Young at Art

A year ago if you asked Owen what he wanted to be when he grew up he would have said an astronaut or a scientist (as evidenced by his birthday party photos from last July).... this year I'm confident his first response would Artist.

He has been really into sketching and art lately, so I signed him up for an after school class at a studio in OB called "Young at Art". This woman runs art classes for kids out of her studio/home, and the place is like a warm cozy haven of creativity. You walk in to her living room and pottery pieces are drying on shelves against the wall, original artwork dominates every square inch of her walls and tables, her kitchen is piled high with fresh baked cookies to serve to her young students at snack time, her back yard is filled with paint spattered tables and a corner of the yard holds a potter's wheel and stacks and stacks of clay and molding supplies. One whole room next to her kitchen is simply a mural room. The walls are covered in a room sized mural painted by her students and herself, a continual work-in progress. It's a fabulously stimulating environment and Owen loved it so much. We were both sad to see the class session come to an end.

And the results, well, I'm a little speechless. When I would pick him up after his art class, the teachers routinely commented on how well Owen was doing and remarked on his attention to detail. They really enjoyed having him as a student. And, even though it was only his first session, he was able to get on the potter's wheel and spin his own pieces -- which was an activity usually reserved for the repeating or advanced students.

Last Saturday the studio had a small gallery showing of the student's art work. This was Owen's contribution:
See what I mean? I'm still a little speechless.