I have long admired the work of Paula Kovarik, which features extraordinary, imaginative stitching on a variety of surfaces--sometimes abstract blocks of color, sometimes re-purposed linens. A few months ago, Paula put out a request for people to send her children's drawings of robots, monsters, and beasts. She had been using drawings from her own family in some of her quilting, and was looking for more images to work from. I sent in a number of my son Jeremy's drawings, made when he was between four and six years old. To my delight, Paula has posted one of Jeremy's drawings in the left side-bar of her blog, and another in a recent post about the project; you can see both drawings here. It is lovely to have these glimpses of Jeremy out in the world.
Here are some of the other drawings I found as I went through the big envelopes of things I'd saved from Jeremy's childhood. It was striking to see what a narrow window there is for drawings like this. Before age three or four, drawings were more scribbles, without recognizable figures. After age six (first grade), the whimsical freedom was gone; Paula tells me this is typical.
a butterfly
I didn't make a note of the subject; I think it may have been a spider.
a caterpillar
a grasshopper
This is perhaps my favorite. I think it was done the first time we did drawings to make plates, something we continued for a number of years. Such treasures. . .
Those plates that the child draws on that can then be "fired" for permanency are such a great idea! Do you and David actually use these (done by Jeremy) for everyday dishes or are they displayed as works of art?
ReplyDeleteYes, we used to use these plates for every day meals when Jeremy was young. Ruined one in the microwave, but learned the lesson. One special one we've kept out on display for many years. If you'd like to have the grandkids make some, here's the company: http://www.makit.com/
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