Hearts <3

A little while ago I wrote a blog about rainbows in drawings. A symbol that you often see in drawings by children from around 3-8 years old. Those rainbows are not the only ones you often see.

Hearts.

You see them too. Often.

Think about it: how many drawings have you seen that show at least one heart? I think everyone can think of at least one.

Hearts have different meanings in a drawing. Children often draw hearts with people or animals they love. What they love. Symbolic for ‘I love you, I love you‘.

At the age of 4-6 years you often see hearts appear in drawings (sometimes in combination with rainbows) at times when things change: going to primary school, from group 2 to group 3. This is a period when children are looking for their place in the group. Belonging, wanting to be liked, is extra important. In this context, the hearts are about being liked and the desire for connection.

Because that is what love does; it connects.

Perhaps you have received a drawing from a child after a disagreement. Children often draw hearts to ‘make amends‘. As a sign of ‘I love you, do you still love me?‘ Looking for approval. That is what children do. They are dependent on the one who raises them. When there was a quarrel or a harsh word was spoken, children may want to make up for it as quickly as possible. Some do this by giving them a drawing with hearts in it.

Have you ever received such a ‘good-making’ drawing?

As a final symbolic value, I would like to tell you about broken hearts. Hearts that are literally crying with grief. Where the heart gets a face and tears run down the cheeks of the heart. What you see here literally on paper can be translated into how the child feels or what he picks up from someone close to him.

Broken hearts are also often seen in drawings by children of divorced parents. The hearts are sometimes literally divided into two halves. Divided. Two halves in one heart. These halves can each have their own colour. It is fascinating to look at the different colours.

Hearts are not always drawn in red. Many colours are used. And every colour has its own symbolic value.

There are also hearts on strings. Kind of little heart balloons. More about that next time.