Creativity, experimentation, joy. These are the words that come to mind when looking at children’s art, and they are indeed qualities the School of Art aims to foster in its young students.
Now an exhibition, titled Once upon a Drawing, organised by the school and currently on at the Art Space in Ta’ Qali, is showcasing the students’ best work.
The theme takes drawing as the starting point, with the students’ creativity translating it into different mixed media artworks.
The exhibition is part of the scholastic year programme at the School of Art and gives the students the opportunity to share what they are learning and creating during their studies.
Once upon a Drawing features the work of a cohort aged between six and 15: the students from the Award in Visual Arts Levels 1 and 2, and the Certificate in Visual Arts Level 3 courses.
These first three levels focus on learning foundational skills and how to engage creatively with those very same skills.
“It is clear the students are enjoying the process”
Through their artworks, it is clear that the students are enjoying the process, allowing their imaginations to roam freely while expressing themselves with confidence and creativity.
As Malta’s oldest art school, the School of Art has seen many changes but has kept at its heart values of community, learning and creativity. It was founded in 1926 in a palazzo called Casa Brunet, at 106, Old Bakery Street, Valletta, as the Malta Government School of Art.
It can boast some of Malta’s notable artists as past students, such as Vincent and Willie Apap, Edward Caruana Dingli, Esprit Barthet, Emvin Cremona, among many others. Even in its early years, it played a pivotal role in creating a community that nurtured many artistic careers, offering classes, training and even grants for overseas training.
In recent years, the school has consolidated and updated facilities through various investments, and developed new courses to meet contemporary needs, offering an accredited and accessible curriculum.
While retaining the perennial foundational teaching of drawing, painting, printmaking and modelling, the curriculum is designed around creativity, experimentation and professionalisation.
From early learning courses to fully-fledged accredited higher diplomas, the School of Art’s prospectus offers something for all. Whether one wants to satisfy one’s interest about a specific art technique, or if one wants to develop one’s artistic practice, the school offers the knowledge and resources to nurture one’s interests and learning.
Once upon a Drawing is open until Wednesday, March 4. Opening hours on Saturday and Sunday are from 9am to noon and Monday to Wednesday from 9am to 7pm.
