Painting and pattern; working
with Autism.
The thinking
behind the project:
Every ASD sufferer is an individual and all have different behaviours
resulting from their position in the spectrum but the following
generalisations are what led to the development of this project. ASD
sufferers have a tendency to look at things in a very literal fashion, they
are comfortable with repetitive tasks and precision can be a strong factor
in the things they do, they also can have difficulty making decisions. The
subtleties and nuances or art and colour mean little to those with ASD, but
by changing the creative process from an intuitive artistic process to a
simple arithmetic formula, the work can be easily made to encompass the
aspects mentioned. The simplicity of the process also removes a lot of
decision making by the participants but this can be engaged easily in
choices of colour at the start of the process and the simple pattern they
may choose to follow.
The following is
taken from a Times Supplement: “When his son Lars was diagnosed with
autism, Thorkil Sonnes life was turned upside down. Poor social skills and
difficulty in responding to change mean that people with ASD have problems
interacting with others and find it very difficult to hold down jobs.
But watching his seven year old making a copy from
memory of a complex diagram, Sonne had a brainwave. From his background in
IT Sonnes knew many bugs get missed in software testing as people find it so
boring. Yet people with ASD tend to possess extremely good memories, show
great attention to detail and would therefore be brilliant at it.
Sonne set-up
Specialisterene in Copenhagen six years ago. It now employs sixty
people, of whom 45 have ASD.”
Most people on the
Autistic spectrum do not have the savant skills shown by Sonnes' son copying
the complex diagram and so this project is about opening up possibilities to
all on the spectrum,
with the
arithmetic feature substituted for the creative process the work can be as
simple as shown below or more complex for those with savant skills.
Working with P:
This project developed whilst working a young man (P) some of the behaviours
he displays are short attention span, inability to concentrate, impatience
and at times strongly challenging behaviour. His comprehension of complex
language is minimal but can communicate in short sentences which are simple
requests or commands, his understanding of, and ability to complete assigned
tasks by normal instruction is very weak.
P like all ASD sufferers
never fit the templates we use to judge them, you will see in the examples
of his work below we are struggling to get him to paint inside the lines
neatly, (we have found that when we use a black marker pen he is able to
follow the edges of the shapes more easily), his love of precision is
displayed in other ways, e.g.
After spending half an
hour building a jigsaw with P we folded it away in his jigsaw board to be
continued later and we returned it to his room.
There was a gap
behind his chest of drawers where I thought the board would fit neatly and
proceeded to put it there, I was given a sharp prod to let me know this was
not where it went, P knew exactly where he wanted it and the centimetre I
had moved the chest of drawers had to be put right and he spent about five
minutes meticulously realigning the chest of drawers. He also has a good
memory for things that he becomes familiar with and so working with pattern,
especially repeating pattern. I hope that some of the skills recorded in the
next paragraph will enable P to enjoy the process and eventually understand
the simplified creative process.
What we hope to
achieve: Through
patience and repetition we were trying to help P develop the skills to
complete a task in numerous simple stages eventually enabling him to have
the autonomy to work on his own creations. Whilst doing this as P develops
the co-ordination skills to complete each stage of a task we are developing
his concentration and patience as he is encouraged to work slowly and
carefully, these skills he may transfer to other areas and activities he
engages in.
To
complete this project you will require the following:
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Four colours of paint, I use washable. (I limited the colours in this
project because P had no recognition of colours by the names we give
them.
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A black marker pen. I use this because P found it easier to recognize
the edge of the shape he was to paint.
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Two paintbrushes, reasonable quality. (The task can be hard enough
without making it harder with cheap brushes. They don’t have to be
sable but a nice chisel edge is good.
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Paper.
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An everyday object which can make a regular shape. In this case I used
a tin of sweet corn. I use these to encourage recognition of shape in
other aspects of his life.
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Sundry items required not shown: ruler, water and mixing jars.
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The project and
its aims: This project
is developed with the aid of TEACCH, (Treatment and Education of Autistic
and Communication Handicapped Children). The strand of the program I am
using with P is breaking down the painting technique into an easy sequence
of simple instructions which requires no knowledge of colour or shape.
TEACCH is not a meticulous technique or method but a program from which can
be developed many approaches that can aid the different requirements of
individuals.
