuals.
1995, p. 25).
(Grandin,
images"
usually
in pencil
"normal"
She explained
that adults with autism who
able to speak about their thought process
state that most of them "think in visual
is a visual
speech
frequently
those of most
information
are
in
represented
artmaking
or preoccupations.
For many
Jessica made picture books with
about
magazine
as
thoughts
obsessions
he
began
own
thought for its
the visual thought
she was
be to record a visual
to understand
exceeded
Communication
Artmaking as Visual
demonstrate
which
complex
seconds,
buildings,
and to hold
or
in a few
cityscapes,
in the
them inmind,
minutest
it seemed,
detail?indefinitely,
the least apparent effort" (Sacks,
the visual memory
of
1995, p. 199). Unlike
typical individuals, many artists with autism
without
do not generalize
images they have seen, but
rather can retrieve specific details of an
(Sacks, 1995).
object with great accuracy
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11
or outline, but
one
just started at
edge of the
... and
across it, as if
moved
paper
steadily
some tenacious
inner image or
transcribing
visualization"
(Sacks, 1995, p. 205). Sacks
wrote
about
Stephen to draw
a few times
from memory
how he asked
s house
the author
of
understanding
for all humans. As
of artmaking
Park
with autism]
"[Individuals
explained,
us to
perceive differently, think
our
differently, feel differently, to stretch
It is critical
including
such as
developing
are
window
(Sacks,
those with
atypically
autism, to have
experience
at school.
1995).
with
autism
to be learned
about
how diverse
from artists
to our
understanding
It is also important
in the field of art education
practitioners
Preservice
the human
can be,
including talent and
more about the
intelligence. Learning
function of artmaking
for artists with autism
condition
to an art
for
to
and appreciate
the artistic
acknowledge
abilities of some children with autism.
Experience
There
access
of
and
learn about
inservice
art teachers
lessons must
to
techniques
autism who are
skills
them to use
to express
Art
to reach
their
J. Furniss
isAdjunct
Professor
and SUNY
E-mail:
so that the
at New
Paltz.
gillian.furniss@gmail.
com
REFERENCES
Burton, J. (1981, January). Developing minds: Ideas in search of forms, SchoolArts, 58-64.
Carey, B. (2007, February 9). Study puts rate of autism at 1 in 150 U.S. children, The New York Times.
Efland, A. D.
(2002). Art and cognition: Integrating the visual arts in the curriculum. New York: Teachers College Press.
J. (2001). Art therapywith children on the autistic spectrum: Beyond words. London /Philadelphia:
Jessica Kingsley
(1995). Children and their art:Methods for the elementary school. FortWorth, TX: Harcourt Brace College Publishers.
J,(1999). Drawing with Peter: Autobiography, narrative, and the art of a child with autism, Studies inArt Education, 40(3), 258-274.
Kellman, J. (2001). Autism, art, and children: The stories we draw.Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey.
Klin, A. (2002). Book review of'bright splinters of themind: A personal story of research with autistic savants,' Journal of Child Psychology and
Psychiatry, 43(6), 824-825.
Kellman,
Psychology, 1(2),
.,8cHeavey, L. (1995). Savants, segments, art and autism, Journal ofChild Psychology and Psychiatry, 36(6),
Pring, L., Hermelin,
Sacks, O. (1995). An anthropologist on mars. New York: Vintage Books.
Seife, L. (1977). Nadia: A case of extraordinary drawing ability in an autistic child. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
Wing, L. (2001). The autistic spectrum: A parent s guide to understanding and helping your child. Berkeley, CA: Ulysses Press.
1065-1076.
AUTHOR'S NOTE
Iwish to express my gratitude toDr. JudithM. Burton, my doctoral advisor at Teachers College, Columbia University, and Clara Claiborne Park,
for their support, guidance, and encouragement. Iwould also like to express my appreciation toDr. Pamala Rogers, Director of Pure Vision Arts.
12
at
effective intervention
need
talents and
that enables
(Furniss,
over time
2006) and to subsequently
expand
their visual repertoire. All children learn in
multiple ways and have particular
strengths.
an art lesson
even appreciate,
to apprehend,
imaginations
an alternative world"
(Park, 2001, p. 24).
their artistic
demonstrate
with
challenge
windows
objective is appropriatefortheirtypeof
learning.These childrenwill bemost likelyto
ART EDUCATION/SEPTEMBER2008
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