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The resource landscape is likely to evolve unevenly in the coming decades, creating a wide variety of opportunities and threats for different companies, sectors, countries, and regions. Featured here are three experts with diverse vantage points that highlight the scope and complexity of the changes on the horizon. Niall Ferguson, a historian at Harvard University, puts the recent commodity price boom in perspective and provides cause for cautious optimism. The CEO of Veolia Water Americas, Laurent Auguste, explains the risks posed by dwindling water availability and how the public and private sectors can respond. And the environmental chief of aviation giant Boeing, Mary Armstrong, shares insights into how the global company is seeking to reduce its resource footprint while still meeting the needs of customers.
Click on the interactive video to view those videos, or read them in the edited text format below.
Niall Fergusonis the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of History at Harvard University, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, and a senior research fellow at Jesus College, Oxford. He is the author of ten books, most recently Civilization: The West and the Rest (Penguin Press, November 2011). |
The past
Part of my job as a historian is to point out what's not new. What's clearly not new is that with rapidly growing demand and relatively slow-growing supply, there is a risk of conflict over scarce natural resources. The interplay between the supply of and the demand for natural resources is one of the great themes of human history. For most of history, the scarce resource is just fertile land; then gradually, human beings developed an appetite for things they can't eat, such as precious metal.
What's also not new is that competition can lead to technological innovation. We're not a static species. When we hit a bottleneck and the price signals are screaming that there's not enough of this stuff, we do tend to innovate. But there are big lags, and sometimes bottlenecks can persist for much longer than one would imagine. It's in the nature of scientific discovery that it isn't especially elastic in the face of certain constraints.
The present
If you start from the trough of the financial crisis, what you find is a spike that affects nearly all commodities.1 The only ones that have gone down in price since early 2009 are natural gas, chicken, prawns, wood, and olive oil. I used to joke that this was great news if you were planning a surf-and-turf barbecue, but if you had any other plan in mind that involved natural resources, you could be paying 100 or 200 percent more for your raw inputs than you were just two and a half years ago. That gives you a sense of the extraordinary time we live in.
The only previous periods I'm aware of when there have been correlated spikes in the prices of nearly all commodities are World War I and World War II. If you were on another planet observing Earth with the assistance of only a Bloomberg screen displaying commodity prices and you had a pretty long-run time series, you would conclude that World War III was in progress right now. You'd be quite wrong. But you would have spotted that something extraordinary was happening, and the explanation is that we've got demand-side activity that actually is comparable in its magnitude to a world war.
The growth of China's economy and many emerging markets is so rapid—these are almost unprecedented growth rates in terms of long-run economic history—that it's like the demand shock of a war. Here's the way I think of it. If the rest of humanity consumed natural resources at half the lifetime rate of the average American, a really significant number of commodities would run out within a matter of 30 years. In some cases, rare earth metals for example, it would be within 10 years. Even copper, which we think of as a pretty plentiful base metal, would be gone within about 38 years. So the starting point for any discussion has to be that some of these things are in pretty finite supply and that the rapid growth of demand—as emerging economies explode into life and catch up with the United States—means that this is a burning issue for us now.
The future
One or two surprising things have begun to emerge. The first is that we should be less worried about peak oil than some have argued for years, because it turns out that we can access oil in North America more easily than we had thought. Whether it's tar sands, tidal deposits, or the use of fracking,2 it means that North America potentially could get back to self-sufficiency in energy over the next 20 years. I think you need to be keeping an eye on technological innovation. It's probably a mistake to bet against it, and to bet on static technology.
The second thing to keep an eye on is a geopolitical story that is potentially game changing. In my view, the aftermath of the American empire is bound to be a time of great instability. The trend already is for the United States to reduce its military and other commitments in the greater Middle East. Fiscal constraints mean the United States can't afford not to do this. It's clear that the defense budget is going to be the biggest casualty of rising interest payments on the rapidly growing federal debt. If you spend time in the Middle East, you sense that the regional players—Turkey, Iran, the Saudis—recognize a new post-American order is coming and are really jockeying for position. The unknown quantity is China. As China relies more and more on the Middle East for its oil and is disappointed in alternative sources, we may find ourselves in a new mid-21st-century world in which it's Beijing rather than Washington that starts to be an external player in the greater Middle Eastern drama.
As the United States retreats from its hegemonic position in the greater Middle East, I do expect trouble. I think this is a pretty obvious historical danger zone. It's got all the ingredients for conflict: You've got very youthful populations. You've got this retreating empire, so there are opportunities to contest the postimperial order. You've got tremendous ethnic division, which is often a source of great violence. And you've been subjecting the region to terrific economic volatility. It wouldn't be hard for even a small war to generate a huge upward movement in oil prices.
So I would say, keep an eye on the good news from technology and don't underestimate the capacity of research and development to produce some big wins. But remember, there is this big downside risk in a very strategically sensitive part of the world, particularly from the point of view of energy commodities.
Laurent Augusteis president and CEO of Veolia Water Americas, part of Veolia Water, the world's largest water services company. |
Under pressure
Industries and businesses should understand that water will become one of the critical elements responsible for ensuring the reliability of their operations. Put simply, if you don't have reliable access to water, you cannot run any business; and if you are unsure about the reliability of your access to water, then you've got a challenge in terms of making investment. Water will ultimately impact the decision-making processes of investors and companies as they decide where to locate their facilities.
And the challenges associated with water are growing: there's research that says by 2030 the gap between availability and need will be about 40 percent.3 Veolia recently conducted research with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) that shows that today about 20 percent of the world's GDP is produced in water-scarce areas. By 2050, if we go on with business as usual it will be 45 percent. This means that businesses and communities will be increasingly exposed to challenges associated with a lack of water. With smarter management of water resources, we could reduce this economic exposure to only about 30 percent.
To avoid being surprised, companies should make water part of their strategic planning and risk assessment. Some companies understand this and are already ahead of the game—starting with the food and beverage industry and companies such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and SABMiller. Obviously, water is a key ingredient of their products.
Other companies are probably behind, and they should consider what the future looks like to avoid exposure to operational or reputational risk—particularly in cases where there might be competition between a company and the local community having access to an important part of the water resource. There was a case recently in India where a large steel company wanted to establish itself in a particular location but faced challenges from farmers.4 It was really a trade-off between giving the steel mill access to the water resource versus having enough water for farming.
These types of challenges are likely to increase as we move toward having a larger concentration of people in cities. Today, 50 percent of the world's population lives in large cities; we are moving toward 70 percent. The greater density in certain cities will most certainly put more pressure on water resources.
The landscape is changing, and there's a greater need to raise awareness— because a resource that used to be considered infinite is under pressure. We need to manage that resource in a smarter way.
The municipal challenge
The main challenge with water is that there's a lack of good management of water resources. Cities typically are in charge of water, for example, but a watershed is usually much larger than a city. So a mayor will make decisions about water management without necessarily having the big picture.
Awareness is also a very big issue. People in the developed world definitely take water for granted. In some large US cities such as Chicago, for example, most homes don't even have meters, and many residents pay water bills based on the width and height of their buildings, so people basically don't have to be concerned about their consumption of water and have no incentive to reduce it. And rates across the country are pretty low—often lower than what people pay for their monthly telephone bill.
Even for mayors whose cities require substantial investment in water infrastructure, it's difficult to consider raising rates because people consider water essential, so therefore it should be basically free. But what is free has no perceived value. The challenge is to find the right balance, recognize the real value of water, and set rates accordingly. This doesn't mean we shouldn't be creative in terms of rate structures to make sure water is affordable, but first we need to find the right balance.
Another challenge with water is that it is local. And since it is local, people manage it in isolation—in silos—without necessarily understanding the level of performance that's possible, or without seeing the good ideas developed in other parts of the world.
