What I Read Last Week: Part 2

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain
by Betty Edwards

When this book was referenced in Drawing in Writing (as quoted in the last post), I immediately pulled this book from the shelf behind me...I hadn't even thought to look at it in relation to the inde. study. My Pop-Pop bought this copy when it came out and I used to read it at my grandparents' house when I was little...it was probably the first 'drawing' book I ever read, although early on I mostly looked at the pictures and did the exercises. I love this groovy photo of Betty Edwards on the back:

Some passages I like (emphasis mine):

“As it turned out, my friend’s son always learned visual material best and fastest, a mode of learning consistently preferred by a certain number of students. Unfortunately, the school world is mainly a verbal, symbolic world, and learners like Gary must adjust, that is, put aside their best way of learning and learn the way the school decrees. My friend’s child, fortunately, was able to make this change, but how many other students are lost along the way?"

"This forced shift in learning style must be somewhat comparable to a forced change in handedness. it was a common practice in former times to make individuals who were naturally left-handed change over to right-handedness. In the future we may come to regard forcing children to change their natural learning modes with the same dismay that we now regard the idea of forcing a change in handedness. Soon we may be able to test children to determine their best learning styles and choose from a repertoire of teaching methods to insure that children learn both visually and verbally.” p196

Exercises in Visual Thinking
by Ralph E. Wileman

This book has some fascinating stuff about designing intelligent, effective, and/or beautiful educational materials...but don’t necessarily have time to veer off on that tangent too far. I sort of accidentally fell into the educational tangent last week...which was really interesting. It's a sector that I hadn't even considered in my original outline.

I like this definition of visual literacy:
“Visual Literacy: The ability to ‘read’ and understand that which is seen and the ability to generate materials that have to be seen to be understood.”
The book also has lots of really fun illustrations of concepts.