(the diagnosis was later confirmed by specialists), they tried many ways to help the 2-year-old girl learn to contact other people and speak. A special sensory environment was created at home - but kindergarten“didn’t work”, therapy with the help of dogs and horses also didn’t produce results. But drawing with paints exceeded all expectations - with autism he blossomed before our eyes. This is how it started.
First joint activities
During our home therapy sessions, I, following Iris, slowly sought an approach to my daughter. I sat next to her on the floor and repeated everything she did. At first she pushed me away, but then she accepted me. I remained cautious with eye contact, knowing that it was very difficult for her, and behaved as quietly as possible. She was interested and smiled, looking at her favorite pictures in books, tried things by touch, bringing them to her face, just like she did. At first we played together for just a few minutes, then longer and longer.
Iris found it easier to maintain eye contact, and although there were no improvements in speech or communication with other people yet, I felt that we were making important steps in the right direction. She welcomed my presence nearby and enjoyed the time spent together; She even began to attract my attention with the help of a water pen.
A very exciting addition to our set: a pen filled with water and a white mat that turns blue where she touches it. Once dry, the marks disappear and the mat is ready for use again. Simple but useful. A timeless scribbling mat with no clutter.
Iris would nudge my hand to start drawing, then she would take the pen and try it herself, and then, when she was finished, she would hand it back to me. We worked together and I was jubilant. Every time my daughter accepted me into her game or wanted me to join her, it seemed to me that I had won a fabulous prize.
Iris is two years old: we draw with pencils and felt-tip pens together
Iris was interested in pencils, pens and crayons and would play with them for hours. Most of the time the walls in the house were covered with scribbles, I lost count of how many times they had to be repainted. Having changed my attitude towards this, I realized that I had to support this strong interest by simply redirecting it to other surfaces. Having bought a couple of rolls of wallpaper, I cut them into pieces the size of a wooden coffee table and placed these pieces on it, taping the ends on both sides with tape.
Iris appreciated the innovation and scribbled for hours, completely covering the paper with multi-colored swirls and circles, intertwining and overlapping each other. She bounced on her tiptoes, sometimes humming. My daughter even used both hands, working them at the same time, blissfully, freely and joyfully spreading the color. The paper-covered table was an amazing success, and the walls remained untouched for several weeks, but this could not last forever.
My eyes followed the blue pencil line: it went along the wall, meandering all the way to the door, and then, turning gracefully, returned to me. Iris passed here quite recently - just a couple of minutes ago the wall was untouched. Once again, wondering how to explain to her that “we don’t draw on walls!”, I noticed how the angry jagged line flowed into smooth, petal-like loops, hinting at a significant change in mood.
I accepted the challenge. After drawing a smiling face, I handed the marker to my daughter. She giggled and met my gaze, then looked down and drew a straight line, then passed the marker back to me, pushing it towards the paper.
I completed the drawing of the little man, adding earth, a tree, a bird in the sky and a sun with triangular rays, telling the story along the way. We took turns adding details to the picture, and Iris was happy for a while new game. We worked well together, understanding each other, - and then a car drove up, the gate clanged heavily, disturbing our peace and interfering with it, and Iris moved away.
I wanted to use Iris's latest hobby to get closer to her, so I started drawing more. I drew many scenes with a man and funny animals. They proved vital in drawing Iris's attention to what I was doing and allowing me to delve deeper into her world.
3 years old: how Iris started painting with paints
We had a very successful day: I drew letters in the sand, and Iris began to say them out loud. Then I prepared the easel that my grandparents gave to their granddaughter for Christmas. I had high hopes for these classes: my daughter got so much pleasure from her pencils and the stories that I told from the pictures that I was sure that she would like it, and that I would be able to link drawing with speech therapy.
I dipped my brush into the paint and left a few long strokes on the paper, showing my daughter how to paint. She stood patiently next to me and then tried it herself. But as soon as the paint began to run down the thin paper and it began to wrinkle and deform, Iris became angry. Sobbing, she collapsed on the floor, still clutching the brush in her hand. I felt absolutely terrible. I was expecting a fun learning experience, not a torment leading to frustration.
As I put away the easel and paints and scrubbed stains from the wood floor, I thought back to my previous idea: large pieces of wallpaper attached to a coffee table. I decided to change just one detail: pencils for paints, and leave everything else untouched.
Next time, just in case, I covered the furniture in the nursery with old sheets and placed mugs filled with paint on the table, allowing my daughter to decide when to start drawing. I didn’t have to wait long: soon the white sheet became multi-colored.
Iris drew very carefully: a bizarre mixture of ease and thoughtfulness. She used a variety of techniques to make her brushstrokes: colored swirls, zigzags, spots and dots. Surprisingly, she spilled almost nothing on the floor and absolutely nothing on herself. The colors were separated from each other - no blurring.
While the painting was drying in my office, I realized how cute it was for a first attempt, so I took a photo of it to remember the joy this new activity brought us.
I just came up and hugged
The next few days things were the same. Iris's interest in drawing intensified, and she spent more and more time doing this activity. Thanks to my new hobby, I had many opportunities to interact with my daughter, who seemed very happy. The uncertainty and vulnerability that usually arise in social situations receded as long as she held the brush in her hands. Iris would jump with delight when I told her about colors and how to mix them.
It seems that I have found another key to our baby’s world. Having not felt this kind of excitement for a long time, I decided to let Iris draw whenever she wanted, exploring this new way of expressing herself, and rearranged the furniture in the kitchen to make room for the table.
By the end of the week I was photographing another piece of Iris's work. My heart began to beat faster: the intricacy of blue, green and yellow strokes looked very impressive. I didn't expect that three year old child capable of this.
Did you see this? - PJ asked, pointing to the picture. - This is brilliant, seriously, go take a look.
