What are you painting?

Artistic expression is a deeply human need that goes back to the Stone Age. Ever since humans have had tools, they have also used them to leave marks and traces to tell stories. Even small children usually enjoy drawing and colouring without reservation. They are particularly good at expressing their feelings. Sometimes in a very touching way.

«A child's mouth speaks the truth!» is a saying that applies particularly well to children's pictures. Pen and paper can reveal feelings and emotions that are difficult or impossible to express in words. Emotions are also triggered in the viewer.

Why is that? Put very simply, painting and drawing mainly activates the right hemisphere of the brain. This is responsible for intuition, creativity and emotions, among other things. This is why creative expression can stimulate and reveal unconscious parts of the inner world.

Of course, this also works with adults. However, they are generally more reserved when it comes to revealing their own emotional world.

Developmental psychological steps

As with physical development, there are certain steps in drawing that almost all children take. For example, the first depictions of people around the world are shown as «cephalopods». Who doesn't recognise the circle with lines - the arms and legs - leading away from the round head?

Drawings are the best way to start a conversation with a child.

As children become more aware and develop emotionally and mentally, their drawings become increasingly precise. From around the age of five, social and cultural influences play an increasingly important role. Therefore, from school age onwards, it is hardly possible to generalise about which developmental steps are «normal». However, specific drawing tasks are often used for certain psychological assessments to supplement a conversation or a medical history.

Be careful when interpreting children's pictures

However, when it comes to drawing and painting at home or in an everyday school context, interpreting pictures is not a sensible approach. Too many factors influence how a picture is created. On the one hand, there are circumstances that apply to the individual child: for example, their motivation, their general emotional state or their physical condition. On the other hand, there are also environmental factors that play a role. This can be the family situation, the school or the cultural background.

There is a lot of half-knowledge about what certain elements in a picture are supposed to say. The house has no windows - the child is closed or the tree has no roots - the child has no support. The choice of colour can also be an issue.

As a layperson with little knowledge of a child's emotional life, it is not helpful to interpret or analyse their image. In most cases, unsolicited «pseudo-insights» are perceived as invasive.

Above all, children's drawings should bring us joy and arouse our curiosity. After all, they offer a wonderful platform for entering into dialogue with a child and seeing the world through their eyes.

Worries about «scary or sad» images

Scary or brutal depictions in children's pictures can unsettle adults. It should be borne in mind that the world is full of disturbing stories from which children can hardly be protected.

A picture can help to give oppressive feelings a shape outside of one's own world of thoughts and therefore have a soothing effect. A monster is better placed on the page than in the child's inner life. Such a monster can even be actively banished - crumpled up in the rubbish, for example - or burnt in a fire. A picture like this can be a good starting point for a conversation about what is currently on the child's mind.

Painting is often easier than talking about things. When a child is going through a difficult time, creative and painting therapy can be the right choice. It offers a professional framework in which a painful loss or traumatic experience can be addressed and stressful issues can be dealt with.

Critical eyes steal the joy of painting

As a child's self-awareness grows, so does the gap between what they observe in the world and what emerges on the page. This can be frustrating and disappointing.

If this realisation also coincides with an environment that is very focused on results, the desire to draw and paint can quickly be lost.

Praise the child's endeavours and not the result.

There is nothing wrong with learning techniques on how to capture proportions, how to draw spatial perspective, how to paint light and shadow or how to mix colours. All these skills are valuable. However, they should serve creativity and not stifle it. Anyone who is afraid of doing something wrong is no longer free and would rather not do it than make a fool of themselves. So how can we help children to be light-hearted with paper and colour even after pre-school age?

Three dos and don'ts when dealing with children's pictures

There are a few principles when dealing with children's pictures that help to maintain the joy of free expression. This is achieved above all through appreciation and respect:

• Praise the endeavour, not the result. A child who has worked for hours on a picture deserves recognition for this. The aesthetic judgement of the result is less important. That's why a quickly scribbled picture is usually not «very nice». Instead of reacting judgementally, you could say «thank you very much» - just as you say thank you when a small child gives you a stone or a flower. Praise must always be authentic.
• If a child wants to show their picture, let them tell you what they have created. The picture always shows what the child says, even if you see or assume something else. Think of Saint-Exupéry's little prince. He did not, as all adults think, paint a hat, but a snake that has swallowed an elephant. If it were up to the educationalist Arno Stern, you would hold back completely. Questions such as: «What did you want to depict here?», «Is that a flower?», «Now explain your drawing to me!», he calls gross interference in the child's play.(Arno Stern: «How not to look at children's pictures»)
• Never draw on a child's picture yourself - unless it is a game in which you are drawing together or if the child explicitly requests it.

Even adults can still look at a child's picture of themselves with displeasure because a carer has tampered with it «for the sake of aesthetics». It is a transgression of boundaries that triggers more than many people realise.

Children who are supported in their creative expression and whose pictures are respected can take some of this experience with them into adulthood. Anyone who dares to work on a blank page as an adult without fear of doing something wrong has a valuable tool. This goes far beyond the carefree use of pen and paper.