Edwards, Betty. Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. Los Angeles: J. P. Tarcher, 1979.
Betty Edwards book Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain is a grand achievement in methods of teaching the basic skills required to see and draw. Through self-analysis and research, Edwards has established a link between drawing skills and activity in the right hemisphere of the brain. By shutting down the left brain, the right brain is able to successfully initiate the correct mode in seeing needed for drawing. Edwards accomplishes this through many different exercises developed to trick the left brain into not getting involved in the task of drawing.
Many of the exercises throughout the book force the reader to see in a different manner than they normally would. For instance, the second exercise requires the reader to copy a line drawing by Picasso upside-down. By drawing upside-down, the reader is unconsciously stopping the left brain from labeling the parts of the sitter portrayed in the drawing. If the drawing were rightside-up, the left brain would immediately begin naming parts of the body rather than seeing the drawing for shape, line, and composition.
Another exercise asks the reader to draw without looking at the paper! Called blind contour drawing, this exercise is designed to cut the left brain off from judging the drawing in progress. By not looking at the paper, the reader is not only able to see every detail on the subject that they are drawing but also "feeling" every detail as well. Every nuance of the subject is "felt" through the eyes of the reader and passed through the pencil onto the paper. All of the reader's concentration is focused on the subject not the drawing. The drawing is not meant to be a pretty picture, but a record of where the eye traveled on its journey along the subject. This is an exercise in "seeing," not drawing.
Accompanying the exercises, Edwards describes the process by which most adults lose the ability to draw. She rightfully blames the development of the logical left brain in areas of reading, math, and writing that begins during early grade school. The right brain begins to lose dominance and lets the left brain take over. Edwards explains that this is why so many adults feel uneasy about drawing. Their abilities to draw have been locked in a "cerebral" time capsule since childhood. Naturally, when they begin to draw, they will draw like they did when they were young: like a child. The analytical adult left brain can't handle this and immediately dismisses the whole ordeal, labeling the attempt ludicrous and childlike. The left brain has won and the person goes on saying, "I can't draw a stick figure," or, "I can't draw a straight line with a ruler." The whole "talent" myth continues, and the right "drawing" brain lies dormant forever.
I've loved this book and have had it for many years. I've always returned to it for inspiration and ammunition in arguing the point that everyone can draw and it is a learnable skill. Betty Edwards research into right and left brain activity and how it is related to drawing brings Art Education to a new level. Her findings are what so many people who don't believe they can draw really need: a believable artistic savior.