New Art Supplies

Today, Maggie has been experimenting with some new art supplies: oil pastels and thick art paper. She describes them as "smelling bad," but "they are really cool to use because you can use thin paper and trace over textured items like leaves. Some people might think they are just like regular crayons, but they're not. Their shape is different and they draw better than crayons and there are a lot of shades."

Maggie was excited to create this piece of art below with her new oil pastels:

"Sunset of Art" by Maggie, age 7

Have you gotten any new art supplies lately? What is your favorite art supply? Make some art and send it to Maggie soon for the website!

Our First Virtual Artist in Residence

Maggie is very excited to announce her first Virtual Artist in Residence! His name is Ethan Foster and he happens to be Maggie's older brother. Maggie has worked with Ethan on a lot of projects and is always inspired by his creations. She wanted to make sure that Ethan received a special spotlight, along with all of the other great kids who have submitted art for the gallery. So, without further ado, we introduce Ethan!


Maggie's Interview: 

Ethan Foster, Virtual Artist in Residence

Name: Ethan Foster

Age: Eight (but I will be nine in December)

Grade: Third

Favorite Subject in School: Reading

What he'll be when he grows up: An Artist, but also either a doctor or an architect

Why you do art: It's fun!

Favorite type of art to make: Cartoons

Favorite art supply: Clay



Maggie is featuring three of her favorite pieces by Ethan. Check them out below!

Apple sketch

Hand

Mario

Thanks to Ethan for providing three very different, but GREAT pieces of art! 

Maggie is a little sad that her inbox has not been full of new art lately, so send in your awesome kid art today! She would also love to feature a new Artist Kid for a Cause, so tell us about the great work you're doing in your community! 

Twins from Texas!

Today, Maggie is featuring submissions from another set of twins: Caleb and Isaiah from Texas. They are five years old and were kind enough to put some art together for their mom!

First up: Caleb! His mom Crystal tells us that Caleb did this picture to show him swimming with his brother, mom, stepdad, and baby sister (who hasn't been born yet!) Maggie thought this was really creative with Caleb swimming underwater!

Caleb, age 5

Caleb's twin brother Isaiah, made this great drawing of a superhero in the front yard of his house. We are big fans of superheroes, so Maggie liked seeing this and also said that she really liked the green!

Isaiah, age 5

Thanks again to Caleb and Isaiah for sharing their art! Keep sending in those submissions.

Our Next Kid With a Cause: Buddy Walk Edition!

Maggie is very excited to introduce everyone to our next Artist Kid(s) with a cause because this has to do with a fundraiser she has personally been involved with for many years! We actually have a whole team (or family) of kids to introduce: Alex, Addie, and Andrew. These power house siblings participate in an important fundraiser every year to benefit the Down Syndrome Association of Central Ohio. Alex, who is eight years old and has Down syndrome, is the star of the team, as this is his NINTH Buddy Walk! His "Team Alex" has raised tens of thousands of dollars over the years to benefit the great programming put on by DSACO for the kids and families living with DS.

Maggie and her brother Ethan have participated in several buddy walks with Alex. As a matter of fact, Maggie couldn't yet walk at her first buddy walk, so she rode in a stroller! So, she is very happy to share information about this year's walk, TAKING PLACE TOMORROW, along with highlighting the great work Team Alex is doing.

Alex provided us with this great abstract drawing to celebrate the buddy walk:

Abstract by Alex, age 8

Alex's younger brother, Andrew, gave us this great untitled work, too!

Untitled by Andrew in Marker

Alex's younger sister, Addie, made a really special drawing to share with everyone and to celebrate the Buddy Walk! She and her mom tell us: "Alex and Addie go to the Columbus Buddy Walk every year to help teach people that individuals with Down syndrome are more like everyone else than they are different. Addie says that the Buddy Walk is important because 'it is something to make money for DSACO' (Down Syndrome Association of Central Ohio...the money raised at the walk funds all of the wonderful programming and services that DSACO provides). Addie's favorite thing about the Buddy Walk is getting to play with her cousins there. Addie says that the Buddy Walk is fun, and 'if you have a kid with Down syndrome, or special needs, you can join it.' Addie wants everyone to know that her brother Alex helps her when she is hurt, he likes to play soccer with her, he decided to join her dance class this year, and most importantly, he's a good brother.