Part of what we do at Veolia, therefore, is to work with our industry colleagues, scientists, academics, and NGOs5 to share these stories and make available the data, relevant case studies, and best practices so that decision makers can better understand their situations and begin to find solutions.6
Water innovations
One of the nice things with water is that, unlike oil, you can reuse it a number of times. Indeed, water is too precious to use only one time. So at Veolia, we like to speak of wastewater treatment plants as bio refineries. Whether it comes from a municipal or industrial activity, we should think of wastewater as a resource for energy or for recovering raw materials. This is something I believe we'll see more and more of in the future.
There are new technologies that allow us to produce energy from wastewater treatment, and also to separate what's in wastewater to recover some of these resources. We are, for instance, focusing on phosphate these days. Phosphate is an essential resource for fertilizer (and therefore food), but as a global resource, phosphate is limited, concentrated in countries such as Morocco. Being able to recover phosphate from wastewater and prevent it from reaching the sea and being wasted is a good strategy. More and more, I think we'll see companies use wastewater as a resource.
Consol Energy, for example, is a large mining company that operates in West Virginia. They've been under a consent decree from the US Environmental Protection Agency to have better treatment of their wastewater, and so they are putting in place a very advanced solution to do this. But they also see it as a potential business opportunity. Because they are in the shale gas area and there's a growing need to treat the "frac" water7 that these mines produce, the company recognizes that sharing their facility might help them get more business in the future. By addressing one challenge, they are potentially creating a business opportunity for themselves.
Another interesting example of turning a water challenge into an opportunity is Singapore. Singapore has been buying water from outside the country, and this is something they consider a risk. So what they've done in response is develop a wastewater treatment plant that enables the reuse of wastewater for industrial purposes. This treated water—which they've branded "NEWater"—is brought to the level of "pure" water, which is necessary for production in the semiconductor and electronics industries. This is obviously very attractive to businesses because they don't have to treat the water themselves, and it has supported the development of an industry cluster.
Finally, there's the recent example of the cosmetics company L'Oréal, which is moving to reduce both the carbon footprint and water footprint of its facilities around the world. With Veolia's support, they've begun in Suzhou, China, by reviewing processes to minimize their water consumption, increase reuse, and even turn their wastewater into energy. I believe this will be critical for L'Oréal for both their public image and also in terms of reducing their operational risk. Such moves will be increasingly important in China and other countries where challenges of water availability are a concern.
Mary Armstronghas been Boeing's vice president of environment, health, and safety since 2007. |
The business imperative
Driving environmental strategy into our business strategy is a real imperative. Aviation is responsible for 2 percent of man-made CO2 globally, and air travel is growing at about 5 percent per year. Energy and fuel are our biggest focus areas because that's where our biggest environmental footprint is across the life cycles of our products. Over the last 40 years, we've improved fuel efficiency and therefore CO2 emissions by 70 percent. Our latest airplane platforms, which include the 787, are a 20 percent improvement over the airplanes that the 787 will replace in the fleet. That's where our biggest impact is. We've got to continue to drive environmental efficiency into those airplanes.
We are trying to drive the commercialization of a sustainable aviation biofuel industry. We've worked with the agriculture industry, university researchers, some of our customers, and airports: how will you drive the right feedstocks—which will depend on the region of the world you're in—such that we can get a biofuel that competes with aviation fuel but is sustainable? Camelina is a crop that might work. Eventually, we'd like to see algae. We think that's very promising; algae grows all over.
We also continue to look at the opportunity for fuel cells. We even have an unmanned airplane that is solar powered. Those are all things that we're pursuing, and innovation will get us there eventually. But it'll be a long time before we can electrify an airplane, and we can't wait that long.
Meeting the management challenge
When I was asked to take this role, our CEO, Jim McNerney, said, "I want you to drive environmental thought and capability across how we operate the Boeing Company." I thought to myself, "This is going to be interesting because one little group at the corporate headquarters is certainly not going to be capable of doing that well."
One of the first things we did was to establish an environment, health, and policy council at the corporate level, led by Jim. That policy council meets twice a year; driving environmental thought into how we run the business comes directly from the CEO. This was always a "we" conversation. This was never "corporate" telling us, "We've got to go do this among all the other millions of things we're doing." It was, "This is a big risk to our business. And this is something that our CEO considers very important." We put together a one-page strategy and brought it back to the policy council and said, "This is what we think you're asking us to do." Once we had a strategy together, then everybody owned it.8
One of the things Jim was most interested in is how you work across the company and really drive this into how we operate. We brought folks together; many times we were just connecting the dots, introducing parts of the company to one another. I would sit in the back of the room and listen. For example, we had the commercial side of our business all excited about sustainable biofuels, and we had the defense side kind of wondering why they were there. Then all of a sudden our Department of Defense customers, like the Navy and the Air Force, started asking about biofuels. The gratification is really, really high when you can bring these folks together and they say afterward, "I had no idea that I could get so much from listening and applying some of those ideas to how we'd solve problems."
Pursuing efficiencies
We looked across the enterprise and invested in building systems and in energy improvements in lighting systems. Early on, we determined that any major building renovation, and any brand-new building, would meet the LEED9 silver standards. We built that into our building standards across our company because, as we looked at the life cycles of these buildings, that was a good business decision.
In Charleston, South Carolina, we've just finished our big final-assembly facility. As we built it, we said, "We're going to be building the most energy-efficient airplane in the world, the 787; we want a facility that represents that energy efficiency." So, we committed to 100 percent renewable energy out of that site. Twenty percent of that is coming from solar-photovoltaic10 generating capacity on the top of the final-assembly building—a big, ten-acre building. South Carolina Electric & Gas supplies the other 80 percent of the power that we need through a renewable-power contract.
Several years ago, Boeing helped start the AFRA, which is the Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association.11 The goal, eventually, is to be able to take an airplane at the end of its useful life and move it right back into the cradle, if you will, of raw materials for new airplanes. There are a lot of good business opportunities here. We're looking at carpets. In a 777, you might replace the carpet 20 times across the life of an airplane. We're working with a company in the southeastern part of the US; they've come up with a process where they can recycle airplane carpets back to airplane carpets. That's really what this environmental strategy is about: it's about delivering new, innovative solutions that not only drive environmental improvements but also drive business improvements.
Working with suppliers
The supply base has a much larger environmental footprint than we do inside our four walls. We have more than 16,000 suppliers. Moving into the supply base requires a different approach. You've got to come in on cost targets. You've got to have high quality, no defects. You've got to deliver on time. And now you also have to provide a strong environmental program. All four of those things are required.
I can remember being on the agenda for our supplier conference. It was just remarkable because the whole room was interested in how to participate, what they could do. In many cases, the suppliers knew more than we did. The suppliers recognize that if they can reduce their environmental footprint, it's going to save them money. And if we can figure out how we work together—where Boeing might change what we require because it would allow a supplier to, for instance, use recyclable packaging or containers—then we all win.
We're also working in other ways to improve the efficiency of the aerospace supply chain, such as recently helping form the International Aerospace Environmental Group (IAEG).12 Although its initial focus is on creating an industry approach to meeting governmental requirements for chemical usage and reporting, there's also a major emphasis on reducing supply chain waste—for example, identifying priority chemicals for conservation, and developing a standardized reporting method for greenhouse gas emissions.


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Whites believe that they are replacing blacks as the primary victims of racial discrimination in contemporary America, according to a new study from researchers at Tufts University's School of Arts and Sciences and Harvard Business School. The findings, say the authors, show that America has not achieved the "post-racial" society that some predicted in the wake of Barack Obama's election.
Both whites and blacks agree that anti-black racism has decreased over the last 60 years, according to the study. However, whites believe that anti-white racism has increased and is now a bigger problem than anti-black racism.
Whites See Racism as a Zero-Sum Game That They Are Now Losing
Michael I. Norton and Samuel R. Sommers
Although some have heralded recent political and cultural developments as signaling the arrival of a postracial era in America, several legal and social controversies regarding "reverse racism" highlight Whites' increasing concern about anti-White bias. We show that this emerging belief reflects Whites' view of racism as a zero-sum game, such that decreases in perceived bias against Blacks over the past six decades are associated with increases in perceived bias against Whites—a relationship not observed in Blacks' perceptions. Moreover, these changes in Whites' conceptions of racism are extreme enough that Whites have now come to view anti-White bias as a bigger societal problem than anti-Black bias.

