by James H. Pence
The use of chalk to communicate a message goes all the way back to the late 1800s. Back in those days, people called it “chalk talk.” That was because most chalk drawings were done either on blackboards with white chalk or white paper with black chalk. Most of the time, the artists didn’t draw what we would consider “artistic” pictures (e.g. landscapes, seascapes, still life); rather, they would do line art—more like a cartoon.
And as the artists drew, they would talk.
Chalk-talk artists communicated their message at the same time they drew their picture. And often, at the end of the picture there would be some sort of surprise that delivered the “punch line”. Sometimes they would turn the picture upside down and it would be a completely different. Other times, through clever manipulation of the lines, they would change the picture into something different right before the audience’s eyes.
As you begin your journey as a chalk artist, you will have to make a decision. Will you talk when you draw? Or will you use some other medium (recorded music, etc.) to get the point across as you focus on your picture? You’ll have to decide which option is best for you. To help you make that decision, I’ll share a few lessons I’ve learned over thirty-three years of doing chalk art.
Simplified, the main options are:
1. Talking while you draw
2. Having someone else talk while you draw.
3. Recording your talk in advance and having it play while you draw.
4. Drawing to live music (instrumental, vocal, or both)
5. Drawing to recorded music (instrumental, vocal, or both)
Let’s consider the pros and cons of each method:
Talking while you draw
I’ve only tried it a few times, and most of the time it hasn’t gone well. One summer I was at a youth camp and had to draw twice a day, for morning and evening chapel. I’d always used music for my chalk drawings, but decided that I’d like to try doing chalk-talks in the mornings. I discovered that I can either draw a good picture or say something intelligent, but I can’t do them both at the same time. On the one hand, if I focused on what I was drawing, I forgot I was supposed to be speaking. On the other hand, if I got involved with my “talk”, I’d forget to draw. I decided after that week to abandon the idea of doing chalk-talks.
Pros:
--If you can talk and draw at the same time, you can tailor every message to the specific needs of your audience.
--You don’t need to worry about special sound or recording equipment.
--You don’t need to worry about forgetting to your CD and having no background music while you're drawing.
Cons:
--Unless you are a very engaging speaker, your audience might become bored.
--If you talk and draw simultaneously, your back will be to your audience while you are speaking to them. Not the best position for effective communication.
--You won’t have the built-in time constraint that comes with a recorded soundtrack. Thus, you will need to watch your time closely so that you don’t ramble and go over your allotted speaking time. Some churches don't mind if you go over, but others do. Always be considerate of your audience.
Recommendation: Talking while you draw can still be a very effective means of communication. However, unless you are naturally gifted at talking and drawing simultaneously, I suggest that you write out your message in advance and memorize it (or at least the basic outline points). If you don’t have to think so much about what you’re saying, you should be able to stay focused on both the drawing and your message.
On Thursday, we’ll consider the other four options for getting your chalk art message across.
(Note: If you would like to learn more about the history of chalk-talk, check out the following Web site: http://goldenchalkclassics.blogspot.com/)
