Drawing With Children-Think of It As Copywork
“We need to stop mystifying the drawing process and explain to students how artists actually achieve the results they do. For instance, Picasso and Michelangelo both copied other artists’ work for at least two years as part of their initial art training. When Picasso began to express himself in what were considered “unique” styles he was actually copying many of his images from African masks. Painters such as Degas and Toulouse-Lautrec worked from photographs of their subjects, and many famous painters have used each other’s paintings for inspiration.”
Drawing with Children by Mona Brookes, page 11 in the section, Changing Your Attitudes and Abilities
For many of us who grew up wanting to be better artists, this idea that real artists worked hard at learning by copying other artists would have been like a breath of fresh air. I remember sitting many times in front of a blank page and trying to use my imagination to congure up something interesting to draw and it wouldn’t happen. I thought that all *real* artists were able to have a flash of inspiration and off they would go with pencils and paints, going on to make a work of art that all could admire. I did not have anyone to tell me that learning to draw and paint were skills that needed to be learned and nurtured.
Now as an adult when I work with children, I try to remind them how it was when they learned to read and write. It wasn’t easy, it didn’t happen overnight, and it took lots of practice and guidance. Charlotte Mason used dictation and copywork to instruct her students in language arts and similarly, she used picture study and then subsequent copying of the painting to teach art skills by imitation. She provided lots of time to freely use materials and to work carefully to copy the artist’s style and subject.
I am suggesting that parents begin to view picture study as a stepping stone to learning to draw. Copywork of a sort. We all have become familiar with the idea of having our children copy passages of well written literature and poetry and I am going to suggest that we give copywork in art the same focus to see how it works and how our children benefit from not only viewing great artwork but to then go one step further and try to imitate the style and technique on their own.
Not only is copying paintings a great way to train the eyes to really see the painting, but it is an enjoyable way to spend a few hours. There is a sense of freedom in having the subject clearly before you and to see how the artist solved the problems that he encountered….how to make a tree look like a tree but not exactly like a tree or how to draw a mountain in the background and have it look as if it were in the distance. Eyes are trained to look for shadow and reflection and to use color and texture to make paintings more realistic. These are all ways that we can allow our children to not only experience the painting intimately but then to allow a little freedom to add their own signature to the finished product. No matter how many children paint Van Gogh’s Starry Night, each one will be unique and have a little of that child’s personality hidden in the brushwork.
We have used this “art coypwork” in our family for many years and I have seen my children’s confidence grow. Here are a few examples of our most recent attempts at art copywork.
Michelangelo’s Creation of Adam
We only sketched the hands.
Claude Lorrain’s Lanscape with Apollo and Mercury
My son chose to paint just the background for this project. You can view the complete painting at the top of this entry.
Ruysdael’s Benthium Castle
This is a work in progress but you get the idea. We are using oil paints for this project and it allows the boys to work over a period of a couple of weeks on the same project.
I am firm believer that the learning happens in the process of a project and not so much in the finished product. Are the boys always happy with the finished work? Nope. Are they willing to give the next project a try? Yes. Each time they tackle this sort of project….sometimes on their own initiative…..I see the satisfaction with their own work growing. My goal is not to make great artists of my children but to introduce them to a very enjoyable way to spend their time and maybe learn something along the way as well. (Shhhhh, don’t let them hear me say that.)
Art Copywork….my next great passion.
Even after saying all that, I know one of my sons would rather be working on this…
Oh well, there is a time a place for most things.
Barb-Harmony Art Mom

I just recently bought the ‘drawing with children’ book & am very excited to get through it myself so i can go through it again with the kids! I think my older one (4) will really dig it. he draws CONSTANTLY…the only downside i see is that he ONLY likes to draw people, ha. he won’t be thrilled about having to do flowers & other still life. 😉 but he’ll have plenty of time to do his (symbolic) people drawings throughout the day as usual.
I began to see, back in 2005-2006 when we first did homeschool, that having the kids draw or paint the picture being studies was helping them way more than the expensive afterschool art class I had sent them to the year before. We narrate paintings orally, then draw them “while looking” and then paint from memory. We don’t do this with EVERY painting, but one per artist. The others we do either oral narration or copy it. Another great post, Barb!
That made a lot of sense and helps me deal with some of my “art anxiety”! Thanks!
Oh Barb…I so needed this post! It makes perfect sense to do this! I love that your boys only draw a portion of the painting. Breaks it down into smaller chunks and makes them really have to focus on it. We are going to give it a try as we tackle TOG Y2 U2 starting next week. In fact, I might even join them!
Thanks for your inspiration! :o)
I love the drawing of the hands. And I also love the painting of the landscape. Was it done with oil paints? Or acrylics? I’m mystified as to how to instruct my Natalie to use oil paints. She used them at an art camp over the summer and her project was pretty cool. I got her some oil paints for Christmas, but it seems mystifying. Any good resources out there for oil painting for kids?
This is a great idea. I hope I can get my drawing-reluctant son to do it. 🙂
This is an encouraging post, Barb. We used Mona Brooks’ book a couple years ago and haven’t gotten around to it again…I think I’ll get it out and get going with it again. Thanks for the reminder about the book and the fresh perspective on drawing!
Thanks for all the really great comments on this post. I am so hoping that it inspires your family to incorporate art copywork into your homeschool week.
The two paintings were done with oil paints. This is probably the fourth or fifth project that they attempted using oils. They like the way the paints blend on the canvas and they also like that they can work a little hear and a little there during their school day and the paints don’t dry.
One son does not like the way they smell but he works with the window open to keep fresh air flowing.
Barb-Harmony Art Mom
Art copywork! I love it…thanks, Barb. 🙂
It is very reassuring to know that you have a son who would rather spend his time with Legos. I have a son like that, and it’s nice to know that he can still learn to spend time creating art as well. 🙂 I have had Drawing With Children for years. This encourages me to get it out and actually use it. Thank you!
Hi Barb,
I think you’re absolutely to take away the stigma of copying form great artists. So much is learned, not just about the piece and the artist, but about the one who copies it.
Amie drew a beautiful rendition of Hildegarde von Bingen’s Cultivating the Cosmic Tree that I wanted to share: I blogged it at http://blog.bolandbol.com/2009/02/07/amie-draws-the-cosmic-tree/
She was so concentrated, not just on what she was drawing, but also on what she *wouldn’t* draw. As she chose this or that aspect but decided to forgo others – e.g., the people in the original, because they were “not so beautiful” – she justified each decision. This makes me think “copying” isn’t perhaps too “industrial” a word: any human-made, hand-made copy is unique…
Well, she enjoyed the process and so did I, watching her.
‘Art Copywork’…that really got my attention. This post is very helpful to me. I have believed that artists just come naturally.
I think that I will put our WEAK artistic skills into practice more regularly.