subset: commoncrawl


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Evernote 5 for iPad and iPhone looks new but it isn't functionally better, except for one or two new features. Evernote should have spent its time overhauling the desktop version instead.
Evernote has reinvented the look and feel of its popular iOS app by adding -- and subtracting -- a few features. The four-year-old company chose not to simultaneously update the desktop client, which is a shame. Both mobile and desktop apps needed a make-over. The desktop app looks old when compared with partners like News360 and is overdue for a performance overhaul.
If we're lucky Evernote will upgrade desktop client to coincide with its December launch of Evernote Business. In its current form it isn't ready to challenge let alone displace Microsoft Word and Sharepoint.
So is Evernote 5 for iOS worth upgrading to? It promises:
A new home screen with quick access to notes, notebooks, tags, places, and premium features.
The ability to create new notes with fewer taps using home screen quick note buttons.
The note list redesigned in a card style to showcase note content.
The added ability to quickly create new notebooks from the Notebooks list.
Notes on a zoomable map.
The new interface is cleaner and more colorful. The tabs that used to run across the top now look like hanging file folders. Notebook stacks look like square Moleskine notebooks. The cleaner look comes at the expense of some features, though. For example, the top note used to display the first words of the most recent note, almost like a Windows 8 tile. That's gone. It looks cleaner but you get less information at a glance.
The sort feature is now hidden. However, once you find it by pulling down the home screen, accessing it is not too inconvenient. Although Evernote has made it easier to create notes on the iPad, it's now harder to delete them. I found no way to group delete a bunch of notes from a notebook or the All Notes tab. You need to open each note and choose delete.
The Premium Features tab is nothing more than an ad for paid features available to free users. It would be nice if paying customers could remove it. That would free up a bit of screen real estate.
One feature that is definitely an improvement is the Recent Notes scrolling row at the top. Evernote understands that we use it in a continuum. When I finish and sync at my desktop I can continue on the iPad and iPhone.
I use Evernote every day. It stores all my digital files in the cloud but allows for a local offline copy of every file. I bought the premium services for $45 primarily so I can forward news to my iPad with Clearly and Clip to Evernote. It saves me on cellular costs and I can read news where there is no Wi-Fi. I frequently type notes on the news stories and couple them with others in a notebook for later reference. I can keep anything in it. For example, when I'm testing a Microsoft hotfix, I'll store my correspondence with Microsoft, notes of the conversation, the link to the download, the hotfix itself, and my results all in a single note. I can find it literally at a glance.
Evernote's greatest weakness -- ironically -- is creating notes from scratch. By design it's a stripped-down word processor. Where Microsoft Word is bloated with features, Evernote has just enough, such as cut, paste, font resizing, keystroke shortcuts, and an adequate spell checker. But it fails as a day-to-day word processor.
It's the little inconsistencies that add up. For example, if you move a block of text in Microsoft Word and it has to go higher on the page, you just hold the mouse at the top of the screen and the document will scroll. Evernote won't do that. When you double click a word such as "it's," the word should highlight so you can italicize, move, delete, and so on. But if I happen to double click the apostrophe, the word won't highlight -- it makes me find another letter in the word to double click. There is always some small thing that gets in the way.
Occasionally some formatting embeds itself into the text somewhere and the words that follow are formatted incorrectly. To fix it I jump ahead and backspace to remove that formatting. In Word, I'd only need to show styles to find the problem -- but it doesn't have that problem. Another quibble: Resizing the application's screen resolution is only possible by changing the font. Word has a slider.
Evernote 5 crashed five times the day and a half that I used it. I installed it on a first-generation 5.1.1 iPad so it's not the most robust hardware. Still, Evernote 4.4 rarely crashed or hung. When version 5 crashed, I got several "'undefined' is not a function'" errors when saving an audio file. It worked on the second try, but I was able to reproduce it so clearly it's a bug.
Other than the new Recent Notes feature, Evernote 5 isn't better. This effort should have been saved for the desktop client.
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Our "Diamond Rivulet Necklace" is a luxurious work of art. Crafted from 18k white gold and adorned with round and baguette white diamonds, this intricate beauty reflects the mesmerizing movement of water.
- 18k white gold
- White Diamonds - 11.1 carats
- Total Length: 40 cm
- Weight: 27.7 gr
*Shipping Update: UK Customers
Dear Valued UK Customer, We would like to inform you that since Brexit and as of 1/1/2021 all UK Orders are tax exempt and prices displayed on our website for UK customers do not include VAT. Instead and due to changes in UK customs regulations, the VAT is now charged by the UK tax authority once your order arrives in the UK. You will be contacted by the shipping carrier (DHL, Fedex) who will ask you to process payment for the VAT before delivering your order to you. For further questions or queries please contact us by email at: email@example.com
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Please note that we cannot make deliveries to P.O. boxes. We ship Worldwide.
All orders are delivered using the shipping methods provided by this website. We offer free worldwide shipping on all orders over €250. You will receive a confirmation email from our website as soon as you have placed your order. You will then be notified via e-mail to your registered e-mail address when your order has been dispatched with tracking information for your package. If an order is placed on national holidays or weekends, it will be processed on the following working day.
MAKRI S.A. makes every effort to dispatch items within 10 working days, however we cannot guarantee specific delivery dates.
All our prices include the European VAT. All orders with shipping address located outside the EU are exempt of this tax and your tax discount will be calculated automatically at checkout.
All our products are shipped from Greece. If you place an order and the shipping address provided is located outside the EU, then please keep in mind that import duties and taxes may incur by the local custom office upon the package's arrival at the airport. We cannot determine beforehand what these duties will entail for each territory. For further information please contact your local tax authority.
Where we Ship
We ship Worldwide. Please note that we cannot make deliveries to P.O. boxes.
We have a very strict Returns Policy that lasts 7 calendar days. If 7 days have gone by since you received your order, and you have not notified us with your request for a return, then you will not be eligible for a refund. In some cases, we may accept to exchange your order for another item or credit note. To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it with the safety seal attached and in tact. It must also be in the original packaging.
We do not accept returns for refunds on pieces that are made-to-order. In some cases, we may accept to exchange it for another item. If the piece you ordered is not available in immediate stock then we will notify you by email that it will need to be made-to-order and await confirmation before proceeding with producing your piece. If we receive confIrmation that you would like to proceed with the order, then production will commence, alternatively a full refund will be applied automatically to your credit card or original method of payment.
We offer Free Worldwide shipping on all orders, however customers are responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your returned product to reach us may vary.
If you would like us to schedule the return for you, then please send us an email to firstname.lastname@example.com quoting your order number and we will send you a quote for returning your item(s) and this amount will be deducted from your refund (usually between €25-€50 depending on your territory)*.
If you choose to return the item using another shipping method, we propose using a trackable shipping service like DHL or Fedex or purchasing shipping insurance. We don't guarantee that we will receive your returned item.
To return your item, please ship to the below address:
10 KALAMIOTOU street
Athens Greece 10560
Once your return is received and inspected, we will send you an email to notify you that we have received your returned item. We will also notify you of the approval or rejection of your refund.
If you are approved, then your refund will be processed, and a credit will automatically be applied to your credit card or original method of payment, within a certain amount of days.
There are certain situations where only partial refunds are granted:
Any item not in its original condition, is damaged or missing parts for reasons not due to our error
Any item that is returned more than 15 days after delivery
Late or missing refunds
If you haven't received a refund yet, first check your bank account again.
Then contact your credit card company, it may take some time before your refund is officially posted.
Next contact your bank. There is often some processing time before a refund is posted.
If you've done all of this and you still have not received your refund yet, please contact us at email@example.com.
Sale & Discount items
Only regular priced items may be returned / refunded. We do not accept returns on items that are discounted or on sale.
