lowenfeld stages of artistic development in his book titled creative and mental growth the art educator and psychologist victor lowenfeld describes an individual's artistic stages of development which are akin to children's developmental patterns as lowenfeld says these developmental stages are not merely developmental stages in art but are developmental stages in the whole growth pattern and that the art product is merely an indication of this total growth lowenfeld claims there are seven artistic developmental stages beginning at age two namely one scribble stage two pre-schematic stage three the schematic stage four the dawning realism stage five the age of reason six the period of decision stage and 7 the adult stage let me briefly sketch each stage below scribble stage from 2 to 4 years old four distinct behaviors can be observed during the scribbling stage namely manipulation uncontrolled marking controlled marking and planned or named marking according to lowenfeld making in the scribbling stage is often accidental artwork in this stage will include bang dots slash marks mandalas and open shapes the creation of art is about kind aesthetic movement and the manipulation of materials rather than what is put on the page additionally at this stage children are able to recognize certain colors but rarely choose colors for specific purposes towards the end of this stage marks become more organized and children become more involved in the making of their artwork the transitional benchmark for this stage is the creation of closed shapes in addition to the naming of scribbles because of the rapid development of sensory and motor functions around this age progression through this stage will happen more quickly than the others as children develop they will begin to make connections between their actions and the marks that they create children at this stage will also begin to understand the notion of right and wrong along with other simple words and phrases allowing them to verbally communicate while creating their art pre-schematic stage from four to seven years old according to lowenfeld artwork in the pre-schematic stage is indicative of a child's proclivity to draw representationally here images begin to resemble symbols but these may only be understood by the child also drawings created during this stage are often about elements of nature and fill the entire paper lowenfeld notes that letters and numbers will begin to appear as elements of children's drawings at this time colors may also begin to be more realistic than they were in artwork of younger artists additionally shapes drawn are floating and there is no baseline evident the benchmark for this stage is the creation of tadpole people that is figures without necks and with arms sprouting from the head according to lowenfeld children at this stage have difficulty differentiating between fantasy and reality which led them to create an alternate view of the world around them they are able to regulate their own behavior and may comply when sharing is necessary additionally distinct personality traits emerge around this age as they begin to compare themselves with others the schematic stage from seven to nine years old lowenfeld believes that artwork created during the schematic stage is used as a tool for visual communication young artists develop specific schemas to portray objects but it must be noted that children at this stage still tend to be more interested in the process of making art rather than the final product lowenfeld notes that a key characteristic and the benchmark at this level is the use of a baseline either visual or assumed or simply a more organized space the child at this stage may also begin to show depth in their drawings additionally the colors used are based on what the object actually looks like rather than having been arbitrarily chosen around this age as lowenfeld believes children begin to develop thought processes similar to those of adults although they are not yet able to think abstractly motor skills and hand-eye coordination are well developed at this stage which allows children to create artwork that is easily understood by others figures are created by either contour outlines or stacking shapes and what is created is symbolic rather than realistic although both the face and body are drawn accurately everything is only seen straight on the challenge of larger forms is resolved through foldout drawings x-ray drawings multiple viewpoint drawings and bird's eye views lastly the themes of children's drawings revolve around narratives at this stage the dawning realism stage from 9 to 11 years old out of the dawning realism stage according to lowenfeld marks the transition from art is purely symbolic to art as a creative outlet lowenfeld believes that children at this stage will focus on developing an expertise in art and may often get frustrated throughout the process artists may begin to depict the subjects from multiple viewpoints and often multiple bass lines are shown color is true to life in drawings from this star ge but elements of fantasy and illusion may be included in the form of world making often oftentimes during this stage young artists will make certain aspects of a piece extremely detailed and resolve the remaining space with shorthand symbols the details of the piece rather than the objects as wholes are viewed as the identifying features and much of the focus of the artist is guided by this ideal additionally artists at this stage begin to change the size of objects depending on their location which allows for the illusion of a receding space it is important to note that for lowenfeld children at this stage have the ability to think logically allowing them to find multiple ways to solve problems also individuals develop personal sets of rules and govern themselves based on those rather than what has been set forth by adults additionally children at this stage place great emphasis on their social interaction often times negatively comparing themselves to others the age of reason from 11 to 13 years old according to lowenfeld children begin to think abstractly around this age coordination and physical growth often fall out of alignment at this time hindering the artist's ability to create what he believes he should be capable of additionally children at this age begin to favor same-sex friendships rather than those of opposing sexes often relating to issues of self-esteem during the age of reason many children discontinue their formal artistic education an increased focus is placed on the final product rather than the creative process and oftentimes young artists are dissatisfied with their artwork artists in this stage of development will pay greater attention to the proportions of elements in their work the creation of three-dimensional space and the use realistic color at this stage as lowenfeld believes artists prefer to draw from observation rather than imagination an increase in experimentation with both materials and concepts occur artists also have a strong interest in depicting the human figure at this time this stage has also been referred to in part as pseudo-naturalistic in response to the adult-like naturalism of their drawings the period of decision stage from 14 to 17 years old throughout this stage of development according to lowenfeld young artists begin to make art with an adult perspective although it is possible for all young artists to continue to this point one must want to improve their artistic abilities through interpreting the world with a creative process adolescents begin to approach their work as a mature artist would the subjects of artwork at this stage vary depending on the interest of the artist and may range from extremely realistic to abstract artists in this stage also tend to be motivated by social issues emotions or improving their own techniques allowing for individualistic styles to emerge artists at this stage may experiment with various mediums to achieve a single goal space color and design elements are well understood at this point and are used to create innovative artwork adolescents are able to render drawings from memory rather than strictly from observation the belief that each individual is unique both in body and thought becomes prominent at this time and often dictates the adolescent's emotions the adult stage from 17 years old up according to lowenfeld this stage is a continuation of the period of decision stage which includes artists that have continued to involve themselves in the creative process here individualistic style is further developed and skill is continuously improved also the creation of artwork in this stage involves introspective reflection to create pieces that reflect the artist's personal voice lastly just as in the previous stages attainment of this level of skill is dependent upon the artists will to continue their involvement in the arts but it must be noted that not all adults will have the basis to perform at the level a mature artist is capable of