Lakeport >> When it comes to introducing children to art, the younger the better. Which is one of the reasons why the Main Street Gallery in Lakeport decided to organize a Summer Youth Art Camp back in 2012.
The gallery was looking for a way to perform public outreach while also providing a much-needed program for local kids. “They don’t have the resources to have art in schools like they used to have,” said Barbara Funke, creator and co-chair of the camp alongside Barbara Lee. “This is a way to get kids back into the field of art so they would start enjoying it.”
When setting up the camp, accessibility was of high importance. The gallery wanted to ensure the classes were affordable and appropriate for a number of age groups. Most classes, which span roughly three hours, don’t cost more than $15. They accept kids as young as six years old — sometimes younger depending on the class — and while the camp is aimed at children, adults are more than welcome to attend.
The Summer Youth Art Camp offers a wide variety of classes in numerous mediums, from gourd painting to beginner and intermediate pastels to mask decorating. Thus, it’s pretty much guaranteed that a child will find something they’re interested in. The gallery has been activity working on reaching out to a variety of different groups to offer special sessions, such as private lessons for individuals from People Services or kids in foster care.
The instructors for the 20 or so classes are all local artists, and though the gallery pays them a small amount, as Funke pointed out, they’re not making a living teaching the Summer Youth Art Camp. Teachers provide all supplies and they’re committed to keeping the price of their classes low. “There’s a lot to be said about the instructors,” Funke said. “You can tell that the instructors we have are dedicated to the cause. They’re enjoying the kids as much as the kids are enjoying the classes.”
And the kids really are having a blast, if the repeat attendees are anything to judge by. This summer, many kids returned for the second, third and fourth time. Since the camp first started four years ago, it has grown roughly three times in size. On occasion, classes become so popular that instructors have to turn children away. If that happens, the gallery asks if they’re willing to hold a second lesson a few days later.
Just one class has the potential to make life-long artists out of kids. While they may set aside art as they enter adulthood, attend college, secure a job and settle down, it’s something that they’ll likely come back to, in one way or another. “If you’re introduced to art it seems like you never forget it,” Funke said. “They always look back and say, this is what got me started and it was an inspiration.”
Someone doesn’t have to be a talented painter or drawer to really be considered an artist, either. Even if they’re simply an art appreciator, that has value. “The fact that someone has a love art art, to me, there’s a little bit of artist in them,” Funke said.
Funke remembered a time when she was young, when towns used to have civic centers which held events year-round. But venues such as those are slowly disappearing. She’s hoping the Main Street Gallery, through ventures like the art camp, will step in to fill that role. “It’s difficult to have those things anymore because of lack of resources to fund them,” she said.
The Main Street Gallery has no plans to slow down in the future. In fact, it’s just the opposite. They’re looking into offering more classes for adults as well as a greater variety of classes that delve into three-dimensional artwork. And beginning this upcoming school year, the gallery plans to offer an after-school program similar to the summer camp. They also hope to one day soon find a space specifically dedicated to teaching, rather than set up shop in the middle of the gallery. “That’s what the Arts Council is all about is bringing the community together. That is what’s important,” Funke said. “Art is everywhere. We just want to see it grow and we would love to have a facility to be able to have it grow.”
The Summer Youth Art Camp runs through the end of July. Register for classes at the Main Street Gallery, 325 North Main St. in Lakeport. Class schedule is available at LakeArts.org. The gallery can be reached at 263-6658.
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