We only replace items if they are defective or damaged. If you need to exchange it for the same item, send us an email at firstname.lastname@example.com and send your item to:
10 KALAMIOTOU street
Athens Greece 10560
Fine Jewelry
With proper care, fine jewelry has the potential to evolve into a cherished family heirloom. It requires love and meticulous attention to ensure its longevity, allowing it to be appreciated for generations to come.
For DIY jewelry cleaning, gently brush the piece with a very soft, small brush in lukewarm soapy water. Subsequently, delicately rinse it in lukewarm water and wipe it dry with a soft cloth.
Steer clear of contact with household bleach or cleaning products, as they can lead to the rapid discoloration and potential deterioration of gold. Additionally, avoid exposing your jewelry to hair spray, deodorants, and perfumes. It's advisable to remove your jewelry before swimming or bathing to maintain its integrity.
When your fine jewelry is not being worn, store it meticulously in its original pouch or box, or in another appropriately lined box or pouch. Ensure that the pieces do not touch to prevent scratching and maintain their pristine condition.
Exercise caution to shield your jewelry from impact against hard surfaces and refrain from contact with abrasive surfaces. Even diamonds can chip if subjected to sufficient force or struck at the right angle. Certain stones, like amethyst, emerald, opal, pearl, peridot, tanzanite, and tourmaline, are notably delicate and prone to abrasion. Enamel and ceramic finishes can chip or scratch upon impact. It's important to note that gemstones can scratch each other and contribute to wear on precious metals. Extreme temperatures, exposure to perfumes, cosmetics, ultrasonic cleaning, and contact with household chemicals can also result in damage to your jewelry.
For cleaning diamonds, prepare a gentle solution using six parts water to one part ammonia, and apply it using a soft bristle brush. This method helps maintain the brilliance of your diamonds without causing any damage.
Indeed, dust, pollution, and daily wear collectively contribute to dulling the brilliance of gemstones, while the surface of gold and silver jewelry can become muted over time. Additionally, well-used prongs and clasps may lead to the loss of a stone or even an entire piece of jewelry. Regular care and maintenance are essential to preserve the luster and structural integrity of your precious pieces.
We highly recommend bringing your Ileana Makri jewelry in for professional servicing, ideally as often as once a year. This ensures that your pieces are thoroughly checked, cleaned, and revitalized, maintaining their quality and longevity.
Sterling Silver Jewelry
Sterling silver is a precious metal and may require cleaning from time to time. With proper care, your silver will retain its beauty and character for many generations to come.
Sterling silver tarnishes, especially when exposed to salt air and products containing sulfur, such as rubber bands and some papers. However, silver that is regularly used typically needs less care, so we strongly encourage you to wear your silver every day.
To clean your silver jewelry, use a small amount of silver jewelry cleaner on a soft cloth and gently rub the silver several times. Then rinse the silver thoroughly in warm water and carefully dry. This will remove the tarnish and dullness, keeping your sterling silver like new. Please note: chlorine and bleach accelerate tarnishing and should be avoided. Once cleaned and polished, silver must be kept dry and properly stored.
Vermeil Plated Jewelry
Gold Vermeil is a thin layer of 18k gold, plated over a piece of solid Sterling Silver jewelry. Gold Vermeil will eventually wear off, revealing the silver beneath. Earrings and necklaces will keep their plating longer than rings. Plating will wear off faster on rings that are worn everyday. To minimize the wear of vermeil plating please avoid contact with water and rough surfaces. Plated jewelry does not tarnish like silver. If you would like to have your piece re-plated, please email us or bring your piece to our store for servicing. Customers are responsible for all shipping charges for re-plating.
Tarnish or darkening of the metal, is caused by oxidization of the surface layer of metal. It occurs over time with exposure to air and moisture. Wearing your jewelry in the water or during bathing will speed up tarnishing. Storing your jewelry in a dry airtight container will inhibit tarnish.
If you would like to clean your gold vermeil jewellery wash it with a small amount of gentle dish soap or non-chemical soap and warm water. Rinse it well and allow to dry on a cloth or paper towel. Use a soft, non-abrasive cloth or jewellery cloth and gently rub the surface in a circular motion to clean.
Oxidized Sterling Silver Jewelry
The color of oxidized silver is only on the surface; it's the top layer of the metal that takes on the blackened hue. Despite the best care, the oxidized finish will naturally wear off over time, revealing the true color of the silver.
Expect a gradual transformation in the appearance of your blackened silver piece, so it's advisable to be prepared for this evolution at the time of purchase.
Oxidized finishes tend to have a longer lifespan on items with minimal contact with their surroundings, such as earrings and necklaces. Rings and bracelets, due to frequent contact, may not maintain their color as effectively. Notably, blackened finishes applied to the recesses of a design retain their color better, creating a striking contrast with the polished raised parts that naturally evolve over time.
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Saturday, June 6, 2009
Teachers Reworking
Artist Clark Hulings recalls how the art teacher George Bridgman at the Art Student's League insisted on erasing student work and redrawing over it.
How do you feel about art teachers who draw on your work? Students are paying teachers for their expertise, and it's a privilege to own an example of a master's hand, right?
But it's also can feel like an act of vandalism. It can be infuriating if the teacher doesn't respect or understand what you were trying to accomplish. Should teachers ask permission? Should they do their drawing on the blank paper off to the side? If you have an opinion or a story, please share it.
More about Clark Hulings at clarkhulings.com.
Thanks, Alex!
62 comments:
- gayle said...
I am a newly graduated art teacher (k-12) and I almost always draw on another paper or the back. In my student teaching, my cooperating teacher would not only draw on the students' work, but she would complete entire sections. I could tell it bothered the students that you could an entire area of their work wasn't theirs (and it was usually obvious), so I promised myself I would never draw directly on their pieces. However, depending on the needs of the student, I will show directly on their piece how dark they could go, etc.
I realize this was an art school question, but I figure we start our drawing habits before we get to college and I've seen high school and middle school students expect the teacher to finish an entire piece for them because they were used to it or get overwhelmed because they can't get their work to the level of the teacher's example. A lot is learned through a little struggle. - June 6, 2009 at 9:23 AM
- Unknown said...
If your teacher draws all over your work, how are you supposed to learn how to do something?
I do remember a teacher painting eyes on one of those ready-made sculptures for me as an example. It was the kind of eye meant to be on a fluffy bunny and not a dragon, so I painted right on over her stuff anyway when I was doing the eyes on it :P - June 6, 2009 at 9:31 AM
- Matt said...
I had a professor who would do this during my college career and it was nothing but helpful. It matters greatly the context in which the teacher is helping. As a class we were all working on learning how to build an image out of shape and light using an eraser on cotton rag paper. It was confusing coming from a background in "line".
Also the professor only working on you piece after asking if it was ok.
I have no issue with someone working over my stuff anyway I guess. I could always go over it. - June 6, 2009 at 9:39 AM
- Kunst Kommt Von Können said...
One student (Franz Hein) of Ferdinand Keller(a famous 19th century german academic master) said the same about his teacher. It's difficult for me to translate it, but he wrote something like this:
Keller said: "Oh, give me the palette and brush" and then he painted with a beautiful swing in the shortest time the head or the body right. So the student can carry a "real Keller" home, but was seldom been able to continue their own work, because Keller couldn't communicate what he has done and so it was useless for the student. - June 6, 2009 at 9:47 AM
- John Calvin said...
I teach junior high, grades 7, 8, and 9, and I have a policy against drawing on student work. Reliance on a teacher to solve the hard parts teaches them to find somebody else to do it whenever the going gets tough. I like to tell my students that I'll show them how, but that I won't do it for them. I do draw on the chalkboard, and demonstrate by having my work projected by an overhead camera. I have drawn for students on separate pieces of paper, and in spite of my stated policy, have drawn on student work when they really appeared to be struggling. I have noticed that doing this even once can create the future expectation of having to do it again. It's a slippery slope.
On the other hand, in college, I had a professor say about my live figure drawing, "Let me see if I can pull this out of the fire." I saved and treasured my drawing that he re-worked for more than 20 years. - June 6, 2009 at 10:16 AM
- Björn said...
