Weekly Drop-In ArtRoom with artist Deborah Hopkins
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We've just wrapped up our first couple of months of our newest Kids & Art program for our families, the Drop-In ArtRoom!
We meet weekly every Wednesday at 12:00 noon PST/3:00 pm EST on Zoom. I host the hour designed to provide a fun, relaxed, happy time to focus on art. The kids/teens bring whatever art supplies they already have even if it’s just a pencil and a piece of paper. Each month we focus on a different aspect of art. In March we talked about shapes and how to use them to build drawing skills. For April, we focused on colors. We’ll also look at texture, different artists and their styles, tools and different mediums.
But the real focus is on the kids/teens and what they want to do. They can bring a drawing or project they've painted to show us or ask a question about how to make something. I typically open the time with a relaxing activity and warm up exercise to get us going and focused on doing some art. We also use the time to talk about any art work they’ve made or I'll ask them what art materials they have with them that day. I always have a plan for what I’ll demonstrate to them. For example, with shapes we looked at various shapes and then looked at how to use them to draw objects. There’s lots of flexibility, discovery and smiles as they achieve some success doing this. There have been a lot of questions on how to draw specific animals. So, I recently created a “grab bag” of photos of animals and I pull one out towards the end of the hour and we do a quick study on how to draw it.
Some of the comments I've heard from parents are: “He can't wait until Wednesday!” or “This is her happy place.” But I think the thing I’m most excited about and see developing is a little community where the kids have a chance to show their work, talk about it, and look at others' artwork too. They chat about their favorite colors, animals, food; and there is a little hum of happiness going on.
I invite you to have your child give it a try, or if you know of a family who would enjoy this type of experience, please let them know about our program. I’m happy to answer any questions or talk more about what we’re doing.
CREATE, SHARE, LAUGH, AND HAVE FUN — JUST SHOW UP, WE'LL BE THERE!
The Drop-In ArtRoom program is a casual, weekly online “drop in” art experience. Grab a pencil and piece of paper or whatever art supplies you have on hand. If you have a current art project you're working on, bring that too and join a Kids & Art artist for a relaxing, informal hour of art. Open to all pediatric patient families. No experience necessary!
To ensure a safe and secure environment for all attendees, please register below. We will send you an email with a secure Zoom link for the ArtRoom. * Please do not share this link with anyone so that we can maintain a secure environment.*
Every Wednesday, 12-1pm PST. Register for the weekly Drop-In ArtRoom, click here