I know you read my thoughts. I even took a picture of her. Maybe we can put it in the frame?
Necessarily.
She seems so...
Adult.
Yes, not the same as before. I'm thinking of continuing in the same vein. I know I have a whole list of things to do, but...
Get the list out of your head! Continue what works. Now it's drawing. Do you know what Iris did this morning? She hugged me! She just came up and, smiling widely, hugged her.
PJ looked incredibly happy. I knew how much that hug meant to him, and how long he had waited for his daughter to express her love in that way. The hug turned out to be voluntary and sincere. Beautiful - even without words.
There was excitement in the air. Positive energy, surrounding a modest pine table, has had a profound impact on our family.
Drawing changes her
I moved the table under the kitchen table to let the painting dry and mopped the floor. The activity turned out to be very active, and tiny splashes of paint could be seen literally everywhere.
Then I heard the noise of the gate. When PJ entered the kitchen, Iris was still fidgeting there. She greeted him with a smile, took his hand and pulled him to her table.
Iris, what are you up to?
Let me get him out. “I pulled the table back into place, and Iris shared her joy with her father, showing him every single white dot and wave.
PJ looked awfully proud.
They are truly amazing, don't you think?
Yes, but all parents think this way about their children’s drawings. I agree that they are special, but what if it seems so to us?
We spent the whole evening talking about our daughter’s paintings, about why she likes to draw so much, how easy it is to communicate with her when she draws, how it changes her. And the more we talked, the more inspired we became. How great it is to focus on something positive, and not on another problem!
Unlike many other activities that ended with my daughter pushing me away, now Iris finally wanted me next to her in the kitchen. I became part of the process, helping to create the colors she wanted. She took the chance to say as many words as possible, and Iris answered willingly.
The next morning my mother arrived with treats and a vase of flowers on the kitchen table. PJ heard the noise from the gate and also stopped by to take a break. We looked at each other and smiled. Iris was painting at her table, blurring blue and red so that some areas turned out pink and others purple. We heard her say "ball" as she dipped her brush into white paint and pressed it to the paper. Turning the brush, my daughter drew a circle in the far right corner, and another one closer to the middle. She dragged the brush across the paper, drawing a white stream.
While we were drinking tea, mom was talking to Iris near her table. The daughter did not push anyone away; on the contrary, she seemed pleased and proud of her work. PJ and I watched her in disbelief. Our girl became so brave, assertive and confident: she knew what she wanted and how to show it to us.
Iris and I quickly became involved in this new ritual. I knew when she needed another blank sheet of paper: she would pull the edges of the drawn one to remove it, and run to the office for the next one. I pulled out the mugs and prepared the paints. Having organized everything, I moved on to other kitchen chores, but remained on hand if needed, or acted as a speech therapist.
Iris's technique was constantly evolving: her daughter experimented with all kinds of tools, household utensils and materials, made up her own colors, dipping brushes from mug to mug, moving in her own way and constantly studying what she got.
Sometimes we didn’t know where Iris’s next creation was down and where it was up, because she drew from all four sides of the table. In such cases, we sat our daughter on a chair, and I picked up the painting. PJ asked: “This side?” Then I turned the picture. "Or this one?" Iris either frowned or danced a little: simple, but effective method, who helped us out more than once.
Our baby, who had previously huddled deeper on the sofa with books, was now dancing in the heart of the house, surrounded by colors.
Art in itself. Should autistic people be treated? September 30th, 2013
What autism is is still not known for certain. Scientists have been struggling to solve this mystery for many decades. From the point of view of the psychological theory of autism, the main sign of this “deviation” can be considered difficulties in communication, disturbances in social behavior, and withdrawal from communication with other people.
Since the nature of this phenomenon has not yet been revealed, in Russia autism is not considered a disease, and statistics on the number of autistic children are not kept. According to the representative of the “Dobro” society (whose main area of activity is helping autistic children) Morozov S.A., the number of such children in Russia is now no less than 250-300 thousand people.
Scientists from the University of Los Angeles have made a discovery in the field of studying the causes of autism. A team of researchers led by Dr. Joseph Buxbaum has discovered that autism is genetic. Researchers have found a link between the SHANK3 gene mutation and behavioral manifestations of autism.
Studies have shown that the absence of one copy of this gene leads to disruptions in communication between the frontal lobes of the brain and other parts of the brain.The discovery of American scientists has come very close to unraveling the causes of autism and gives hope that soon autistic people will receive quick and effective treatment.
But autism is not a disease, but a special type of perception of the world around us. This is a view from another reality, from a different angle. They are people just like the rest.
And there is one question that I always ask myself when I see what autistic people do and hear about their treatment. But wouldn’t “treating autism” be the destruction of their universe, their perception of a world different from ours? And maybe the autistic world is real? And our distorted one?
When I first saw paintings by autistic people, they made a very strong impression. You can watch for hours. You return to them again and again, peering into the details, finding more and more new subtexts and analogies.
I remember great painters who, to one degree or another, had a degree of autism. Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso and even, perhaps, Hieronymus Bosch - once created and did not know that they had the same thing as thousands of other people today. Drawings of autistic people allow us to better understand their worldview and their view of their place in society.
I invite you to appreciate the amazing Creative skills people living in their own special world, and answer at least to yourself: should we try to cure them?
Artist Stephen Wiltsher paints New York City from memory after a 20-minute helicopter flight over the city.
"Panorama of Tokyo"
"Panorama of London"
He recreates city panoramas solely from memory. To create his masterpieces, the artist uses exclusively ballpoint pens, high-quality paper and an iPod, because music helps him concentrate and not be distracted from the drawing process.
Psychologist, educator and behavior analyst J. Mullin has collected the works of these unusual artists in the book Drawing Autism. In addition to works by distinguished authors, the book contains paintings by unknown but talented artists, as well as drawings by children with autism spectrum disorders.