"Go Alex" by Addie

We think that's a pretty special piece of artwork from such a supportive little sister! We are lucky to have Alex and we know he appreciates having a great team behind him on Buddy Walk day. We also know for a fact that Alex, Addie, and Andrew's mom, Jen, works tirelessly for months to make their BW team as successful as possible each September. Thus far, Team Alex has raised over five thousand dollars this year alone! They are trying to make it to eight thousand, so if you want to support the team's walk tomorrow, please see THIS LINK! (Just in case it doesn't work correctly, you can also go to www.columbusbuddywalk.org and search for Team Alex!)

Alex, we are so proud of you and your family! Best of luck with the walk. Thanks to you and your siblings for being our newest Artist Kids with a Cause!

Functional Art

Maggie really likes today's post because it has to do with two things she really likes: butterflies and artwork from kids that has a purpose!

Today's artist is Anna, who is five years old and from New Philadelphia, Ohio. We won't say how we know her because we don't want you to get discouraged about submitting your artwork if your parents weren't in college marching band...

But back to Anna! She has submitted a piece of art that she actually created to decorate her bedroom. Isn't that cool? Here is a photo of her in action:

Anna at 3 years old, making her canvas

Although Anna is five now, she did this when she was only three! Way to go! As her mom explained, they taped a stencil onto a canvas and Anna worked on blending the finger paints. When it was dry, they removed the stencil and LOOK:

Butterfly by Anna

It's a butterfly! Maggie thought this was a great idea for those of you who want to create really cool art for your own bedroom. This would also make a great project for Mother/Father's Day or for another holiday. Lots of good ideas there!

So Maggie wants to know: who else has created art to decorate their room or another part of your house? She wants to hear your great ideas. Remember: art doesn't always just have to be in a gallery. Look around today and see if you can find other places with art and tell Maggie about it!

Thanks to Anna for sharing her submission. Stay tuned tomorrow for another post about an Artist Kid with a Cause!

Introducing...ARTIST KIDS FOR CAUSES!

Maggie is pleased to announce a new feature on Art Gallery for Kids: Artist Kids for Causes!

There are a lot of kids in the world doing great things. Like Maggie says, you don't have to wait until you're a grownup to do important stuff. Maggie has been a big help to her mom and brother with their various fundraisers and now she wants to be a big help to artist kids who also have causes. SO! If you're a kid and there is a cause or charity that's important to you, pick out your best artwork and send us a story about your cause and why it's important to you. You should also send any links that may be related to the fundraiser you're working on. That way, Maggie can tell everyone about the great work you're doing.

Our first Artist Kid who has a cause is the lovely and talented LYLA!!!!!!!!!! Lyla is three years old and recently became a big sister to baby Henry last month. She also loves the "Toy Story" movies. The cause that is important to Lyla is the Children's Tumor Foundation. Lyla did not choose this cause arbitrarily, but now raises awareness and money after she became diagnosed with a tumor condition called Neurofibromatosis 1, (or NF1 for short) about a year and a half ago. You can learn about NF1 HERE. Last fall, Lyla endorsed two runners who were racing in the Columbus Half Marathon to raise money for the Children's Tumor Foundation. One of those runners was Maggie's mom! You can read their story at this link.  With Lyla's help, they raised over five thousand dollars during that race for the CTF! Great work, Lyla!

Maggie wants everyone to read about NF1, along with the great work done by the Children's Tumor Foundation to cure the NF disorders. You can also read about NF Endurance, which is how Maggie's mom and friend Dianna were able to link their race to fundraising for CTF.

BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY! Check out this awesome artwork by Lyla. Thanks for being our first Artist Kid with a Cause, and thanks for all of the work you do for the brave kids who are living with NF.

We love you, Ly!

"A Kitty" by Lyla, age 3

"Sun, with a rainbow" by Lyla, age 3

Our First Out-of-State Submission!

For those of you who don't know, Maggie is located in Ohio, so we were excited to get our first submission yesterday from another state. We are officially going NATIONAL with Art Gallery For Kids!

Maggie loved checking out this great piece of art, done in marker!

From Lewes, Delaware, by Dassi, Age 8

Today's artist is Dassi, from Delaware. (It's catchy, but we didn't plan it that way!) Dassi is an eight-year old third grader. She completed this awesome drawing in her art class.

Thanks to Dassi for being our first submission outside of Ohio. We look forward to more!

Our first set of twins!

Maggie is excited to showcase our first (but not last) set of twins. This great artwork comes courtesy of twin brothers Gavin and Cooper. On an entirely unrelated note, G&C's parents met in college marching band--it happens to be the same exact band where Maggie's parents met. Everyone can take a second and thank the College of Wooster Marching Band for creating great couples who in turn produce smart and creative children. Go Scots!

Gavin submitted the following great piece of art:

Gavin, Age 2

Gavin produced this piece during his public library's weekly story hour. The kids were learning about the night sky. Look at that line! Which constellation is that?

Cooper was kind enough to also submit his artwork from story hour, which is featured here:

Cooper, Age 2

We received reports that Cooper "insisted on having two moons, much to the chagrin of the slightly, tightly-wound library. His Art Major mother and Music-teaching father applauded his creativity." Maggie greatly enjoyed this story!

Thanks to Gavin and Cooper for sharing their artwork and for being our first set of twin artists! They also raise a good topic that Maggie wants to discuss! There are a lot of great places out in our various communities where we can take advantage of art programs or projects. Gavin and Cooper were at their local public library, so Maggie wants to know: where do you go in your community to make art? Send us your work now and tell Maggie all about it!

Our First Submissions

Wow! Thanks to everyone who has responded with so much enthusiasm to the new site! We already have a lot of GREAT ideas and it's only been a few hours.

We are very excited to share our first submissions with you!

The first comes from our friend, Lena, who is four years old. She is kinda, sorta, not really related to Maggie. We'll call her a "cousin-in-law". Lena was stuck inside on a rainy day and did some artwork with her mom, Megan. Here it is!

Thunderstorm by Lena, Age 4

Great job, Lena! She worked hard on this great piece of artwork with watercolors!

Our second submission is not only artwork, but an action shot from the artist! It comes from Kate, who is a friend of Maggie's mom. Kate's dad went to law school with Maggie's mom. Here she is working on a special piece called "Dinner Time Art".

Dinner Time Art by Kate, Age 2

Thanks to both Lena and Kate for their great submissions! We looks forward to seeing Maggie's inbox fill up with lots of great art. Maggie says for everyone to work hard at home, daycare, or school this week on your art!

Ideas for Art from Maggie: Recycled Art

Today I visited the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus, Ohio to see the new exhibit, "Sacrifice and Bliss: Aurora Robson," which has art from the artist Aurora Robson. Her art is made up of recycled stuff. She cut the tops off of plastic bottles and hung them. She cut them into random shapes. She also did paintings using junk mail. You can learn more about her exhibit here: http://www.fpconservatory.org/robson.htm

After I saw the exhibit, I watched another artist named Eric Marlow talk about ideas for making your own recycled art. He told us about how we could use plastic bottles and cans to make art. He only used recycled stuff. It gave me a lot of ideas for taking things from the recycling bin and making them into art.

I used his ideas to cut up a bottle. I also used some old nail polish I didn't want anymore and used it for paint. Here is the painting I did with nail polish:

Sunshine by Maggie, Age 7

It has been a lot of fun to do art with recycling, so you should do it, too! I really love painting with nail polish. Send me your favorite recycling art projects so I can post them on the online gallery.