I have a friend who attended Florence Academy of Art as a sculpting student. While studying the teachers showed very little mercy upon the students creations -- One particular story he told me once involved him working on a 1:1 sculpt from a real life model. He'd been struggling a long in slow pace until in his second week where he got air under his wings and got up to pace. Feeling somewhat relieved and proud he asked his teacher for a critique, upon review the teacher took a large sculpting knife and CUT a shoulder / scapula part RIGHT off without mercy, without hesitation and uttered the words: Redo, do right.
I think discipline is something you can't learn, but it's something that you can nurture and something that if you want to be an ultra realistic artist, something you will need. - June 6, 2009 at 10:17 AM
- Melissa said...
I never had a teacher come by and wipe out a drawing completely. I think doing so would really limit the ability to learn on one's own.
I would have a teacher that would come by and draw on our drawing - usually blocking out an area that we were having trouble with. This I found was very helpful, since you could reference it as you where drawing. It did however make me feel like a chump for sweating over a face for an hour - and teach comes by and masses out the forms in a few pencil lines :) - June 6, 2009 at 10:53 AM
- Jean Spitzer said...
I think that even if the teacher asks permission first, it is far better to demonstrate on a separate sheet/on the back/in a small area of the paper than to draw on the student's drawing. The few times this happened to me, I found it demoralizing. Much better to be told what you're doing needs re-doing/isn't working/needs more work, still better for the teacher to elicit the criticism and a solution from you.
- June 6, 2009 at 11:18 AM
- Erik Bongers said...
I'll be brief.
I grabbed a teacher's wrist one time, right before he wanted to make a change to a painting I was making.
He never tried it again.
(although it could be that I didn't touch him at all and just blocked his move with a errm...karate move of my arm. Either way, he never tried it again) - June 6, 2009 at 11:28 AM
- Erik Bongers said...
Oh, my 'mentor' for my first comic book uses an 'overlay' of drafting film (velum?) on top of graphite drawings to trace my drawing and then make his own change on that.
For charcoal or a wet painting this would not work of course. - June 6, 2009 at 11:32 AM
- Steve said...
Thee are so many variables: age and stage of the students, their familiarity with the medium, their readiness to integrate what's been demonstrated. I feel it depends entirely upon the context. If it's a pencil or charcoal drawing, the "example" can probably be done off to the side. But when working in color, sometimes a minor adjustment within a piece is the most effective way to clarify everything. In that case, it would be much less effective for the instructor to show their example away from the actual piece. Either way, it needs to happen infrequently, on a small scale, and, ideally, with permission.
- June 6, 2009 at 11:37 AM
- Jean Wogaman said...
I had a teacher in college who would draw on my paper next to my drawing. The first time he did it I was a little taken aback, but then I began to see the value in having his drawing as a reference. I also noticed that he did it only when I was working on newsprint or cheap drawing paper. If I was using the good stuff, he'd draw on an old scrap.
- June 6, 2009 at 12:12 PM
- ashton said...
I had a professor who would do this occasionally. It didn't bother me until one day at the end of class we had all pinned our work on a board for critique. She started to compliment someone's work before she realized it was her own. Airhead.
- June 6, 2009 at 1:20 PM
- Hank said...
That's the big plus of digital painting and digital drawing: teachers can do overpaintings without destroying the students work.
If I see, how fast young artists improve their skills (watch all the digital art boards like
), how easy they can get help for everey WIP - then I know, what I missed as a student. Overpaintings are the best way to teach, I'm convinced. The student can compare his original work and the version, optimized by the teacher. Nothing is destroyed. I wonder, why this great technical possibility isn't used by all art teachers.
I guess, it's just a matter of time.. - June 6, 2009 at 1:38 PM
- Unknown said...
My teacher Jim had a good system down for working on our pieces. He used tracing paper or vellum for our anatomy/life drawings and either left it with us or tossed it. His instruction was in depth enough that a lot of times we just needed to see it once to retain the information and work alone. When it came to painting he DID work directly on top of our paintings once they were dry. He'd demo for maybe an hour, talking the entire time and pointing out which colors he mixed, how he achieved a certain effect, how he varied the opaque and transparency, etc etc. However when he was done with his demo, he would simply grab a cloth, dip it in linseed oil and wipe away the entire section he just did. In the beginning we were mortified because hell... there was one beautiful section to our paintings we could work to. But we learned to appreciate his method in not trying to influence our own work with his own style and take in what he told us and make it our own.
- June 6, 2009 at 1:54 PM
My parents bought me private lessons with a pastel artist when I was in middle school. She did most of the work for me and I came away feeling I had learned little. To my shame, my parents fawned all over those works and even framed them.
More recently, I took a watercolor class with a horrible, horrible painter who would draw and paint directly over my work and ruin it. I took great offense to that.
Myself, I would never draw directly on a student's work but would use a different piece of paper. I would tolerate this only from someone I hold in high regard, in which case I would get over myself and try to learn as much as possible from whatever teaching method they were used to. - June 6, 2009 at 2:10 PM
- kev ferrara said...
My mom went to pratt in the late 50s. In what seems like an effort to free the student from thinking of their art or art materials as precious, instructors would crumple the students drawing paper as they were working. Or would poke a hole through it with a pencil. While I don't think it would work for the overly sensitive, the method clearly worked for its purpose, at least on my mom, who has perfect freedom with materials to this day.
- June 6, 2009 at 2:52 PM
- Stephen James. said...
It can be intimidating when your teacher is standing over you, and you know they are about to swoop in.
- June 6, 2009 at 3:22 PM
- jeff said...
Erik you grabbed the instructors hand! That was way out of line. You should have politely said to him or her that you don't like having them draw on your drawing. This also shows me that you think way to highly of your abilities and if your were that good what are you doing in school?
I teach drawing and I use a small pad myself but sometimes I draw in the students pads always with permission.
If you did that to me I would ask you to leave my class for the day. I would also have a meeting with you and my department head. The subject would be you getting an automatic F getting physical and lack of respect.
Getting physical is a big no no. - June 6, 2009 at 3:46 PM
- jeff said...
I studied with Frank Mason and he would work on our paintings. Sometime I would get a great crit, some of which I still have and prize. Sometimes I just got lost in what he was doing. I never said no out of respect for his abilities and that was why I was there. If one had issues with his methods then one should not take the class.
Pretty simple, your in the class to learn.
That's kind of old school, but I learned a lot about painting and drawing with the brush from watching him paint on the students work. He was very tactile. You had to watch him, that was kind of the point you learned by taking it in.
Sometimes you watched and it made know sense at all. Then one day you were painting and all of the sudden you remembered what he did and it solved a particular problem. - June 6, 2009 at 4:00 PM
- Taj Nabhani said...
You're in Art SCHOOL to learn not to be vain about your creations. Plus if you can't do something more then once then you couldn't really do it.
- June 6, 2009 at 4:31 PM
- Random York said...
I wish I had had more confident teachers who had drawn and painted upon my page/canvas. I look back at my classes in college and the 2 professors that I think were worthwhile made no apologies for drawing right on top of my stuff. After all, they were the instructors and I could see immediately what they were trying to convey. Oddly, those were the 2 professors who were sacked out of all I had and it should have been the other way around. Oddly, also, those were 2 of the very few who actually made a living selling their work. One of the 2 I'm talking about had the gall to tell the art dept. chairman's son that he needed to "learn how to draw"... it was a glorious "Yes" moment... but, as I said , he was not rehired for the following semester.
- June 6, 2009 at 4:33 PM
- DPetersen said...
I was never a fan of the teacher drawing OVER my work or erasing. There were a few times that a life drawing instructor would use a red pencil and draw a line showing where the hip SHOULD extend to or the correct contour of something. I found this an acceptable way of doing it because I could still SEE my work and thus SEE my mistake.
I really like being able to go back over years worth of work and seeing my growth, and if my drawings were corrected by others, I can't do that.
Overlays or drawings on the side were my favorite methods. - June 6, 2009 at 4:37 PM
- Unknown said...
Wow! This question touched a nerve!
I remember having many conversations with fellow students. Some profs would do this and some would not. Some students liked it and some hated it.