"Birds", David Bart (10 years old)
From a letter to his mother: “... there are almost 400 birds in the picture and he knows the names and Latin names of most of them”
"The Outsider" Donna Williams
"The Vietnam War" by Milda Bandzait
"The Death of Love", Charles D. Topping
“Imaginary map of the city”, Felix (11 years old)
"Dancing with the Dog" by Helen Michael
"Mark Twain House" by Jessica Park
"India", Veda Rangan
"Big Friends in the Field", D.J. Svoboda
"Leap Years" by Emily L. Williams
"They Took Your Razor, Shoelaces and Belt" by Emily L. Williams
"Mirror of the Mind" by Eric Chen
"Friends", Wil C. Kerner (12 years old)
"Werewolf", Wout Devolder (14 years old)
"Changing Seasons" by Josh Peddle (age 12)
"The Stone House" by Sean Belanger
"The Girl and the Goat" by Justin Kahn
"Visiting an Art Exhibition" by Samuel Bosworth
"Abraham Lincoln", appliqué by John Williams
"Cat House" by famous autistic artist, sculptor and singer Donna Williams
“Blind Flight”, Madalena Tello
For a long time, autism remained the least studied type of functional brain disorder. And only in last years, thanks to research by scientists, autistic perception is no longer branded as “dysfunctional” - in fact, the brain of autistic people develops and functions according to a different scenario. Depriving a person of the possibility of social adaptation, nature generously “rewards” him with extraordinary abilities - it is among autists that there is a high percentage of brilliant mathematicians, musicians and artists. Creativity, expression and versatility - all this reveals unusual talents to us.
Stephen Wiltshire
Stephen Wiltshire has become famous for his detailed panoramas of big cities. His talent lies in the ability to recreate city landscapes with amazing accuracy solely from memory - often half an hour is enough for him to “fix” a picture. A graduate of the City & Guilds College of Art and a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, an artist whose works occupy a worthy place in private and museum collections around the world... was “sentenced” by doctors to autism at the age of three. Stephen grew up very withdrawn and did not try to establish contacts with other people, but the school helped him find his own way of transmitting information - art. His talent reached its apogee in panoramic urban masterpieces that can captivate and inspire everyone.
David Bart
David was born in Rotterdam in 1998. The boy immediately showed an ability for fine art - he has not stopped drawing since the moment he was able to hold a pencil in his hand for the first time. The young artist was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, a form of autism that primarily causes difficulties in social interaction. David's illness affected his hobby, giving him the opportunity to develop his own style and express himself through a unique system of symbols and images. Experts distinguish him for his amazing sensitivity to detail and ability for visual concentration. Despite such a young age, the boy is already a recognized master: in 2005 he won the main prize in a competition organized by the Russian School of Arts, in 2007 he won the prestigious Caldenborgh Jong Talentprijs award in the Comics category, and in October 2009 he received gift of a painting by the Dutch artist Paul Kerrebiijn for winning the competition artwork, organized by the Royal Navy Museum. David's works have been exhibited in art galleries in Rotterdam and Beijing, and have also been used as illustrations for books about the lives of people diagnosed with autism. 
Donna Leanne Williams (born 1963) is an Australian writer, artist, singer-songwriter, playwright and sculptor. An exceptional combination, isn't it? But this versatile personality went through many difficulties on the way to recognition. In 1965, when Donna was just two years old, she was diagnosed with neurosis, which was later changed to mental disorder. In 1991, doctors diagnosed autism and sensory processing disorder. Donna's track record includes four autobiographical books, two music albums, and a number of teaching aids for teaching autistic children and adolescents. But we will get acquainted with her mastery in the field of fine art, because being self-taught and starting her career as an artist at a fairly mature age, Donna was able to achieve amazing success in this field. 
5-year-old Iris Helmshaw is called the “Mozart of the 21st century” - the masterpieces that this little cute girl creates do not leave anyone indifferent. It was visual arts that was chosen by parents as art therapy for a child who was diagnosed with autism. Unlike ordinary children's drawings, which are often something of a “test of the pen”, Iris’s creations, in addition to rich colors, are filled with hidden meaning and three-dimensional images, remarkable for their versatility and diversity - and indeed, looking at these colored patterns, you can see and a flower meadow, and the fading of distant stars, and a barely swaying surface of water. Her works have not gone unnoticed - several of them have already been purchased for private collections for at least £1,500. But material gain does not come first for the baby’s parents - the main thing for them is that the daughter was able to find the most pleasant and comfortable way to express herself and interact with the outside world, as well as help other autistic children - most of the proceeds go to support children's art - Center “Little Explorers Club”. 
Sean Belanger was born in 1985 in Calgary (Canada). His love for fine arts awoke in him quite early - at the age of 7, Sean came across a picture book, which he used as a practical guide. Having difficulties with motor skills (the boy had difficulty holding a pencil), he improved his skills with his mother, who controlled his right hand and helped him achieve excellent results. 
An acclaimed self-taught artist with autism, Jessica Park was born in 1958 and raised in Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA. Inspired by astronomy, Victorian architecture and cityscapes, the girl began to transfer her impressions to canvas - bridges, houses, churches and parks filled with color and life.
In 2003, Jessica received a Doctor of Fine Arts degree from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, and her paintings adorn private and museum collections around the world. You can read more about her life and work in the book Exploring Nirvana: The Art of Jessica Park, published by the MIT College of Liberal Arts in 2008.
Ping Lian Yik
According to recent research, autism spectrum disorder affects 1 in 100 children, with only 10% showing exceptional abilities in art, music or science - with early age Children can easily memorize detailed maps and historical facts, or learn complex pieces of music and paint beautiful pictures.
