design skills: nature or nurture?

13 years ago

I was pleasantly surprised today to read a comment from my son's art teacher that he has a "natural sense of design and placement." (He is in kindergarten!)

Proud mom moment aside, it made me start thinking about the nature versus nurture question as it pertains to design skills. I have spent some time thinking about this recently as I look back at old photos of my rooms and see the modest progression as I've been exposing myself to matters of design. So I'm curious to hear everyones' thoughts on the subject: Can a good eye or skill for design be taught even in the absence of natural ability?

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Comments (11)

jessicaml
13 years ago
I think it can be taught, but it helps to have a natural eye. I was watching an episode of Design Stars where the winner was an untrained guy with flair vs folks who had gone to school for interior design (I'm sorry, I know he has his own show now, but I can't remember his name...Antonio, maybe?). In the critique's of his rooms, there was occasionally the mention of things like traffic flow and proportion "which interior design students have been taught". Obviously these technicalities were secondary to his natural talent, but they can help with the overall look and function of the room.

I've always envied a friend of mine who has natural style in both her home and her fashion. I have to try harder at it...but like you, I can see progress over time! An artistic friend once explained how things look more balanced in 3s...apparently it's a design rule of sorts. I don't think it's mandatory to be limited by such a thing, exactly, but it has helped me when I'm at a loss for hanging things on the wall.
Susan
13 years ago
what a nice observation for your son's teacher to make!

i think both nature and nurture; at least in my case.
as a young teen i was obsessed with remodeling my bdrm, which i never did, but did get to decorate it and liked the result.
and as an adult i have good luck with my friends' spaces, but only in the past few years have i begun to really pull my own place together. i'm beginning to see the long view, mostly due to reading this board i guess!
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palimpsest
13 years ago
I think it is both. I grew up in a house where my parents utilized an interior designer and both of my parents were clothes horses. Of all the siblings I had the most innate artistic ability and since I was the youngest, after a 5 year gap, I think they allowed me free reign with that. I was being asked my opinion about stuff like this by the time I was 12 or so.

So I have one sibling who cares neither about clothes(in a bad way) nor the inside of her house much (although she has innately good taste when she actually buys a piece of furniture)

I have another sibling who is very into clothes (good taste here) and decorating (questionable and fickle taste here).

Interestingly, they each have a clothes horse and one is going to go to interior design school now that she has a business degree.
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Diane Smith at Walter E. Smithe Furniture
13 years ago
Can a good eye or skill for design be taught even in the absence of natural ability?

I think of the Tiger Mom when I read that. You could probably pound some design sense (or music) into anybody.

To excel you would need to love it.
And you love something you excel at.
And you practice what you love.
And you get better with practice.

So...I think it starts with nature and grows with nurture.

I felt like I just finished a brain teaser. Interesting question bungalow!
cooperbailey
13 years ago
Many skills can be taught. But without innate talent, they are just skills, not art.
paintergirl94
13 years ago
I have so many personal opinions on this topic, but Cooper summed it up perfectly. As a professional artist myself, I look for those "signs" in my kids all the time. I also do some teaching to encourage young kids to be creative thinkers. Not everyone will be able to take pen to paper like DaVinci, but a whole new world opens up when they can express themselves.
And, our school principal said something that really made me think about our kid's futures. She said "the jobs our children will be applying for when they graduate, don't even exist yet".
So, we must nurture in order for them to find what comes naturally...whatever that may be.
Of course, we are having another snow day today, so I will nurture them into cleaning their rooms!
busybee3
13 years ago
i think it's just like music.... anyone can take piano lessons and technically learn how to play the piano (with enough time!!)... but, musical talent and ear are innate, and it is clear (especially to someone with a musical ear!!!) who has technical skills and who has both technical skills and a musical talent!!
same thing with art and design...

but, to SUCCEED in art/design/music, etc, one also needs to possess a passion for it, so some degree, too.
igloochic
13 years ago
I wonder if there is an idiot savant of interior design.....
awm03
13 years ago
I think the real test is having a blank canvas. By that, I mean a room with no redeeming features. If you can come up with a good design starting from nothing, that's talent. If there are already attractive architectural features, balanced window & door placement, & hardwood or good tile floors (in other words, a fundamentally beautiful room) well, it's hard to make that look bad. Although I've loved house decor all my life, I can't do a blank canvas. The interest & effort are there, the talent isn't.

Here's a famous blank canvas made beautiful by an artist who had "it":
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Diane Smith at Walter E. Smithe Furniture
13 years ago
bungalow, I meant to add... it's so great he has a teacher who notices his strengths!

How about these guys igloo?

Here is a link that might be useful: something different
happyintexas
13 years ago
A famous musician whose name escapes me at the moment said something like...anyone can play the notes...it's what they do with the spaces between the notes that counts.

I do think basic design skills can be taught. The more love a person has the more they are going to soak up. The more they soak up, the more places they have to 'hang' additional knowledge. The more they know, the more they can do.

In the long run, it's passion that gives vitality and flair when everything else is done.

bungalow...great thoughts from your child's teacher. She deserves an apple. GRIN Picasso said...every child is an artist. The challenge is to keep the artist within into adulthood. (That's a paraphrase of sorts.) Enjoy encouraging your child's sense of design and creativity.

design skills: nature or nurture?

Comments (11)

jessicaml

Susan

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