What we try to do is
create simple patterns with one, two three or four colours and make any
changes to the patterns by one action which is repeated throughout the
process. The following pattern was created with two colours. Only one change
is made at each stage and that is always the same, add one dessertspoon of
water to the paint. (Make sure the mixing jar is
large enough to take the amount of water you will add for each column).
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The process for creating the pattern above can be broken down into the
following stages:
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Create the grid
on the paper
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Select two colours of paint to start the design,
(above
a simple red and yellow).
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Using undiluted paint
complete the red
squares in the first column.
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Add one desert
spoon of water to the red paint then complete the red squares in the
second column.
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Add another
desert spoon of water to the paint then complete the red squares in
column three.
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Continue adding
one desert spoon of water to the paint as you move across the
design.
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Using undiluted paint
complete the yellow
squares across the top horizontal column.
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Add one desert
spoon of water to the yellow paint then complete the yellow squares
in the second horizontal column.
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Add another
desert spoon of water to the yellow paint then complete the yellow
squares in the third horizontal column.
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Continue adding
one desert spoon of water to the paint as you move down the design.
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As well as trying to create a pattern I have used simple everyday objects to
create shapes, the circles below are created with a tin of sweet-corn as we
try to introduce the idea of shapes into everyday objects, it is difficult
for P to understand that something can have various value, i.e. it is a tin
of sweet-corn, it is a circle, it is a shape.
At this stage we are also trying to get P to recognise
pattern by getting him to complete the same basic picture but using
different colour sequences that he has to copy.
(See below).
Pattern 1
Pattern 2
Completed by P
These are the sheets we
are working on at present, at this stage we are simply trying to get P to
paint within the lines, he finds this difficult but we encourage him to take
his time and praise good efforts and he is coming along very slowly. P
sometimes needs assistance in choosing the correct colour. Even when he
chooses correctly he is still looking for reassurance from you that it is
the correct colour before he proceeds.
The following are examples
of P’s work at present.
Triangles provided for P to colour.
Triangles made and coloured by P
Copying a pattern
A Christmas tree with shapes.
In the Christmas tree example P did not seem
recognise this as a Christmas tree, he said it was a Christmas tree because
he was told that is what it was but he remained puzzled. To try to get him
to recognise images like this we are drawing images from pictures he
recognises in his books, trying to create the link that he can depict these
things, they have to be simple shapes like buses, cars, bicycles and ladders
etc.. My thanks to Lisa, a colleague at Rother Heights for this development.
First grid in a painting session
Second grid in a painting session.
These are two pieces from
one of the latest sessions with P, It can be seen from the first line of the
first grid how well P was doing and in fact did very well in completing the
entire grid, but you can see the deterioration as he progresses, especially
into the second grid. This is a feature of P, a lack of concentration and
short attention span, but as we keep trying we hope he will make even small
gains in these attributes.
As P loses concentrations
he can become agitated and will begin prodding to show his displeasure at
continued instruction, he likes to do things for himself, but paradoxically
has difficulty in doing them. At this stage we allow P to draw his choice of
shapes, where he wants and with what colour he wants, and whilst still
working within the process he enjoys this freedom. Even at this stage when
given the freedom to choose P still seeks reassurance before proceeding at
any stage of drawing of painting, I am unsure whether he thinks he is still
in a learning session and wants to please by being correct or has difficulty
with decisions. I believe it is the latter but I am unsure.
A creation by P in oil pastels.
The entire process is
difficult for P and progress is slow but I am hopeful that in developing his
skills to complete these tasks he will arrive at a point where he will be
able to create simple patterns by himself and in the process will have
developed other skills and benefits.
This process can be easily
adapted to suit various degrees of skill and creativity and whilst P
struggles with even the early stages the efforts he creates give him
pleasure. With a little ingenuity
the following patterns created by well known artists or in well known styles
may inspire you to try alternative projects.
Bridget Reilly
Damien Hirst
Aboriginal Painting Chuck Close
Bridget Riley
If you would like further
information on this project or ideas about developing it to suite you
requirements please email me at
info@malcolmtait.co.uk
More importantly if
you have any ideas for improving or widening the project, again email me at
info@malcolmtait.co.uk
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