Ping Lian Yik made it into this top ten. Largely thanks to his mother, twenty-year-old Ping was able to escape his autistic captivity and live a life filled with joy and inspiration. At the age of four, the boy was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) with Autistic Disorder. It was drawing that helped him channel excess energy in the right direction and adapt to the modern world. Sarah Lee, Ping's mother, went through the whole difficult journey with her son - she supported him in all his endeavors and taught him to never give up. “He was never a burden for our family - on the contrary, it was thanks to him that our life gained meaning,” admits Sarah. 
Richard Vauro is a world-famous artist of Scottish origin. Born in 1952 in Edinburgh. IN three years old doctors diagnosed “mental retardation”, later – “autism spectrum disorder”. Richard began talking only at the age of 11, which, however, did not prevent his talent from fully revealing itself - already at the age of three the boy devoted almost all his time to creating “masterpieces” on an old slate board with multi-colored crayons. Later, the creations of a 12-year-old boy were defined by teachers at the Polish School of Art in London as “an incredible phenomenon, possessing the scrupulousness of an engineer and the soul of a poet.” Like other gifted autistics, Richard has a phenomenal memory - he only needs to remember a picture he saw on TV or in a magazine and then recreate it in great detail on canvas.
At the same time, he seems to “pass” all the images he sees through his imagination, interpreting them in his own unique manner and improvising with the palette. The first exhibition of Vauro's work took place in Edinburgh when he was 17 years old. The paintings at one time replenished the collections of Margaret Thatcher and Pope John Paul II; more than 1,000 works were sold at 100 exhibitions in all countries of the world. The documentary film dedicated to Richard Vauro, Eyes Wide Shut, premiered in 1983; the picture received positive reviews film critics and was awarded many awards and honors. Even after losing myself loved one– the artist’s mother died in 1979 – Richard did not lose heart. The strength of his genius and indestructible will helped him take his rightful place among world-famous talents.
By their example, all these talents prove to us that autism is not a death sentence. What was once considered a “demon trying to come out” is actually just a soul that cannot open up to others and suffers from it. Only by overcoming your fears and loving yourself can you achieve true success - we hope that the stories of these people will help you resolve difficult issues and find a way out of complicated life circumstances.
Children with autism - learn to draw
Translation: Maria Gorenskaya
Editors: Elena Korznikova, Yulianna Izotova, Marina Lelyukhina
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The number of children diagnosed with autism is growing in the United States. Autism is a pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) affecting important areas development - social communication, interpersonal relationships and games using imagination.
Autism is also called autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Some autistic children are mutic, others have undeveloped or specialized speech. Many of them are hypersensitive to sensory information such as sounds, visual images, and tactile sensations. When teaching children with autism to draw, you need to focus on the fact that every child has the potential for creativity, and activities fine arts very important for brain development.
Outstanding Abilities
Despite the severity of the impairments, it is very important to emphasize the exceptional abilities of some children with autism. For example, the portrait of the father (right) was drawn by Jessica Park and featured in Claire Claiborne Park's book (Leaving Nirvana, 2001, published by Back Bay Books), which chronicles the development of her daughter with autism.
Very few children with autism are able to demonstrate well-developed visual-spatial skills and visual memory during creativity. They can reproduce their favorite objects - buildings or animals - spontaneously, with many details, from different points, taking into account perspective. Children with autism also show repetitive behavior, creating many identical drawings. This is worth supporting as they find the activity enjoyable and interesting.
Individual needs
Creative lessons should take into account the individual needs and capabilities of each child with autism. The art teacher should encourage the child to be creative, in which the child himself is the initiator so that he shows his visual interest and favorite type of creativity. Children with autism need to be given visual cues, such as pictures of their favorite objects. Many children enjoy drawing using paper and pencils or pens because it requires a low sensory processing threshold. Children with autism may subsequently transition to plastic materials such as clay or relief writing such as tempera.
Creative lessons aimed at activities that do not arouse the child’s interest can cause inappropriate behavior in him. This may be due to the fact that processing of new sensory information overwhelms it. Parents should communicate their children's preferences so that what they learn can be encouraged.
The ideal work option would be one-on-one work between student and teacher with the help of an assistant. The duration of such an art class should be about 30 minutes, since children's attention span can be short.
A child with autism can be introduced to a new creative process using a “step-by-step” teaching procedure, where the teacher, using modeling or physical prompts, directs the child to perform the desired behavior (behavior shaping).
Only when mastery of the desired behavior has been achieved can the teacher move on to a new or slightly more complex task.
The teacher can give a hint to a child with autism - offer him crayons, or give a verbal hint by saying, “Draw.” It is recommended that a child with autism be rewarded frequently and over a long period of time. The teacher can say “Great job” and offer the child new leaf paper when the child completes the drawing.
Class device
It is best if each child has his own materials to work with. Children with autism can communicate their needs through nonverbal communication, such as using a teacher's hand to get something. The teacher can encourage the child to use language during the artistic process. The teacher can ask the child, “What color is this pencil?” And if the child answers correctly, praise him. If the child does not answer, then the teacher can give the hint “Say - red pencil”, and then, after the correct answer, praise.
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The use of story drawing in correctional work with autistic children
It is known that the possibilities of using drawing in psychological practice correctional work with children who have emotional disturbances are very broad. However, traditional techniques of projective psychodiagnostics and psychotherapeutic work in line with art therapy are more often used. The main tasks that are solved are establishing and developing contact with the child, increasing his mental tone and, accordingly, activity, facilitating the externalization of his internal experiences, reducing affective tension, anxiety and fears, etc. A prerequisite is such an organization of the interaction situation in which the child begins to draw himself, while self-expression can occur in color, in the intensity of lines that are not formalized into some kind of image. The therapist can encourage the child to draw and interpret what is depicted, but he himself does not actively interfere in this process.
