Questions Piaget's theory that children go though a universal development process and discusses new evidence about cultural influences. The argument is illustrated by looking at children's drawings in two very different societies: urban Dundee and Aboriginal Australia, drawing upon the work of Peter Willats of the University of Dundee, Edith Bavin of La Trobe University and other researchers.

How to capture light is a major preoccupation for artists, and each has a different way of accomplishing the task. Although John Greenwood paints still lifes of imaginary objects, he is nevertheless determined to paint them as though they were sitting in natural light. On a fishing boat, Len Tabner tackles the challenge of adapting to changing light. How artists such as Masaccio, Turner, and Monet used light in their work is discussed.