Procedural Memory and Art

Have you heard of procedural memory? It is a part of our long-term memory that is responsible for knowing how to do things. This allows us to store information on how to perform certain procedures, such as walking, talking and riding a bike.

So how does this relate to art? Art techniques can also be encoded in our procedural memory. By taking art workshops and using the instructors approach and subject, participants learn responses that causes them to become automatic responses to specific situations.  

Many art students are told that it's taboo to copy someone else's work and they must be completely original. However, copying or mimicking an instructor is the most natural way of learning good approaches and techniques. Procedural memory is developed by doing and the only way we can do something which we don’t know how to yet is to watch and copy.

Here is my latest painting. Now I'm looking for a title for it. In the mean time, it's going to rest above my dresser.

In the coming days, I'll be preparing my next workshop to paint apples hanging from a tree branch. This is probably the most complicated reference photo I have used in a workshop. Hence I must figure out how we will approach this in the limited time we have Here is the photo.

Have a great week,

Danielle