We will try to determine what are the fundamental differences in the use of drawings in the presented system of psychological correctional assistance for children with autism, aimed at the consistent formation of mechanisms of affective regulation of behavior and overcoming developmental distortions.
Drawing plots together with a child presupposes that, at least in the initial stages, an adult draws for him. At the same time, he takes the initiative and, simultaneously with drawing, emotionally comments on what is depicted, setting the meaning common to the participants in this interaction. Although, of course, any attempts of the child to join this process are supported.
In essence, the adult pronounces, depicts, and thereby structures events in the child’s life and impressions that are significant to him. That is why plot drawing in its content is analogous to the formation story game and is combined with it (or in some cases, which will be discussed below, can replace it).
Just as in a game, a real detailed plot in a drawing is formed gradually, its complexity and filling proceeds from individual, point-by-point impressions to a coherent “serial” story - a story and an increasingly detailed dialogue with the child.
Let us formulate some general requirements that should be observed when organizing the process of joint drawing with a child suffering from autism.
- Fundamentally important for us in the context of general correctional work is the image of specific objects, people, characters familiar to the child, and not just expressive color spots and lines. The sketchiness and inaccuracy of the drawing should be compensated by some bright, important detail that ensures the recognition of what is depicted (for example, a cap like a child’s, the color of the car that dad drives, etc.). If a child himself tries to smear paint or leave some kind of mark with a pencil or felt-tip pen, we also try to give meaning to what happened, and if this does not cause his displeasure, then add some detail to his drawing, thanks to which an understandable and an interesting image for him.
- What is depicted must be meaningful, attractive to the child, associated with some pleasant experiences he has experienced (for example, Christmas tree with lights; the sea in which he swam in the summer, a birthday cake with candles; favorite swing in the yard; popular characters from the television program he prefers to watch, etc.). The content of these impressions can be gleaned, first of all, from regular conversations with parents and from one’s own observations of what the child responded positively to during the lesson. Thus, joint drawing can even begin with the depiction of a television screensaver on paper, the appearance of which usually attracts his attention and causes obvious pleasure.
- Complicating the drawing follows the path of an adult developing an emotional commentary on what is being depicted while simultaneously drawing on additional details (they can also be added to the old drawing). For example, around the TV screensaver we draw a TV, and then next to it is a table with our favorite cookies, and the girl herself, who eats cookies and watches TV. Of course, this should be done gradually, when the child begins to approach the drawing or look at it more often; an adult, at the same time, should look for the most accessible form of introducing details, for example, their rhythmic organization (We can find examples of the rhythmic organization of a drawing in the best illustrations of books for young children, for example in the books of the artist Yu. Vasnetsov - images of waves, stars in the sky, an even “fence” of fir trees - a forest, vegetable beds, neatly arranged food supplies on shelves, etc.).
- It is very important to add details in doses, details that, on the one hand, help make the image more complete, accurate and meaningful, and on the other hand, set the prospect for the development of events related to the depicted phenomenon, object or character. You should try to do this almost immediately, even when it is clear that the child has difficulty maintaining attention on one impression. For example, the evening sky - the lights came on in the house, it rained - there was a puddle, a car drove by - splashes flew, etc. Thus, plot drawing consists of two main components - detailing the images depicted (by filling them with emotionally significant details) and the development of events over time. This is how the plot itself gradually builds up. In its most developed form, the resulting story may look like a series of sequential drawings.
- It is important to find in each case the optimal proportion of the two main and, in principle, alternative areas of work indicated above: detailing the content of the drawing and developing the plot (or adding details and giving dynamics to events). It changes depending on which variant of autistic development the state of the child with whom we establish and then complicate the interaction is closer to. In each case, the setting of the primary task is determined by the most characteristic problems interaction of a child (with a certain form of autism) with the environment, and in the methods of its implementation we use the features of his autostimulation, the greatest susceptibility to dynamic or static impressions.
Thus, both directions can be used for different purposes in cases of working with children with different levels of autism and, accordingly, have their own specifics. We will dwell on this below, considering in more detail the features of the development of plot drawing in correctional classes with autistic children of different groups.
“Technical” requirements that are especially relevant when interacting with children with the most profound forms of autism:
This makes it possible to comment on what was drawn again (tell and show the drawn story to the parents in the presence of the child at the end or after the lesson), remember about the drawing at the next lesson and, perhaps, make some addition or signature to it, and if There are already quite a lot of details in it - try to continue developing the plot on a new sheet of paper. Often we use a large sheet or, even better, a roll of paper, on which we can sequentially draw fragments of one plot in several lessons (thereby unfolding a story in pictures that has a beginning, intermediate events and an end).
Children with autism in drawing
At the beginning of drawing lessons, children discover the material. They can pick up paints with their hands and even put them in their mouths. They need to go through this, but if we don’t offer them anything further, then they will repeat the same “drawing” all the time, that is, they will simply mix different colors on a sheet of paper, which will eventually merge into one color spot. And this can continue for many years.
How can I help my child advance further in the field of drawing and artistic creativity? We decided to start from specific real things. I’ll give you this example: we have a garden in the Center. We spent a lot of time there to look at the grass, touch and feel it, and then try to draw it from memory.
We also teach children some technical techniques. First, we teach them to draw a line with a brush, rather than just paint over a piece of paper. We know that they will paint over the sheet, but they won’t be able to do anything else. Working on the principle of “from specific things to their image,” we are convinced that children’s drawings are gradually changing. The most striking example is attempts to draw flowers in a vase. The most difficult thing to draw is a vase, and here they, of course, need help. The teacher took advantage of this moment to teach the children to color only the drawing and not to go beyond its contours. We are talking about training. Then, when the child works independently, he can create an image of the object himself. The most amazing thing begins when the image of a person appears. Very often everything begins and ends with a drawing of a tadpole man.
