To a certain generation, that line gave answer to a fantastic comic book observation. What was in the sky was neither a bird nor a plane, but Superman. He was the man of steel, the one faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than… well, you know the rest. The most important thing about looking to the sky was that you had to see and observe this sight for yourself so that you could believe the unbelievable.
Children are particularly good observers, acutely seeing what adults often take for granted.
Part of the reason for their keen eye is that so much of what children see is new to them. Adults have seen thunderclouds, dragonflies, and the Statue of Liberty (in picture or in person) many times, but when children look up in fascination at huge, white cumulus clouds, gape at the startling variety of insects, or behold the size and detail of our nation’s monuments, they mark their observations with a detail that adults sometimes miss as they grow older.
This power of observation is one reason children produce such interesting art. Educator John Holt tells us that “the child does not merely observe the world around him…but tastes it, touches it, hefts it, bends it, breaks it.” This is perhaps what makes the art of children unique. A child’s observation is sometimes more than just seeing. Part of an adult’s responsibility is to provide children with the open and nurturing environment that will encourage and embrace this way of seeing the world.
The ARTree validates the power of observation in arts education. We want children – and adults – to observe the world around them, and to create art that emerges from these observations.
Keep looking, keep seeing, keep observing.