"I'm trying the least of anything to control this drawing ... in fact I want it to run away with me." says Billy, a fifth grader who reads at 13th grade level. He clears his throat and begins to sketch and his stories flood the page. This qualitative research paper looks at what free sketchbook drawing does for a group of boys ages 8-14 who…

When this author first published his account of "The Superheroes of J. C. Holz" (Wilson, 1974), he could not have imagined that the comics of one Iowa boy would shape his thinking about children's images, the purposes of art and art education, narrative, popular visual culture, and his present theorizing about pedagogy. He states that…

Discussed is whether or not folk art and children's art are really art. Child and folk art are two rich sources of imagery that can lead to a re-examination of the connections between the ethical and aesthetic in other more traditionally accepted forms of art. (Author/RM)

Describes the Prospect Archives, which contain children's artwork and academic work as well as observations and reports on the children by teachers and other staff members of the Prospect School. The contents of the archive document the growth of individual students over a period of years. (Author/IRT)

Describes the development of children's artistic expression from age four through adolescence. Explores the visual-haptic theory, baseline theory, the inside-out expression, the fold-over picture, the upside-down depiction, and the front view-top view display. (RJC)

A tension exists between two schools of thought regarding the development of children's drawings. One position places great emphasis on the relatively invariant sequence in which figural differentiation comes about, and attempts to explicate the graphic logic which yields the rule-governed changes which can be observed in children's drawings. The…

Analysis of drawings by 26 children indicated striking contrasts in subject matter and style between girls and boys, but did not present stereotyped images of sex roles. The contrasts could not be specifically attributed to genetic, social, or psychological differences between the sexes. (MJL)

This article is concerned with the representational paintings and drawings of six- to nine-year-old children in which human relationships and interactions are central to subject matter. As a rule, children at this age are thought to be at the height of their curiosity and imaginative powers. (Author/KC)

Examines relationships between child and adult art, proposing an exploration of meanings of children's art activity by examining relationships between art-making and other activities of the same developmental period. The paper posits some basic human needs and considers how various activities might serve as instrumentalities to realize such goals.…

Analyzed two sets of Japanese children's artworks, one in the graphic narrative style, the other, school art in the "high" art tradition. Argues that art derived from popular models provides children with important ways to investigate meaningful dimensions of the world and to experiment with life's major themes, dimensions of meaning…

Discusses study of the development of children's drawing as infused with Western cultural values. Suggests that changes are needed in the images used to describe development, especially the use of developmentally ordered stages. Maintains that the light spectrum is the most promising reconceptualization of artistic development because it captures…

Traces the influence of visionary and perceptual schemas in discussions of child art in psychology, education, and art history. Considers recent accounts of artistic achievements of autistic children and views that young children can draw in perspective. Argues that Luquet has been misinterpreted; he was beginning to define a new theoretical space…

Considers the importance of scholarly discourse on art and human development and maintains that basic questions need exploration: (1) what is developing psychologically? (2) what are the indicators of development? (3) what indicates development has been constrained in some way? and (4) where does art theory belong in scholarly discourse on child…

Frames a developmental psychology of art by contrasting the structural orientation of the study of drawing and the functional orientation of the study of artistry. This model maintains that graphic symbolization emerges with early mark-making, children's representative art is guided by perceptions of affordances, and children continue to engage in…

This book is a collection of essays in which the author counters high-stakes testing, the pathologizing of children, and the unrelenting critique of public schools with a persuasive account of how children actively make sense of the world and their experience through the making of works, such as drawings, constructions, and writings. The book is…