We also use different ways working with photographs. This allows children to gain insight into their own body. For example, we used our own photographs of the guys. We put these photographs behind glass, and the children drew directly on this glass, outlining the contours of their faces. At the same time, they could change something in it, for example, add green hair or glue on themselves a mustache made of plasticine, or braids made of pile. This work allows you to develop your imagination using real appearance. We also used photographs cut out from magazines. The children traced the contours of the face, nose, and hair on the photograph in order to then draw their own drawing. Alternating between working with concrete things (that they can touch, that they can see) and with a graphic image is very important for them, because it helps them transfer the image of their body onto paper.
We also worked with a sitter. This is very interesting because the children had to portray the person who posed for them. He took different poses and himself pointed out errors in the image. For example, he said: “Look carefully, I’m not like that,” “Look carefully at my elbow,” or “Look how you drew it.” The sitter did not offer ready-made solutions, but with his questions he forced the guys to think about whether they portrayed him correctly. This work lasted a whole year, and the children’s success in depicting people was obvious. Almost all the children and all the teenagers who participated in this work can now completely draw a person, without forgetting anything - not the eyes, not the nose, not the mouth, not the facial expression. Working with concrete things promotes children's integration and allows them to look at the world around them differently. The peculiarity of such children is that they cannot form a complete picture of the world or only remember what interests them. But with the help of this work, children begin to make generalizations.
Of particular interest are the drawings that children make from memory. It usually takes about six months before we notice progress in drawing a tree or a bouquet of flowers, but at the same time children remember what they did in the previous lesson and do not have to start over every time, as if they had not drawn anything a week ago .
It was very difficult for the guys to work with the sculptor. One teenager at first only rolled clay balls. The sculptor did not know what to do with him, but one day he invited the boy to sculpt a little man. He helped him, and together they made a little man. The sculptor did this to tell himself: “I did not leave this child unattended, I suggested that he do something so that he would not sit alone somewhere in the corner and would not be bored.” Of course, it was more interesting for him to work with those children who could already create something on their own. And the sculptor was very surprised when a week later this boy sculpted a little man on his own, and then he began working almost exclusively with this teenager. You need to constantly offer something to your child, even when you don’t believe that something will work out, even when there is a child in front of you who just repeats the same gestures. You need to take advantage of this once again to provoke him, push him, and one day he will surprise you.
Working from memory can be carried out for a long time. For example, one time we went to the sea for 10 days. The guys took sand and sea water in their hands and took out shells, sand, and pebbles. When we returned to Paris, we invited them to work with the pebbles and shells they had brought. Someone made a collage, someone drew a picture and glued pieces of pebbles and shells there. The work related to memories of the sea lasted approximately two months. We also used the photographs we took there. First, we asked them to redraw what they saw in the photographs, and gradually we managed to get them to draw from memory. That is, they really learned some things.
It should be noted that we try, whenever possible, to involve professionals in this work, because educators cannot know everything. And then, the look of a professional artist has additional support. Very often he finds some little thing that will help the child stop endlessly repeating the same gestures and learn something new.
This year we are using reproductions in our art classes. famous artists. You can find catalogs of different museums on the Internet, and children can choose the painting they like. This year a lot of copies of Van Gogh and Matisse paintings were made. Matisse is a very interesting artist because he painted the human body a lot. The children worked a lot with Matisse's painting "Nude in Blue", in which the legs are separated from the body.
Antoine's works turned out to be closest to the original. His ability to see and remember what he sees has helped him do such a job. He is 16 years old, truly autistic, and has some intellectual abilities. But he has absolutely no emotional reactions; he behaves like a little robot. If he wants, for example, to go to another corner of the room, he will simply walk past you and not even notice. You need to constantly work with him and ensure that he comes into contact, so that he takes into account those who are around him, otherwise he will never come out of his autistic “shell”.
This is how we work with drawing, painting and sculpture. The same operating principle is used here as in music classes. We work with artists, real professionals. This helps us a lot because autistic children cannot draw like a normal child, copying what he saw. This is not to say that our children are not talented, but they simply have no idea how to draw. Some of them are very gifted. I think that it is Antoine who has the ability to paint. There are artists with autism, but there are very few of them. The vast majority of autistic people, if not taught, will simply color over a piece of paper.
How can we help them imagine rather than copy?
It's quite difficult. Ordinary child he himself can come up with a plot for his drawing, using what he has already seen - on a TV show, at home, on the street, etc. People with autism cannot do this. Their image of a person develops as their idea of themselves develops. This is where the idea of drawing therapy comes from: offering them other models of themselves that will help them understand that they are just like everyone else. It is for this purpose – I have already talked about this – that we use their photographs behind glass. We now have full-length pictures of the children hanging on the walls of the Center for Teenagers, which they made themselves in the following way: one child lay down on a large sheet of paper, and the others traced the contours of his body with a pencil, and then painted everything together.
Sometimes we work with paintings where the entire body is not depicted. And the child, who chose this particular picture to copy, added the missing parts - he drew the head and legs. It's very interesting because sometimes it becomes a question of how they perceive themselves, because their first drawings often don't have arms or legs. But after a while, they begin to clearly imagine what a man or woman looks like, and depict the entire body. In France, painting plays a very important role in working with people with autism. There are even entire galleries where paintings by people with autism are displayed. Painting is also a way of social integration. If you want to know my opinion, some of my guys' drawings are even better than those displayed in galleries. But maybe I'm not objective in my opinion.
Do you paint only portraits or landscapes too?
Yes, we paint landscapes too. But for this we mainly go out into nature, into real nature.
How do you choose colors for paintings?
