Let’s shout about Art Club!
Got creative kids? Art Club is for them
The lovely Emma at Pom Stitch Tassel asked me a while ago if I’d think about running a kids’ art club; parents have asked several times about art-based clubs/workshops and Emma’s long-running Stitch Club is very popular with young sewing fans so we know the club model works well. We discussed it a few times over a cuppa, and it has started to take shape. It’s a very exciting proposition - one-off workshops are great fun but it would be a fab opportunity to see the children every week, do a variety of projects over a period of time, and to be able to guide their development and see them build confidence in their artwork. Guiding a group of children is enlightening, unpredictable and always entertaining, so let’s get going!
My aims with the club for children age 6+ are:
For the children to do more varied and free-range artwork than is sometimes possible in school
To get to bring their personal interests into their work rather than strictly guided, fixed projects
To build confidence and to lose the fear of ‘getting it wrong’ or something turning out ‘rubbish’
To enjoy playing and experimenting with art and materials, whatever your age
To link artwork projects with a variety of current and past cultural references, and seeing how they can try out artists’ approaches in their own art
Many of the thoughts I’ve wrestled with art in my school days, and even in adult life (honestly), has been things like: ‘I wish I could draw like x person’, ‘I can’t draw people / hands / faces / dinosaurs / cars’, ‘I don’t know where to start’, ‘I’ve messed it up’, ‘I don’t think this is any good’, ‘I don’t know what I’m meant to do’ and it goes on. I recognise it in my children too, sometimes a project doesn’t pique their interest so they can’t even make themselves start, or they’re cross that the drawing hasn’t gone the way they wanted it to. And some children find it ok to play and experiment without knowing where it’s leading, while others don’t know how to start unless they know what the end result should look like. No method is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ and everyone works differently, so I’d like to see if we can build the confidence to just try things out and discover that there’s no need to fear things going ‘wrong’ with their artwork.
Also a very important thing is that art is not only drawing or painting! There are so many ways to make art and each is as valuable as the other. A child may not enjoy drawing but may LOVE making 3D sculptures with clay. Or they may not enjoy painting but find that a different tool such as a quick, easy paint pen gives them the mess-free, instant effect they’re looking for (that’s me, and my son too!) They may feel that they’re ‘useless’ at art, but actually discover that they can create really effective images with collage and realise that no, they’re not ‘useless’ at art!
There are a lot of sports clubs out there for kids, which is great, but it’s not always possible to find something for a child who wants to do creative activities as well as their sport, or aren’t sporty at all and love crafts - or who just want to enjoy being creative and making friends outside of school. Getting creative has so many plus points for children (and adults too) such as:
Mindful, absorbing activity
Producing something to be proud of
Visual evidence of your creative progress and development
Positive benefits of belonging to a club with a group of like-minded peers, learning from others and being supported too
Building confidence and trying new things out.
So let’s give it a go, shall we?! On the agenda for our first term we’ll be looking at character development with lots of experimentation, working towards a simple comic strip that we’ll present beautifully as a final piece. And after half term we’ll be looking at Pop Art and seeing how we can produce imagery in the Pop Art style to create some really striking work - and perhaps even artwork we can wear…!
Book your Art Club place via Pom Stitch Tassel (opens new window).
Details: Wednesdays 5:00-6:30pm, term time at Pom Stitch Tassel in Bovey Tracey. For children age 6+ years. Each session is £20 per child, payable in instalments or one payment. Art materials included (except occasional final piece requirements - optional and choices available to parents) Starting Weds 10th Sept with a free trial where we’ll paint a cute watermelon clay desk buddy and matching notebook, then the following week when we’ll kick off our first Art Club project. All info and booking is online at Pom Stitch Tassel.