For something like figure drawing from the model, where we aren't really expected to create finished drawings, I think it's fine. Maybe the prof could say, "Would you mind if I drew right on this?" I would treasure it as a memory.
For a finished project, I don't think it should have the teacher's work.
For younger kids, sometimes they want you to do more of it than you should. However, I once had a class of Emotional Support students. They were quite unruly. I started the year by offering to draw them anything they wanted if they would color it. Each week, I would do a little less of the drawing and have them finish. By the end of the year, I was doing hardly any drawing for them at all, and they were hooked on drawing. - June 6, 2009 at 5:07 PM
- Deborah said...
I remember years ago taking a workshop with a famous pastelist and having him come to my easel, pick up a piece of charcoal and feather over the layers of pastel I had in place. This resulted in a glossy spot that looked like the sheen of water I had been striving to achieve. He then added three or four jots of a pale color into my dark forest, bringing it alive and creating depth, and walked off without a word. I dove in and used the techniques he had shown me. No words could have given me what his additions did, in my opinion.
I teach weekly pastel classes to adult students and to this day I will dab in a color or scribble a stroke to show them what I think will help or inspire. I'm never offended if someone changes it--it's their painting, not mine--and I'm not deriving ego strokes from the help I give. Very often with my advanced students, many of whom are professionals or semi-pros, I'll simply ask if they want "a push," and they know what that means. Only occasionally will they say, "Not right now." I respect their artwork, but my teaching style includes showing visual artists how to do things by example. - June 6, 2009 at 5:30 PM
- S. Weasel said...
Students are WAY too precious about their work. Life drawings in particular are workmanlike exercises; you're supposed to learn something.
If you want to get somewhere, you have to get over yourself as early as possible.
Serious students, I mean. Kids and hobbyists can do what they like :) - June 6, 2009 at 6:55 PM
- Scale said...
I'm more perplexed by the fact they erase before correcting. As useful as the eraser is I think it can be harmful to use it on studies like the ones in the movie.
I am mostly self-taught and pencil is one of my favourite media, and I have been "addicted" to the eraser for a long time. When I finally forced myself to do without it I realized that it was hiding tons of problems. There were parts of the anatomy that I knew much less than I thought I did, but I had never noticed because I just redrew them two or three times every time I made a mistake, without even realizing that I had to try three times in a row before getting it right. Erasing made me much less aware of my mistakes and limits.
Also being unable to compare the wrong version to the corrected version is not nice, that kind of comparison is useful to learn spotting future errors in the early stages of a picture, and also as a reminder to avoid repeating errors.
This for basic figure studies at least. For painting I don't seem to have the same issue, I tend to remember mistakes even if they get erased. Maybe it is just because mistakes in painting take much more time to both make and to fix. - June 6, 2009 at 7:10 PM
- Shawn Escott said...
My instructor from the Lyme Academy, Deane G. Keller, would do smaller drawings in the side margins or bottom corners of the paper. We would work on 18x24" pads so he always had some room to do sketches. He never erased or drew over our drawings. He would politely explain what wasn't working and how to fix it, while keeping our integrity and hard work in tact. I think this is a great way to teach because the student can see his drawings and the corrections and then go back, sometimes years later, to review his notes. I posted a page of Deane's drawings here: http://www.shawnescott.com/blog/deanegkeller.jpg He was a master and I miss him greatly.
- June 6, 2009 at 10:01 PM
- Nicole Cardiff said...
I've never minded - those of my teachers that have drawn off to the side of my newsprint to show me what I was doing wrong were usually the most instructive. I cherish the few critique partners that will do digital overpaints, too; they're more time-consuming than words, but there's no more eloquent way to state exactly what you think should be changed about a piece than a visual demonstration.
- June 6, 2009 at 11:08 PM
- Kendra Melton said...
When it specifically comes to figurative art I'm all for teachers ripping what I do apart. Sometimes you can tell something is wrong but you can't figure out what it is or how to correct the issues. I could see people having a problem with a teacher erasing out of something they were already heavily rendering. But in that instance I would think the teacher should have offered help a little earlier in the preliminary stages.
On the other hand, when it comes to final Illustrations a couple of my teachers use to make us turn projects in with tracing paper on top so they could draw over the image and show you where the weak/strong points were. I think that's the best method for finished pieces. In the end its less invasive and no one gets offended.
(sorry if this is repetitive I didn't have time to read the multitude of other comments) - June 7, 2009 at 1:24 AM
- Matt Rigg said...
David Bluestein, probably the best teacher I've had, would use post-it notes over our work when he was trying to demonstrate something. It was far more useful than just erasing or drawing over, because you can compare and contrast.
I would get extremely annoyed if my work was erased and redrawn. It does not at all help. - June 7, 2009 at 1:34 AM
- Erik Bongers said...
To Jeff.
You're right of course. Never get physical with a teacher.
But to put things in perspective. We all had to 'block him off' as he was known to have ruined many students' work. It was standard practice and not even considered an issue. (ButI shouldn't have boasted about it on this blog.)
But don't conclude from this that I (or my class mates) were overly satisfied with our work.
I think many artist can relate to the thought: "My work is rubbish, but don't touch it!" - June 7, 2009 at 4:55 AM
- Larry said...
Jack Ruge was one of my drawing teachers. He would come around the class with a large pad of tracing paper. If he wanted to correct your draftsmanship, he would place a piece over your drawing and show you where you went wrong.
- June 7, 2009 at 6:28 AM
- Mark Heng said...
I think it's fine to draw on a blank bit of the paper if it's just an instructional life drawing session. That should give the student something to compare their own work to. By the same token, simply fixing a student's drawing doesn't allow them to see the difference between their mistake and the correct observation.
Projects for presentation, however, should bear only the hand of the artist! - June 7, 2009 at 7:54 AM
- badbot said...
i have experienced this a few times ( someone who draw over my work ) and each time i feel a little demoralized at first... but really happy and re-ernergized at the end.
I think the fact of seeing someone who's better draughtsmen than you work over a piece of yours is very instructive, cause for each area that caused you trouble, you see someone get the right thing on it.
to me it's a sure way to learn faster, and in a very efficient way.
student should'nt be shocked by art teachers drawing over there pieces. Some of them can be very promising draughtsmen, some of them a bit too precious about there work ( as S.Weasel said ), some of them quite closed to criticism... But there are all here to learn. - June 7, 2009 at 9:36 AM
Hated this in high school - although most of it wasn't me thinking my work was precious (occasionally it was though). I actually had a year 12 Head of the Art Dept. Teacher, who; while she knew I had no interest in her drawing my work for me, would sit down with students and paint whole sections of their final pieces. As she also was the one to choose which final pieces were submitted for the best of the state show, this was kind of a conflict of interest. Also, this was the teacher who after I signed the form for my final folio of work stating that it was entirely my own work (which it was) prior to it being submitted for the tertiary entrance exam marking WENT THROUGH MY FOLIO AND CHANGED THINGS AND THEN LET ME KNOW ALL ABOUT IT LATER. Sorry for the all-caps, but I am really disgusted that she committed fraud and knowing I didn't want to make those layout changes (and she said that after, I kid you not) took it upon herself to do them after I'd signed off on it.
I'm finishing off a BA of Design (illustration major) now (that one abhorrent high school art teacher luckily was an aberration so I wasn't put off drawing), and while I love some of my teachers and friends work, I wouldn't want it mixed with mine for anything other than a stated collaboration. I mean, my major stream coordinator who is also my tutor in illustration takes a pencil and asks if she can doodle over out layout designs occasionally if she's suggesting other compositional ideas, but she's not interested in drawing out work for us. I like that a lot, because I think you learn better foundations for the long run working your mind around the ways to work their suggestions into your work, rather than it being done for you.
Plus, I mean, we're so exposed to others work anyway; I think individual style perhaps also develops better if teachers don't have students mimic their own solutions to a problem, and let students do a bit of mental contortion to figure things out for themselves sometimes. Or maybe I just like over-thinking things.
