Marla Olmstead (1)
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School
Youngstown State University *
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Course
2648
Subject
English
Date
Apr 3, 2024
Type
Pages
5
Uploaded by Kenzielhurst
Mackenzie Hurst
Part 1: A brief summary of Marla Olmstead
1). Marla is a 4 year old child who is well known for her outstanding paintings
which go beyond what a normal four year old would typically paint. Her paintings
are so well known that others are spending thousands of dollars just to purchase
one, she has sold 24 paintings and has made $40,000 in a short amount of time.
Marla’s painting journey began at just three years old while watching her father,
Mark, paint which she was interested in and asked to join. Mark had then allowed
her to take the paint “and have at it.” 2). Marla was first seen in social media as a
journalist, Elizabeth, was given a tip that there was a little girl which he would be
introducing to his art gallery. Elizabeth had written the story which would later be
picked up from the New York Times leading to lots of press about Marla and her
paintings in news articles and appearances in the news. 3). Marla's parents had
played a major role in advancing her artistic career such as allowing her art to be
on display, letting the news and media have an inside view as to how their child
creates her art. 4). Marla’s artistic journey began at three years old when she had
created a painting which was then given to a family friend who had owned a coffee
shop. The painting was hung which later the parents were informed that they
should add price tags given that many people wanted to purchase the painting. At
four years old her paintings were shown at an art gallery which all of them were
sold on top of a waitlist for more of her paintings. 5). Marla's fame had grown
strong, through the media she was able to amaze others with her paintings and
create a college fund for herself at the age of four. However, with that being said,
being in the news is not always glorious. With her new found fame for her
paintings the media began to pick at the paintings and information which was
released to the public. They then began to point out and discuss that the family
could be scamming others that her father was the real artist in the family. With the
beauty of showing the media many different creations also comes the dark side of
media. 6). Looking at Marla’s parents' perspective I understand both of their
views. Marla’s father is comfortable with allowing the press to see how wonderful
his daughter's paintings are, allowing brand deals such as crayola. However, I also
understand her mothers point of view at limiting the fame and social media to
provide a somewhat normal childhood for Marla. A lesson that I have learned is to
allow children to express themselves freely throughout art as it could be their gift.
Allowing the child to do so freely without the feeling of it being forced upon them
to demand.
Part 2:
Questions for Responding to the Video on Marla
1.
How would you describe Marla to someone who may not know her?
If I were to describe Marla to someone who has not heard her story I would begin
by explaining that she is a child who has become a well known artist. She began
her journey at the age of 3, painting with her dad. At the age of four her paintings
were put on display at an art gallery which were all sold out and a waitlist benign
created for her paintings.
2.
Why do you think so many people expressed interest in Marla’s paintings?
I think there are a wide variety of reasons for which people express interest in
Marla’s paintings. A lot of individuals enjoy her paintings as they see a story in
them such as a tiny door which was expressed in the video. Others have heard
Marla’s story about painting with her father in her diaper and it reminds them of
their childhood or highly enjoys the story of their family.
3.
Describe the general nature, content and characteristics of Marla’s paintings
by describing their general features.
Marla’s paintings are all different and unique from each other. Her paintings
typically display many different color paints which her parents have provided to
her. She also uses different tools to create textures such as using a roller for the
base layer, it has been seen that she uses her hands to move the paint around the
canvas, her father had told news reporters that she will use a spatula to create some
of her artwork, along with paint brushes.
4.
Is Marla a child prodigy or not? Provide reasons to support your answer.
No, Marla is not a child prodigy. With the help and guidance of her father Marla
does nothing out of the ordinary with how a four year old paints. When painting by
herself she uses objects or her hands to simply move the paint around rather than
create the line work which can be seen in most of her paintings.
5.
Describe two scenarios in the video where Marla’s paintings appear to
reinforce or challenge what we’ve read about the modernists and
Lowenfeld's characteristics of children’s art .
Based on Lowenfeld’s characteristics of children’s art Marla is at the stage of
development where she scribbles, she is able to create a story that goes
along with the painting, along with the preschematic stage such as creating
more circular motions, creating animals ect. Based on Marla's paintings
she has created a more mature image of these stages. Her paintings contain
none to almost no white space, her lines look more controlled than how a
four year old should be at her stage with having little to no control over
motor activity.
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6.
Do you think Marla was responsible for all the paintings her parents
claim she did? Provide strong two evidence to support your answer.
No, I believe that Marla was not responsible for all of her paintings. I feel that
after seeing the painting which Marla had completed on her own, seeing
the painting from which her father had guided her, and seeing the painting
sold are dramatically different. When seeing the painting that Marla had
created on video by herself and seeing the paintings which have been sold
they are different in the way the paint is spread out, the line work, and
techniques used. I feel that her father has played a major part in adding to
the paintings if not done them himself. Along with that, it had taken Marla
five hours to create one painting on her own which seems a lot for the
amount of paintings which are claimed to be completely done by this
child. Lastly, the father had admitted to painting a piece which he had
claimed to be Marla’s which led me to suspect that this might not be the
only painting which he has done so.
7.
Was Marla aware of what was going on in her life? How do you know?
No, Marla was not aware of what was happening in her life. I feel that she does
not based on her body language and reactions during her art galleries. Along
with her body language at these art galleries, her body language while filming
shows that she is uncomfortable being around many new people. For
example, while filming her she had not performed how she normally would
based on what she had told the film crew and reporters.
8.
Why were the parents so anxious about the whole situation and the
attention they and Marla were receiving?
The parents, in particular the mother, were nervous in the beginning as she did
not want this attention to affect her child’s childhood. She also did not
want her child to be uncomfortable with many new people such as news
crews and filmers in her own home. However, midway through the film the
father began to be nervous as the television and skeptic’s began to come
forward with suspicion that he is the one creating the paintings rather than
his daughter. Marla began to get backlash through the media which is what
the parents were nervous about in the beginning.
9.
Do you think the entire situation presented by Marla’s parents was a
scam or real? Why?
I feel that the young art prodigy was created by the parents as a scam. Based on
the information from professionals in the film it has been pointed out that
Marla’s painting when being filmed and the ones presented at art galleries
which are going for thousands of dollars are completely different. There
are many different examples that make me feel this way such as when they
had filmed Marla paint and the creation looked completely different from
the art being sold, the father, Mark, admitting that he has in the past created
a painting himself and sold it as Marla’s and lastly
10.
Do you agree with the criticism from the child psychologist and other
critics? Explain why.
I agree with the idea that the critics are able to have their own opinion based on
their views from the information given by the news and documentaries
based on how the parents have handled the situation at hand. However,
criticism which is directed towards Marla I feel is unnecessary as she is
still a young child who enjoys painting with her father.