DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.18975#0048
10
THE ELEMENTS OF DRAWING
by their elders/) it should be gently led by the parents
to try to draw, in such childish fashion as may be, the
things it can see and likes,—birds, or butterflies, or dowers,
or fruit.
8. In later years, the indulgence of using the colour
should only be granted as a reward, after it has shown
care and progress in its drawings with pencil. A limited
number of good and amusing prints should always be
within a boy s reach: in these days of cheap illustration
he can hardly possess a volume of nursery tales without
good woodcuts in it, and should be encouraged to copy
what he likes best of this kind; but should be drmly
restricted to a /bw prints and to a few books. If a child
has many toys, it will get tired of them and break them ;
if a boy has many prints he will merely dawdle and scrawl
over them; it is by the limitation of the number of his
possessions that his pleasure in them is perfected, and his
attention concentrated.^ The parents need give themselves
no trouble in instructing him, as far as drawing is con-
cerned, beyond insisting upon economical and neat habits
with his colours and paper, showing him the best way of
holding pencil and rule, and, so far as they take notice of
his work, pointing out where a line is too short or too
long, or too crooked, when compared with the copy; uccM-
being the hrst and last thing they look for. If the
child shows talent for inventing or grouping hgures, the
parents should neither check, nor praise it. They may
laugh with it frankly, or show pleasure in what it has
done, just as they show pleasure in seeing it well, or
cheerful; but they must not praise it for being clever,
any more than they would praise it for being stout. They
should praise it only for what costs it self-denial, namely,
attention and hard work ; otherwise they will make it work
* [For Ruskin's views oil "historical" art, wrongly and rightly so called, see
PawYe;*.?, vol. iii. (Vol. V. p. 64); Zec?M7*&y a?: a?nf .Pamli??^,
Vol. XII. pp. 151-153; Vol. XIV. p. 84; o/n^/aia, § 2.]
2 [Ruskin is here speaking from the personal experience of his own childhood :
see R7*<2Ye7*:7n, i. ch. i. § 14.]
THE ELEMENTS OF DRAWING
by their elders/) it should be gently led by the parents
to try to draw, in such childish fashion as may be, the
things it can see and likes,—birds, or butterflies, or dowers,
or fruit.
8. In later years, the indulgence of using the colour
should only be granted as a reward, after it has shown
care and progress in its drawings with pencil. A limited
number of good and amusing prints should always be
within a boy s reach: in these days of cheap illustration
he can hardly possess a volume of nursery tales without
good woodcuts in it, and should be encouraged to copy
what he likes best of this kind; but should be drmly
restricted to a /bw prints and to a few books. If a child
has many toys, it will get tired of them and break them ;
if a boy has many prints he will merely dawdle and scrawl
over them; it is by the limitation of the number of his
possessions that his pleasure in them is perfected, and his
attention concentrated.^ The parents need give themselves
no trouble in instructing him, as far as drawing is con-
cerned, beyond insisting upon economical and neat habits
with his colours and paper, showing him the best way of
holding pencil and rule, and, so far as they take notice of
his work, pointing out where a line is too short or too
long, or too crooked, when compared with the copy; uccM-
being the hrst and last thing they look for. If the
child shows talent for inventing or grouping hgures, the
parents should neither check, nor praise it. They may
laugh with it frankly, or show pleasure in what it has
done, just as they show pleasure in seeing it well, or
cheerful; but they must not praise it for being clever,
any more than they would praise it for being stout. They
should praise it only for what costs it self-denial, namely,
attention and hard work ; otherwise they will make it work
* [For Ruskin's views oil "historical" art, wrongly and rightly so called, see
PawYe;*.?, vol. iii. (Vol. V. p. 64); Zec?M7*&y a?: a?nf .Pamli??^,
Vol. XII. pp. 151-153; Vol. XIV. p. 84; o/n^/aia, § 2.]
2 [Ruskin is here speaking from the personal experience of his own childhood :
see R7*<2Ye7*:7n, i. ch. i. § 14.]