The child can choose the material with which he will work (paint, pastel or pencil), paper size, color, when he is ready for such a choice. First, we offer the child the entire palette of colors. But when we understand that the child performs the same actions - chooses the same colors and depicts the same thing - we change the proposed palette. For example, we offer him only one color. The color and size of the paper also matter: you can draw on yellow or red paper. Sometimes we change the environment in which classes take place, that is, we give children the opportunity to sit in the hall the way they want. But in some classes we offer them to draw only on the floor, sometimes on the wall, and sometimes on the table. There are many opportunities to diversify the environment and materials for work. But sometimes we don’t give him this choice, but only offer him a black pencil to work with. Children have to realize their ideas with the means they have.
The Center's psychologist participates in art workshop classes once a month, and these classes themselves take place once a week. But every Monday evening, the psychologist talks for half an hour with the teacher leading the painting classes. Based on this conversation, the teacher develops plans for the next lessons for each teenager.
As for music lessons, we prepare them differently. In this case, a team of educators is involved, that is, the musician, together with them, determines what he will do with the children. Cooperation is necessary in order for the common line that I spoke about to be pursued. This is important because if the child’s condition is not very good, for example, there are periods when he becomes more aggressive and excitable, then we need to think about what type of work to offer him. music lesson. And, naturally, the choice of tool and material plays a role here. Therefore, we have a responsibility to work together.
Do you take into account the influence of color on the child’s emotional state? This may affect its development.
It's possible. Usually we ourselves offer him a certain color in order to provoke a particular reaction in the child. But for some children, the most important thing is to simply repeat the same gesture. They don't care what color or material is offered to them, they will still always do the same thing. Therefore, we introduced training in various techniques so that, using this experience, they could learn other gestures. For example, a child has normal stereotypical repetitive movements that occur in one pattern - either from right to left or in a circle. He only paints the space this way because he doesn’t know how to paint it any other way. When we give him additional funds, we see that his work is closer to reality. And here it is very important not to let the child constantly repeat only what he wants, but to demand that he fulfill our conditions, because this will help us cross another milestone together.
What do you do when a child doesn’t want to follow a given framework, for example, work with one color?
If we offer a child work with one color, then only this color is in this moment in the gym where he practices. It happens that he does nothing at all. This is where group work is important, because there is no such thing as all five of us doing nothing. Even someone who does nothing will watch what others are doing. The rooms are not locked, children can leave them, but they rarely leave. Usually the child stays, watches what happens, and gradually tries to do something himself. There has never been a case where a child or teenager did nothing during the entire lesson. Drawing and painting classes are quite long - they last 2 hours. This means that the teenager has time to think about what he wants to do, stop, look at what others are doing, return to his own drawing, look and add something.
Often teenagers start drawing again in the same lesson, that is, they put aside what they didn’t like and start new drawing. They do this not to make a new drawing, but simply to redo what didn’t work out. And this is not the teacher, but he himself sees that something did not work out for him. Educators never evaluate the quality of his work, they simply encourage the teenager, ask him if he is happy with what he did, if he did it well, if he forgot anything, if he wants to add something. But it is always the teenager or child himself who chooses. And he himself can say that he has already finished his work.
Children make drawings and paintings for themselves. But sometimes we ask them to draw something and give it to their family, that is, we set a certain goal for them in advance. Very often, the drawings some children made for home differ from those they all made together. Often children do not want to take their work home. But on the other hand, when once a year we collect all the drawings that were made by the children and ask them which of them they would like to exhibit at the Center, they themselves evaluate and select some of the works, and insert them into a frame for display. Children know that these works will be seen and appreciated by everyone who comes to the Center, including their loved ones.
After the exhibition, we sometimes offer them to take the paintings home, but they don’t always want this, because for them the Center and the house are two separate world. They do not realize that they themselves are the link between these two worlds. It takes them some time to bond with each other.
Does everyone attend art therapy classes?
Not everyone is into painting or drawing. But everyone attends art therapy classes: for some it will be music, for others it will be sculpture, modeling or drawing. It must be said that we always offer art therapy classes to those children who are unsuccessful in other areas and can do almost nothing. Some children are very unproductive in regular classroom activities. They only spend 45 minutes a week in class (I'm talking about teenagers now). And we do not insist on more: for 10 years they have been offered classes in order to develop their graphic skills, teach them to read and write, but they have not made any progress. They need to look for other means that will help them develop their graphic abilities and get an idea of the world around them. These means can be, in particular, drawing and painting. The regular school reinforcement system is not suitable for them. Some, for example, in painting classes will be able to choose 2 or 3 colors and be able to count them, while they do not know how to count. Through specific activities, when children become active " actors", they also master theoretical knowledge. If children or teenagers cannot write because writing doesn’t mean anything to them yet, then learning basic graphic skills will allow them to perhaps draw a pictogram to express what they want to say. But with them you need to work on the meaning of what they depict: does your drawing really look like a vase or a cat? And then you need to give the child the opportunity for creative self-expression and depict objects and living beings the way he imagines them.
How do you prepare for art workshops?
I have already said that we choose the colors, size and shape of the “handy tools”. We also need to take into account our financial capabilities, and they are different in the children's and adolescent centers. The Center for Teenagers has a special room for painting classes. As for the Center for Children, all art therapy classes there are held in main groups. But in both Centers, the teacher must prepare the room for classes in advance. This necessary condition, which we insist on. If during a class we waste time cutting paper, filling containers with paint, or preparing palettes with different paints, it is safe to say that the can of paint will be turned over or used before the actual class begins, because while The teacher will cut the paper, the children will get into the paint with their hands. That is why it is very important to prepare in advance what we will offer to children. I have already said that we think in advance what places the children will take during this lesson. If we decide to have them work at a table, they can do it sitting or standing, but either way they will have their own space and we try to be there to make sure they stay in place when they work with paints. Then they can move around the audience, but their hands will be clean.