Sorry if this is a bit rant-like – this is a bit of a hot-button issue for me because of my experience with that teacher, who I think betrayed the unspoken contract between students and teachers, apart from just the fact that she also committed fraud as well (signing off on the student pieces she'd painted sections of as well that it was all the students work). This whole thing still leaves me with a sour taste in my mouth about four years later, and I'm usually a pretty up-beat person. - June 7, 2009 at 11:18 AM
- Smurfswacker said...
Fred Fixler used a tracing paper overlay on drawings. I found that extremely useful because I could compare his version to mine and really understand what he was talking about. Later I could keep the overlay for reference.
It's not that simple when on paintings. You can't really do an overlay (though I heard of an oil painting teacher who painted on acetate--dunno how he kept from smearing the original). Fred painted on one of my pieces to show me what to do...later I repainted it (nowhere near as well) and felt justified calling it my work. Another piece Fred pretty much repainted. I learned a lot from watching him but I never felt the painting was mine, even though a lot of "me" was still there in the finish.
Here I'd like to put in a word for respect. Having a teacher "tear a piece apart" is always somewhat humiliating, even if you learn much from the critique. However it's unnecessary to add sarcasm, ridicule or insult as some instructors do: "What the hell do you call this? That isn't a nose! Come on, give me that!" (Teacher grabs drawing and proceeds to make it look like the he drew it himself). - June 7, 2009 at 7:36 PM
- i, me said...
I am chiming in a little late, but I studied all my teachers painted (or drew over my work at the art students league, with the exception of one who drew to the side. the lessons of seeing your own work corrected are invaluable.
I also agree with the 'precious' comments - you are learning a process, not making a thing. when you start to fall in love with your little moments of perfection you're sending a message to your sub conscious that its an accident rather than an ability. - June 7, 2009 at 9:01 PM
- i, me said...
Erik: I think you have no business learning from that teacher, especially since its a voluntary thing. (no one forces you to take a class). you seem 'proud' that you intimated your teacher. You probably also stopped him from teaching you.
- June 7, 2009 at 9:04 PM
I am currently a student at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and my friends and I have discussed this issue quite a few times. I have had teachers work directly on my paintings, drawings and sculptures. Sometimes I appreciate it immensely and other times I resent it in equal measure. When my objective is to produce a working study aimed at improving in any number of technical regards, it is fair game. However, when I am aiming to produce a work which will showcase my accumulated skill and personal view, it should not be worked over by anyone else...after all, it will carry my signature. I think both are important diagnostics which should be incorporated into the curriculum.
The long and short of this issue, in my opinion, is that communication between the student and teacher is necessary. It is even more important that the objectives of the work be clear and agreed upon by both of them.In my experience this line is far too blurry for either party to behave appropriately. - June 7, 2009 at 9:09 PM
- Chinami said...
I had a teacher who used to competely take over if I asked him for any advice. He would sometimes get really into drawing or painting over over my work and he forget that I was still standing at his side. He never really explained what he was doing. This really irritiated me and I never felt that my work was truly my own if had helped it.
My current teacher always explains the why and how behind what he is doing. He always will show me how to do things on a seperate peices of paper, which I really apreciate. - June 7, 2009 at 11:30 PM
Everyone's being too hard on Erik. The teacher shouldn't have violated his personal space by working on his drawing without his permission.
- June 8, 2009 at 10:57 AM
- alberto said...
I honestly think that it's ok for a teacher to do so. The best figure drawing teacher that I've ever had(@Ringling School of Art & Design) would do it, not all the time but when needed and in front of the whole class.
He took my charcoal drawing, put in on an easel in front of the class. Spoke about what worked(sometimes he would draw right next to it) and what didn't and to illustrate how to unify shadows he went ahead and wiped his hand across the whole thing ,unified it then drew on it. Of course it shocked me and the rest of the class but not only did it show me how it made it better but also to not get too attached to the work. I think that's also a very important lesson. When you get too attached you stunt your growth and tend not to take chances to discover new things. That and if you're going to be an illustrator or work in any commercial art field it helps not to get too attached when clients want changes made.
Again, he didn't do it all the time but when he did it it was great. His name is Fiore Custode and the man is truly a master. - June 8, 2009 at 12:08 PM
- i, me said...
meridith when you're working on studies in class it's a given that your work is subject to alternation.
One of the problems with art schools these days (other than the complete lack of teaching in most accredited uni. schools) is this attitude. Its to the point where in many classes teachers are afraid to even criticize - especially in pay as you go ateliers - because sometimes they tell students what they dont' want to hear.
i have a few studies that my teacher (a quite well known name and excellent painter) worked over. I can see where he took my work - and seeing that happen with something YOU started but cant' get to is an invaluable aid.
I have also seen another great teacher at the League take a carefully worked piece a friend was working on and totally wipe it out and simpfliy - it was EXACTLY what my friend needed because he was fretting and worrying over every stroke... from that day forward his painting improved ten fold. - June 8, 2009 at 12:53 PM
- marctaro said...
There are MANY artists I'd want to paint over my work - living and dead. I think it comes down to if you want to learn from the artist in question more than you want to admire your latest piece. I feel it's an important step for an artist to learn that a single work is insignificant in the long view...if you can't re-create the art reliably, you haven't mastered the process.
- June 8, 2009 at 3:18 PM
- PixelFish said...
Um....I don't like anybody touching my actual work, except me. (Unless it is known to be collaborative from the get go.) Had I been in that student's shoes, I would have been offended.
Of course, if the instructor asks if he can demonstrate on your piece, that's polite, and you can say no, or you can ask him if he could demonstrate on a blank piece of paper. (And as somebody pointed out, sometimes it REALLY does help to see a technique
Honestly, I think when a teacher starts drawing over their student's work, it becomes more about their ego as an artist, and less about their teaching. If they are to impart their knowledge, the proof of it should be in their students' ability to paint without the teacher's hand on the brush.
Now, THAT said, one thing I find incredibly useful is the "paintover" done digitally. On one art site I participate on, very often people will crop a section and do a quick and very rough paintover to show what they mean: if the anatomy is off, if the composition is weighted too heavily to one side, if the colours are too disparate. It is very common to see this in the crit sections but A) the original file hasn't been changed B) the work still needs to be replicated by the original artist C) the original artist can choose NOT to implement it, and D) it's more of a guide or a suggestion, not a DO IT THIS WAY OR ELSE! - June 8, 2009 at 3:20 PM
- treplovski said...
I've also heard that Bridgman would reel back and spit on his students' drawings if they particularly offended him.
My high schoolart teacher, whom I respected greatly, would occasionally ask "may I?" and take the charcoal to indicate a correction to a student work, and we all being highscoolers still intimidated by authority, would allow him to redraw the area. Except me. The one time he asked me, "May I?" I hesitated for a second and then asked if he'd mind drawing on a separate piece of paper so I could compare. He felt this was a good compromise and afterwards I noticed more of my classmates requesting the same. - June 8, 2009 at 6:46 PM
Everyone's being rather harsh on Erik but I have to say in a similar situation where the teacher just dashed in and tried to scribble on my paper I would probably do something very similar. I probably wouldn't grab the teacher's hand, but I'd definitely raise a hand in a "stop!" motion to block him/her.
Personal space is important to me and that extends to my drawing paper. The teacher can try to point something out that I'm missing by comparing my drawing with the model, offer suggestions, or demonstrate on another paper, but they SHOULD NOT be touching my paper.
Then again, most or all of my teachers have generally recognized that I work best when they mostly leave me alone, and so I tend not to get many comments on pieces before a finished critique. It's more common for me to finish early, and end up going round and offering suggestions on fellow student's work while chatting. And I never, ever draw on someone's paper. If I have to demonstrate a line, I mark it in the air above the drawing or on another sheet of paper. I think it's terribly rude to invade someone's space like that and claim the drawing as your own by marking all over it. - June 8, 2009 at 11:55 PM
In college I had a sports coach who got great results, despite his physically and verbally abusive methods.
