What Advantages Does Classroom Instruction Have Over Books/DVD's?

[A. Sobriquet]

Hello,

Sorry for the simple question, but I just don't have the experience to know - and I'm awfully curious. I've a ton of instructional books and DVD's, teaching all sorts of approaches and tips, and I wonder how much more productive it would be to take classes...but I fail to imagine the differences, at least in terms of the core principles that I would be expected to exercise.

Thanks very much for your input, take care.

[MiniGoth]

A good instructor can help explain concepts clearly, show what you may be missing, and generally help guide your progress.

[hoboboxing]

Besides having an experienced instructor to help guide your progress, you would be surrounded by a like minded group of people who are also looking to improve their art-making skills, all with their own approaches. Being surrounded by so much creativity will definitely rub off on you.

Making the most out of your tuition is a great motivator too.

[emifinan]

I second what hoboboxing said. One of the largest advantages is the other students.

You can learn just as much from them as from any instructor or video.

Also in a classroom, you can be given direct feedback on your own work in real time. You can get feedback on websites like this but there is a thrill in a classroom critique when everyone presents their finished assignment on the wall and you can view them collectively and gain feedback on your own work.

Best of luck finding the type of education that suits you best!

[dcorc]

Looking at your previous posts here, and the questions you are asking - I'd guess that for you taking some classes would be highly beneficial, as you seem to be stuck in a "trying to understand it by reading about/watching it" mode, and not "learning by doing and getting feedback from others" - which is what you would get from classes.

The other thing I think you would find helps, would be to start a sketchbook, post some work here, and get into discussions with others about the specifics of individual drawings or paintings.

You need to actually 1. do some stuff, and 2. get constructive feedback on it from knowledgable others. (not sure if you are already fulfilling 1, but not 2, or neither.)

Dave

[Grief]

it never hurts to have pair of educated eyes looking over your progress instead of you being left to judge if youre on the right path yourself.

[Storyboard Dave]

Beyond the obvious and immediate feedback of your peers, probably one of the best things about being in a group environment is seeing how other people do the same task that you're trying to do. Everyone will have a unique approach to solving that same problem and seeing that "unsaid" approach is priceless.

When I was in school, I was lucky to be in several classes with people from different cultures and different backgrounds- they way they approached things was mind blowing, refreshing and completely different from my approach. This was not instructor given direction but just intuitive to these people.

Learning from peers is amazing and highly recommended.

Another not so immediate benefit is the bonds created in the class room that will eventually extend into the workforce one day. Reputations can be earned through watching how other people work and react. Even years later, I still know who to call and who I can rely upon based upon how I perceived those people back in our school days. It's a subtle brotherhood that we take away from our sharing of an experience.

[rpace]

An actual classroom education can do a number of things that you really can't get on your own, both positive and negative.

Looking back on my own education at Sheridan Illustration (wayyyyyy back in the late 80s), I realised there were a number of benefits and shortcomings beyond the obvious ones:

1. Bad Instructors can have as dreadful an influence on your work as good instructors can have a beneficial one. The three years I was there I had one year of quality painting instruction sandwiched between two of no instruction, just horrible exercises coupled with bad advice. The third year of life drawing was run by an artist with no ability to communicate what he wanted (it was either wrong or great with the students who did "great" work left as confused about what they did right). Book Illustration with Frank Neufeld in my final year taught me things that applied far beyond the course content and still work for me now.

2. Office Politics. One thing you won't have to deal with when you're self-taught is the politics between students or teachers. Sheridan, at least at the time, was highly competitive both among the students as well as the teachers. Some competition is healthy, but there was a point where one student who went from poor to remarkably strong work within a semester was openly accused of hiring senior students to do his work ( he just had senior students to show him how and what they were doing and he essentially got twice the lessons through his own motivation).

3. Healthy competition. Sometimes you get better from a little push from your own inner green-eyed monster.

4. Doing well feels good, doing well in front of an audience feels better. It really felt great for the instructor or other students to talk well about your recent work and could give you a motivational push that would possibly be lacking when studying on your own.

5. Motivating Teachers. My favourite teacher at Sheridan wasn't an illustrator or figuative artist and really didn't have a great depth of knowledge in her course content (that only became apparent during the second year in Life Drawing). Her enthusiasm and ability to motivate was unmatched by any other teacher at the school. Even her criticism was a positive experience.

6. Friends. I made some good friends in college. There's a wider group of aquaintances that I could run into and be able to reminisce and joke around with as if no time passed. You simply can't do that in the same way studying on your own. Storyboard Dave's description of a subtle brotherhood nails it.

7. Socialization. Art college isn't high school. Students who treat it like that struggle or flunk if the school is a serious one. The level of social development that can occur in such an environment can be key to developing the interpersonal skills you'll need later in life.

8. Wasted time. This cuts both ways; on your own you could end up spinning you wheels or develop bad habits that could take years to overcome, in college I took courses that either had no relation to what I wanted to do as an artist or were so poorly taught as to not help my development. Sheridan of the day forced us to take printmaking, a woefully inadequate computer class, an art history class that spent half the time talking about how bad men and pornography were, two fun (but pointless) theatre classes, and a few classes that were run by people who shouldn't have been teaching.

Even with the negatives I've listed, I wouldn't trade in those three years. Those three years were entirely about getting better as an artist*. Everything I was doing, even if it was apparent that the skills being taught were of no real import to what I'd eventually do, was about creating visual work. Afterwards, it became about getting work, making deadlines, paying bills, living and getting better as an artist could easily slip pretty far down the priority list.

Hope this helps,

~R


*To be honest, they were about getting laid, too.

[rattsang]

learning is more about the information that you receive than how you receive it. both learning from a tutor and using dvds and books will have sources that are 1. totally biased and 2. completely misinformed. i would suggest rather than thinking in terms of classroom or not to think in terms of reliable and accurate information.



like mentioned above there will be good tutors and bad, good books and bad. there is the inherent advantage of the classroom where a good tutor can point out your specific weaknesses and obvious things that would be omitted from most books, and of course the sense of competition in a classroom environment ( which can be a really motivation are a crushing disadvantage depending on your position)

if you can find good class where the tutor can not only draw themselves but can explain things properly (i.e. no ethereal bullshit explanations) and give honest critique that is your best bet for fast unhindered development, anything short of this could do more harm than good.

learning from books is much harder, but it is easier to find a good book than tutor. using books you need to put in more time and concentrate harder on seeing your own mistakes and weaknesses (this is good for sharpening your skills though) and if you get stuck on something or don't understand something you may have no one to ask for a solution. also learning form books requires a hell of a lot more motivation to push yourself, probably though i think it is cheaper to do.

[Storyboard Dave]

if you can find good class where the tutor can not only draw themselves but can explain things properly (i.e. no ethereal bullshit explanations) and give honest critique that is your best bet for fast unhindered development, anything short of this could do more harm than good.

Amen to this one, brother! Ethereal philosophies on art don't pay the rent after you get out of college. Getting a good practical working professional teaching you the reality of the business world is HUGE in helping you bridge the gap between student to working professional.

[A. Sobriquet]

Hello everyone,

Awfully sorry that I haven't written until now to thank you all for your replies. I'm trying to see what I can arrange.

Take care, happy everything.