By Nishant Kothary CHAPTER 12In fact, when we attempt to draw the chair, it is our pre-existing
knowledge deliberately sabotaging our hand. Edwards continues, “The left
hemisphere (of the brain) has no patience with this detailed perception and
says, in effect, it’s a chair, I tell you. That’s enough to know. In fact, don’t
bother to look at it, because I’ve got a ready-made symbol for you. Here
it is; add a few details if you want, but don’t bother me with this looking
business.”
The key to Edwards’ drawing instruction method is that she focuses on
teaching her students how to temporarily turn off visual processes like size
constancy. Put another way, Edwards teaches her students how to see what
is rather than what their brain thinks is. There’s a subtle, but profound
difference between the two, one that some individuals often stumble upon
naturally. For the rest of us, there’s Edwards’ method. It is so effective that
my wife was able to dramatically improve her self-portrait after following
just a few pieces of advice in Edwards’ book.
Now consider that size constancy is just one of thousands of silent
neurological and physiological processes that are involved in the proper
functioning of the human being. And, unlike size constancy, we don’t have
the ability to access them or turn them off. In fact, our proper functioning
relies on these processes working non-stop behind the scenes. When
combined with our own personal experiences, these processes play a major
My wife’s first attempt at a self-portrait (left); my wife’s attempt at a
self-portrait after 15 minutes of instruction from Edwards’ book (right).