While the example of a teacher drawing on one's work without asking doesn't quite meet the definition of abuse, it's worth remembering that results aren't the only measure of a good teacher. - June 9, 2009 at 2:02 PM
- i, me said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- June 10, 2009 at 11:29 AM
- Christy Morgan B said...
Well, my college teachers will usually rework my things on tracing paper, on roughs they may draw to the side of it.
On occasion my figure drawing teacher would draw over my shorter 5minutes and under sketches. I didn't mind this too much since you are suppose to draw tons of short sketches and it cant hurt to lose a few. If a drawing had problems it is better to see a teacher correct than hang on to it only to throw it away later.
Im not sure if drawing over the work would be appropriate for younger students, I remember in grade school I didn't understand it when teachers did that and would take offense instead of leaning from it. - June 10, 2009 at 12:39 PM
- Mark Vander Vinne said...
I was struggling with the rendering of a foot in oil painting class. The teacher walked up, picked up a brush and painted one in for me, quickly explaining the planes of the foot as he did so. To see it was helpful, but I was really proud of the piece and his style of painting was not mine, so it infuriated me. Also, I already knew that he knew how to draw and paint feet, I wanted to know that I could do it. So I scraped his off and painted my own version of it using what he told me. It always bothered me that he didn't ask first.
When conducting workshops and classes I keep those feelings of anger in mind and never draw on another persons art. (Though once I was tempted.) I find a blank sheet or canvas somewhere and demonstrate for them what I want them to learn, but I don't do it for them on their work. - June 10, 2009 at 3:30 PM
- Unknown said...
Really enjoy the blog here! I have read all the comments. I think the key words here are 'in the classroom' where you are the student. It's not like you are in your own studio working on what you believe to be the next masterpiece of the art world. You are a student taking a class from someone with more experience. You are there to learn from them. I learned more from my professors coming by and correcting my work and showing me 'how it should be done' in their own hand next to my feable attempt. It's not just the correction of the drawing but watching them execute it that I learned even more. Even if it was just the way they moved their hand working on the exact same spot I had been painstakingly trying to execute was invaluable to me.
- January 23, 2010 at 12:56 PM
- Prettylines said...
- This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
- July 31, 2010 at 6:34 PM
- Prettylines said...
I'm surprised, after reading so many posts/comments that this approach did not come up:
As the teacher in my classroom, I will often work and help on exercises and thumbnails/sketches...but stay away from their final works.
My students never work straight to a final---we do many, many exercises that are just that--excercises. We use them as learning experiences and the students aren't as personally attached to the piece, but MORE to the Experience and Process....then they can OWN their own FINAL works...as I nurture their growth. - July 31, 2010 at 6:35 PM
- James Gurney said...
Nightlanding, that seems the most sensible to me, too. Doing a thumbnail sketch to clarify a point is a great help. It's like a movie director may try to talk indirectly about what they want out of the character, rather than actually trying to tell the actor the exact inflection they want on the lines of dialog.
- August 2, 2010 at 2:35 PM
- knoxblox said...
New to the blog, but late to the post...
My instructor and mentor was Betty Dickerson, student of B.J.O. Nordfeldt, and wife of William Dickerson - who in turn was part of the Prairie Print Makers. Due to Bill's associations, I strongly suspect she also had learned a few things from Edward Hopper and Birger Sandzen, too.
When I joined her class, I was only 15, and remember she drew an entire hand on my first drawing of a long pose. I was pretty meek at the time, and didn't speak up.
As my skills advanced, she started to make thumbnail sketches off to the side, or on another piece of paper to explain the point she was making.
Quite often she would drag me by the hand up to the model and start drawing directly on her skin at certain points to emphasize shadow or points of musculature. I've never met another teacher who has done that.
I remember once taking on a difficult position behind a prone model, which put her upside down in relationship to the top of the canvas. Betty thought it was amusing, and dashed off a little stick-figure of me feverishly sweating behind the easel, the model lazily smoking a cigarette in front. We laughed pretty hard over that one, and I still have it in my portfolio.
Betty didn't draw or paint often in her later years, and now that she's gone, I really wish I had more examples of her instruction to consult. - August 29, 2010 at 1:55 AM
- Poetry Man said...
Interesting question... I think it is sensible to know your students. If you do that, it is a lot easier to know whether or not they would want you marking over their piece. Personally I wouldn't invade someones sheet without asking first.
using a spare paper is an obvious alternative. - November 24, 2010 at 1:00 AM
- Unknown said...
I know this is an older post, but I had one teacher like that in college and it really irritated me - and I told him so, several times. I would go to extreme lengths to try and make sure his bush or pencil didn't get to whatever I was working on. It kinda became a running joke.
My main problem with a teacher drawing or painting over my work is that I am supposed to be learning something - and I'm a visual and tactile learner. Someone else doing something to "correct" my work , or show me a "better way" to do something never helped me understand what was wrong in the first place. Sometimes I couldn't see what what was wrong, and someone coming in (without my permission) and "fixing it" (especially if they were just fixing it so it would conform to how they would have painted it)just left more confused.
I learn much better if something is simply pointed out to me and then I actively try and fix whatever it was that was wrong. That way I see the correlation between what I did wrong and what I did to fix it.
But I think that everyone learns differently (my sister is the exact opposite of me) and a part of their responsibility as an artist and a student is to understand themselves: how they learn, how they communicate, how they see, etc. Then they have to figure out how the make the most of whatever learning environment they are in. I think it's the teacher's responsibility to open doors; a teacher should never take the stance of "my way is the best and you have to do it my way if you want to succeed".
I think it's great to be able to learn from master artists, but the point isn't, or shouldn't, be to draw or paint like them; it's to become and be true to the artist that it is in you to be. I think artist are always pushing towards that goal, or they should.
Anyway. I was fortunate to only have to struggle with one of those teachers, so it could have been worse. - December 6, 2011 at 10:47 AM
- Unknown said...
I attended art school in LA at Chouinard in the 60s. It was a wake up call to see all the talented kids that were there from all over the US. My life drawing teachers were Watson Cross and Herbert Jepson. I liked having them draw on my work. It was when I learned the lesson that at best most of our work is just shavings on the floor when working on the bigger piece...our art careers.
- November 6, 2016 at 5:24 PM
- x said...
In the beginning of my learning I ended up with a painter/teacher who would work over our pieces if we had trouble with an area, whether anatomical, about shapes, values, temperatures, etc. I didn't like his ways because I never learned anything from someone reworking over my errors. In the end I understood that he did it because he was unable to explain clearly, logically. Even his reworking on my self-portrait were off, the head he did was too big, but he didn't care enough about his students' learning.
Fast forward. I later took an alla prima portrait workshop with Dorian Valejo. On the 3rd day I was having trouble with our final assignement. What he did, he asked for my panel to do a demo for me. I erased my useless attempt (I could also have pulled out another painting pannel, but what I had done that day wasn't worth saving). And he did a demo for me on this pannel dedicated to this purpose. I saved the demo as such, never working over it. This way I have an example to refer to. I really appreciated his way of showing me how to correct my mistakes. - November 6, 2016 at 5:53 PM
- Capt Elaine Magliacane said...
I never attended Art school, and the workshops I've attended nobody attempted to draw on my work... HOWEVER, I used to instruct dog training classes, where I was teaching the owner's to train their dogs... let me tell you it is WAY easier for me to train the dog, than to train the PEOPLE to train the dog. In the beginning I had 'Gimme that dog' moments where I'd take the dog and use it to demonstrate how to teach an untrained dog how to sit for example. In short order, due to my skill with dogs and my method of training, and because the dog didn't know me and so was probably wary of an obvious alpha person... the dog would quickly learn the lesson and show quick progress... handing the leash back to the owner however I realized the owner hadn't learned anything, and the dog quickly reverted to behavior he knew he could get away with. Eventually, I broke myself of taking people's dogs and using them as demo dogs... it wasn't helpful to the dog, or the student. I think an art teacher that draws over a students work... is doing the same thing, and the student resents it and doesn't learn much from having the experience.
- November 6, 2016 at 8:20 PM


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