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After a week of paintbrushes, t-shirt dye, messy hands and creative minds, 14 girls have emerged from a weeklong adventure through the arts.
The first of two Barrhead Public Library fine arts SPARK camp sessions ran from Aug. 13-17. Normally there are 12 students in each group, but because of the high interest two extra spaces were added. Bursting with creativity, youth ranging from age 10 to 16 showed up to soak in the artistic activities.
Camp organizer Megan Kruse said the first week of camp was fantastic, and she could really tell all the art enthusiasts had a lot of fun.
“I think that they produced some really interesting art,” she said. “Not only did they have fun, but I think that they were a little bit challenged by it, and I think that’s a good thing.”
Children who live in a city are exposed to many more artistic opportunities, such as the Art Gallery of Alberta that offers daily art camps. A lot of youth in the Barrhead area don’t have that opportunity, and Kruse said there isn’t much for them to do during the summer that’s art related.
“There’s summer camps where they do crafts, but there’s no fine arts component. We sort of fill that void,” said Kruse. “Obviously there's a demand for it, because the camp sells out every year.”
The young students did water colour and oil painting, figure drawing with a model in charcoal and pastel, mosaic, recycled paper crafts, tie-dye, and other activities.
Something new to the camp this year was pottery. Sally Fairhead, who is with the Devon Pottery Guild, took the girls on a messy journey with her clay and pottery wheel. After practicing the art of pottery for 11 years, Fairhead said she is finally comfortable enough with what she does to call herself a potter.
Kruse said she thinks everyone, including the instructor, really loved and enjoyed the experience.
“It’s so different from what they generally do in school. A lot of schools don't offer pottery anymore, so for most of them it was their first time,” she said. “It’s something you’re really getting involved in with your hands, rather than at a distance like painting with a brush.”
The campers have a chance to show off their work, including a collaborative project yet to be unveiled to the artists themselves, during an open house exhibition. The show, which is open to anyone, is Saturday, Aug. 25 and runs from 5-7 p.m.
Kruse said she hopes the camp awakened a hunger for the arts in every student, and the experiences encouraged the campers to explore artistic opportunities.
“I hope that after the camp they're going to go out and seek more opportunities for education and artistic expression,” said Kruse. “That’s kind of why we went with the name SPARK for the camp. I hope it started a fire.”
