Discovering Ideas For Art (1965)

[music] [music] [music] >> Our world is filled with exciting things which give us many ideas for art. >> [music] >> Everywhere, every minute, there are things to see. >> [music] [music] [music] >> To discover ideas for art, we learn how to look. And inventive use of what we see will lead to many new and creative ideas for art. How do we look for ideas? There are several ways. First, we search out the many varieties of each object. What does a fish look like? A fish may be this, this, or this. In fact, there are any number of variations of fish. >> [music] >> We select this little round yellow spotted one to draw. >> [music] >> What does a wheel look like? Even with a simple object such as a wheel, we discover many variations. >> [music] [music] >> Perhaps this is just the right one for a poster design. >> [music] [music] [music] >> What does a watch or clock look like? >> [music] >> With a complex object such as a clock, there are many, many variations. >> [music] [music] [music] >> This alarm clock is used in this bright paper cutout and line project. By carefully searching out the many varieties of each object, we begin to discover how to look. >> A second way to look is to look carefully at each part of an object. >> [music] >> What is the shape of an object? >> [music] >> Is it a triangular shape? >> [music] >> A square shape? >> [music] [music] >> A round shape? >> [music] >> Or an in-between shape? >> [music] >> This artichoke cut in half can be painted >> [music] >> and printed to form this in-between shape on paper. What is the color of an object? >> [music] [music] >> There are many exciting colors everywhere. >> [music] [music] [music] >> And the color we see can be matched in paint. >> [music] >> What lines are on an object? There are many kinds of lines to be discovered. >> [music] [music] >> The many overlapping lines formed by these pickup sticks is the beginning idea for a line drawing. What is the texture of an object? There are many kinds of textures to see. >> [bell] [music] >> The texture of this old wood can be transferred to paper by rubbing crayon over the paper. >> [music] >> What pattern is on an object? We see how some things are repeated again and again to form pattern. >> [music] [music] [music] >> The row pattern or repeat of these flowers is used for this paper cutout. >> [music] >> What dark and light areas are on an object? >> [music] [music] >> When light falls on objects, we see many variations of dark and light. >> [music] [music] >> The dark and light areas on this building are drawn into this charcoal sketch. >> [music] [music] >> So, in looking carefully, we not only look at this whole tree, but we look closely at all of its parts. It is made up of many colors, a variety of shapes, thick and thin lines, textures and patterns, and changes in light and dark. So, by carefully searching out and learning to look carefully at all of the parts of an object, we discover many ideas for art. However, looking is only the beginning. Inventive use of what we see is the final step in discovering ideas for art. This bird can be the beginning for a number of ideas. With imagination, we can simplify what we see in various ways. We use simple shapes with few details. >> [music] [music] >> This apple can be changed to create a number of different apple shapes. There are many ways to change what we see. We can flatten, create a pattern surface, surround with a heavy line, change color, use texture to change the surface, divide into many parts, change position and shape, and build with many dots. We also invent new ideas from what we see. The shape of these arches may be the beginning of this design cut out of wood, or this design cut out of paper. >> [music] >> So, to discover ideas for art, we first search out the many varieties of each object. Looking for a bird, we discover there are many kinds of birds. >> [music] >> Second, we look carefully at each part of an object. Looking carefully at this bird, we use the things we see in our artwork. We use the outline shape. We use color, line, texture, and pattern, and dark and light. Finally, we may use the things we see for new inventive ideas. We simplify, we alter or change, and we invent new ideas. And so, by really looking and using what we find, we can create exciting art from the world around us.