"No Mistakes in Art"

I've been teaching an art camp this week, to a group of kids between 3 and 6 years old.  It's been quite awhile since I've had such a young group, and I'd forgotten how low to the ground everything is for them! 

That aside, I'm always intrigued by the ideas kids have about art and how receptive they are to new visual ideas.  Here are some things I've observed about how kids approach art, and I think they can apply to creative "big people" too:


1.  Each art project is an opportunity for fun!
2.  It's okay to paint and color outside the lines sometimes (see #1 for reason why).
3.  Use your imagination, and make things which might not be "for real" (purple snakes with yellow and blue dots are pretty cool, even if nobody's ever seen one).
4.  Enjoy both the process and the result (when I tell the kids there are "no mistakes in art," I can see it frees them to express themselves any way they want to--which is the whole point).
and,
5.  Be proud of what you create.

This has been a fun week, I'm glad to have been reminded of these things, and will return to my studio with a new joie de vivre as a result.

Have a creative Thursday!