“Learning Art Is Not Learning How to Paint”
My artist residency at Bambini Montessori Spanish Academy has reminded me once again why I love teaching.
At first, many children ask which color they should use, where they should glue a material, or whether they’re doing it “right.” But as the weeks go by, something beautiful begins to happen: they start trusting their own decisions.
They choose colors intuitively, experiment with different textures, combine materials, and discover that there is no single right way to create.
That is my greatest purpose as both an artist and an educator.
I don’t want children to learn how to copy an idea. I want them to develop the confidence to create from their imagination and discover their own way of expressing themselves.
Each activity is an opportunity for them to observe, explore, and make decisions with confidence. Little by little, they begin to develop a style that is uniquely their own.
Not every child will become a professional artist, and that’s perfectly okay. My hope is that each of them grows up with the confidence to create, explore, and trust their own ideas.
Because learning art is not learning how to paint.
It is learning how to think, how to make decisions, and how to discover who you are through what you create.
I’d love to share a few of the activities the children have enjoyed throughout this residency…
—Mariel
🤍
“Aprender arte no es aprender a pintar”
Por Mariel Méndez | MARALOVE
Mi residencia artística en Bambini Montessori Spanish Academy me ha recordado una vez más por qué amo enseñar.
Al principio, muchos niños preguntan qué color usar, dónde pegar un material o si lo están haciendo “bien”. Pero con el paso de las semanas sucede algo maravilloso: empiezan a confiar en sus propias decisiones.
Eligen colores por intuición, experimentan con diferentes texturas, combinan materiales y descubren que no existe una sola manera correcta de crear.
Ese es mi mayor propósito como artista y educadora.
No quiero que los niños aprendan a copiar una idea. Quiero que desarrollen la independencia para crear desde su imaginación y encuentren su propia forma de expresarse.
Cada actividad es una oportunidad para que aprendan a observar, experimentar y tomar decisiones con seguridad. Poco a poco, comienzan a definir un estilo que les pertenece solo a ellos.
Quizá no todos serán artistas en el futuro, pero espero que todos conserven la confianza para crear, explorar y creer en sus propias ideas.
Porque aprender arte no es aprender a pintar.
Es aprender a pensar, a decidir y a descubrir quién eres a través de lo que creas.
Les comparto algunas actividades en las que los niños han participado…
-Mariel
🤍
