Sketching & Association:Training of Creative Thinking

West California Academy of Art and Design (WCAAD) students are producing artworks themed Camels at the sketching class.

​Camels are known as the "boats of the desert" and can serve as important pack animals to help humans cross the desert. In ancient China, camels were an important means of transportation on the Silk Road. 

​“Association” is an effective way to inspire children in creative art class. The process of practicing art techniques thus becomes interesting and fun because it incorporates elements of creative thinking. 

​Intellectual development is connected to the ability to relate information and observations about objects. Sensitivity to detail and the use of memory are directly related to complexity and elaboration.

​WCAAD instructors do not force the kids to draw what they want, but instead encourag everyone to be creative with their unique ideas.

​They not only teach children drawing skills, but also put emphasize on protecting and inspiring children’s imagination and creativity, making the most of their potential.

​The improvement of imagination is closely related to the accumulation of knowledge in daily life. The more profound and detailed children's observations of life are, the more they can stimulate their imagination and generate good ideas and designs.

​The associative sketching course that combines "creative thinking" with "basic art skills" takes children from a familiar world to an "imaginative" space.

​This stage aims to inspire children to use brainstorming and observation of existing things for divergent thinking training. The size and presence of objects are no longer important, and students can arrange the position and size of objects according to their own ideas without following objective reality.  

​It is important to encourage students to fully spread their wings of imagination, and unleash their artistic creativity. They should not be limited by individual experiences and the time and space of reality, but allow their thinking to wander in an infinite unknown world.

​Art project of Campbell's Soup Cans:students have fun coming up with their own soup! 

​Allowing a child to draw with freedom and without boundaries is a critical component to childhood development because it opens the mind and frees the spirit. A child can form thoughts and ideas in his/her artwork that may be surprising to the adult. 

​Our next generation is facing a competition with artificial intelligence in the future. AI works through deep learning by machines, which can quickly grasp knowledge in different fields and self iterate and update. Compared with AI, humans have no chance of winning in terms of knowledge reserves and computational induction, but human characteristics such as delicate emotions, rich imagination, and outstanding creativity cannot be replaced by AI.

​Creativity has the power to transform, improve, and revolutionize. Some top tech companies have been hiring artists-in-residence to assist engineers in designing and out of the box ideas and creative contributions. Tech research from IBM and other similar companies found that CEOs think creativity will be the most valuable skill for future innovations. “The ability to imagine is the key challenge,” says John Seely Brown, who for twenty years ran Xerox PARC, the company at which Apple founder Steve Jobs first saw the computer mouse and graphical user interface. 

​What many parents value the most is the efforts made by WCAAD in developing their children's artistic creativity. WCAAD instructrs not only teach students art skills, but more importantly, guide them to fully develop their artistic potential, encourage them to unleash their unique and bold imagination and creativity.

​WCAAD instructors encourage students to develop creativity by emphasizing the generation and expression of ideas in a non-evaluative framework and by concentrating on both divergent and convergent thinking, ensuring that children have the opportunity and confidence to take risks, challenge assumptions, and see things in a new way.

​WCAAD art training program is leading in preparing youths to seek and transform, both as artists and creative individuals. Creativity is the key to shape children’s future, and WCAAD curriculum allows them to develop a creative understanding of the world. Set Sail for A Creative Life!