02 Sep 23:35
--I had to translate all of their literal mumbo jumbo to abstract ideas, which took me more time, which meant that I barely passed at math, because I didn't want to take the time and was impatient, easily distracted (ADHD), and there were, of course, other variables.
02 Sep 23:34
--For example, as I said, with math-- My teachers were very literal, and I was very abstract. So I took longer to learn, because they weren't approaching me from an abstract platform.
02 Sep 23:34
--Being at the bottom of the class makes it pretty clear that I'm not talented, but being slow doesn't matter if you keep at it.
02 Sep 23:33
--It just means you learn differently and probably need a specific teaching method.
02 Sep 23:33
--I take twice as long to learn most things as the average joe in any art class I've been to...
02 Sep 23:31
--Generally, anyone can be talented-- It just means that you're working hard and taking time. Child prodigies just started earlier ;D Someone posted a great link on that. Just awesome. Wish I remembered what it was called.
02 Sep 23:31
--I've seen plenty of people more talented than me give up and that's the only reason I'm now better than them.
02 Sep 23:30
--I understand SS. :D I'm sure you have more talent than you realize-- For me, talent just means interest. But, in that same vein, anyone who has a natural 'aptitude' towards art... If they're not working at it, then they won't ever beat someone who IS working hard, but doesn't have that 'aptitude', or whateve.r
02 Sep 23:29
--One of the things that gave me more appreciation for math was the idea that numbers are all abstract. Understanding that made a lot of things click in my head. A number is just a placeholder for an idea.
02 Sep 23:29
--So I lean more towards learning as much as I can and dealing with all the details, if I don't understand something on a technical level it usually bites me in the ass.
02 Sep 23:28
--It's like, "But WHY does 2+2 = 4?" And they were like, "It just does." And that wasn't satisfying to me. It was like I was expected to do this and just assume it was what it was, when I didn't know why.
02 Sep 23:28
--It's been made pretty clear to me that I have no natural talent for art, and if I leave anything to chance I'm prone to screwing it up more often than I get it right.
02 Sep 23:28
--But, you know, there was so much frustration at not being able to 'get it' the way others could. I just thought in a much different way. I wanted to more abstractly understand the concepts, but the teachers were all very literal.
02 Sep 23:26
--You're allowed, haha. :) I don't hate math, I just had a lot of bad teachers growing up. I've always wanted to fill my gaps. Yay for khanacademy.com :D
02 Sep 23:23
--well... I *do* hate math. the geometry part of it was more OK than the rest though
02 Sep 23:21
--Yeah, makes sense SS. A depth of understanding can't hurt. I know that in one of Da Vinci's books on teaching, one of the first things he wrote was, "Those who hate math have no place here" or something like that. Art is really a lot more technical than most think. ;)
02 Sep 23:20
--In most cases you're better off just guessing at it, but as a beginner guessing at it just meant it looked wrong and I didn't know how to do it right.
02 Sep 23:20
--Charcoal pencils are sooo neat to see the effect of. I haven't actually used that, myself, but I've used willow charcoal, and it was just awesome
02 Sep 23:20
--yeah I have one at my tablet but it's rock hard, I know I have a better one in my art box but can't get at it tonight :)
02 Sep 23:20
--Well that was my issue, something as simple as figuring out how deep a square should be if it's receding into space was missed by all the other sources I looked at. Their approach was "just make it look right", where as this one shows you how to measure any angle in space.
02 Sep 23:19
--I had a pretty terrible couple of kneaded erasers though-- They were way too firm and not pliable at all. I like my soft grey ones.
02 Sep 23:18
--I've always found that all I really need is a kneaded eraser. Other erasers get muddy a lot quicker and leave lines. I like to have a kneaded eraser and a blending stick, but the latter is generally pretty optional for me. A finger works as a blending stick when all else fails, haha, or! a cue tip.
02 Sep 23:17
--Yeah May, it's important to apply your stuff and enjoy some things you view as being fun. Otherwise it can become monotonous ;D
02 Sep 23:17
--Ill post it in the sketchbook tomorrow.. getting late tonight, I also wanted to try my kneaded eraser but It's in my sons room who is fast asleep :P
02 Sep 23:17
--Makes sense, SS. It looks very thorough, and I like to try to get a complete understanding if I can. Learn the rules before you break them, sort of thing. If you glaze over things and just get an intuitive visual understanding, you might be missing a step that you didn't realize, and then find it shocking a lot later, haha.