In fact, we simply act in accordance with established rituals, which helps the child understand that the activity has begun. First, a special apron is put on. Then the child chooses, for example, paper for work from a pre-prepared folder. Usually, at the beginning of the lesson, teachers themselves place paints or paint on the table. But as for small children, they very often begin to mix all the colors at their disposal, and after 5 minutes there will no longer be red, blue, yellow colors, but there will be one dull gray spot. So we try to offer, particularly to young children, paints of primary colors in a package that does not allow them to mix colors, but at the same time we give them a board (palette) on which they can mix paints. I think it is very important that they always have paints in primary colors that attract their attention. But if they need to mix paints, gain a new experience for them, it is important that they have a palette that they can then use for painting. And they always have the opportunity to add clean paint there.
As I already said, first we ourselves offer paints for the work, usually gouache. But over time, we put all the colors on one table, and the children choose them themselves. This becomes possible when we know that children have already understood that they do not need to mix all the colors on the palette. We have established other rules for children who only do coloring on sheets of paper. Some people completely concentrate on this work and do it very slowly, but most, on the contrary, do everything quickly. Then we say that today we will only work with one sheet of paper. And when the child finishes his work, we invite him to look at it again, show it to others, dry it, etc. All this is done so that the child does not immediately start a new drawing, because if he doesn’t If he has time for a “break,” he will most likely draw the same thing again. He needs to take a break. We offer him, for example, to wash his brushes, tidy up his workplace, maybe wash your hands, drink something, or nibble on some candy. Only then will we ask him if he wants to do anything else. The end of a lesson is always prepared in advance and is always celebrated in a certain way. If the guys have finished everything and don’t want to draw anymore, we put the room in order together. Those who had plastic aprons wash them, and for those who had fabric aprons, there is a basin, water, and soap. It is very important - this applies to all activities - to accurately mark its beginning and end. But it happens that classes are already over, and some children are still drawing. We warn them that they have little time left, and in order to give this moment a visible form, we usually turn on some song they know well. Children know that when the song ends, they will need to finish their work, and this allows them to mentally prepare for the end of the lesson, to build a sequence of events. But they also know that if the drawing is not finished, they can continue it next time. Well, then – the same cleaning ritual.
The drawings of anxious children, as a rule, have many blackened “spots” or, on the contrary, are too “transparent” and almost invisible. People depicted as an anxious child often have large, dark (shaded) eyes. The proverb “Fear has big eyes” accurately reflects the nature of the drawings of children in this category.
Anxious children who have low self-esteem depict themselves as small, almost invisible, usually at the bottom of the paper.
When creating their “masterpieces”, they love to use an eraser, trace and correct the lines they have just drawn - their uncertainty in everything and the fear of doing something wrong also manifests itself in artistic creativity. People's postures, as a rule, are static and of the same type: everyone is frozen, everyone is waiting, everyone seems to be listening and looking closely, are there any signals of impending danger?
Pasha, 6 years old: “What’s it like to draw a family? Mom? And dad? Here. Right? And Pasha is in the other room. Okay?”
Igor, 7 years old: “It’s me. I was walking to school and got lost. Because I went in the wrong direction. And my mother is at work.”
Olya, 5 years old: “Family. Mommy and I are walking.”
Drawings of autistic children.
Autistic children draw in their own way: thoughtfully, slowly, sometimes it’s a whole ritual for them. For example, the trees in their drawings usually have a thick trunk that occupies a large area on the leaf; branches extend from the trunk, usually similar to wide rectangular boards from a fence. There are very few leaves on the branches.
Sometimes children are so carried away by the drawing process that, seemingly having finished their drawing, they manage to carefully shade the entire image.
The themes of works by autistic children are usually very monotonous. Children can depict the same plot, the same characters performing the same actions, day after day, month after month, even year after year. (However, we must not forget that such “constancy of artistic taste” is characteristic of both anxious children who are afraid of failure, and those children who simply cannot draw or have problems with fine motor skills.) “As I was taught, I draw. and I do. What I do is what I like,” you can read “between the lines” of such drawings.
Sasha, 8 years old: “Tree.” 
Seryozha, 7 years old: “It’s me.”
Seryozha, 6 years old: “My family.”
Test: drawing of a non-existent animal
If you are concerned about your child’s “wrong” behavior in a group, if he does not have good relationships with peers, let’s check how serious your concerns are using one of the projective techniques - “Drawing a non-existent animal.” What is the point of the technique? It is known that when a child draws, he transfers and projects his inner world, his self-image, onto paper. A psychologist can tell a lot about the mood and inclinations of a little artist by looking at his work. One test will not help us recreate an accurate psychological portrait, but that is not our goal. Now it is important for us to understand whether the child has problems in relationships with the outside world.
You will need: a standard sheet of white or cream paper and a simple medium-hard pencil. Felt-tip pens and pens cannot be used; soft pencils are also undesirable.
Instructions for the child: come up with and draw a non-existent animal and call it a non-existent name.
Explain to the child that the animal must be invented by him himself, captivate him with this task - to create a creature that no one has invented before. This should not be a previously seen character from cartoons, computer games or fairy tales. After the drawing is ready, ask the artist about the creature he created. It is necessary to find out the gender, age, size, purpose of unusual organs, if any; ask if he has relatives and what his relationship is with them, if he has a family, and who he is in the family, what he loves and what he is afraid of, what his character is.
The test taker unconsciously identifies himself with the drawing, transfers his qualities and his role in society to the depicted creature. Sometimes children talk about their problems from the animal's perspective. But this does not always carry enough information and depends on the child’s ability to analyze his inner world. It is important for us to understand how adapted he is in the team.
You and I will use special criteria for deciphering a picture, which I tested in practice over 12 years of constant work with “problem” children. So, what should you pay attention to?