A full palette of children’s artwork

Andrew Edwards

Laguna arts commissioners are hoping a flurry of creativity will hit

City Hall this winter when for the first time ever, local youngsters

will be able to participate in the city’s palette program.

“It’s hard not to get excited about a children’s art project,”

arts commissioner Mary Ferguson said.

The City Council approved the Children’s Holiday Palette

Exhibition at its Aug. 3 meeting. The display will be a little

different from the annual exhibition of holiday-themed palettes that

adorn Downtown streets. The children’s projects will be smaller, and

will decorate the inside of City Hall.

There will be no fee for children to submit a design, arts

commissioner Nancy Bevarage said. To make the project affordable for

anyone who wants to participate, the arts commission chose to let

young artists turn in finished products on paper, instead of wooden

palettes like those used by adults.

“We decided, let’s get smart about this,” Bevarage said. “We don’t

want to charge anybody.”

Arts commissioners plan for all holiday art turned in by children

to be on public display. Children are guaranteed their pictures will

be collected in a notebook that will be available for viewing at City

Hall, though some designs will be chosen to receive more attention,

Bevarage said. Selected designs will be transferred onto wood

palettes that will line the walls at City Hall.

“We’ll hang as many as we can in City Hall,” Bevarage said.

Pictures selected to go on the palettes would be chosen from three

age groups, 5 to 8-year-olds, 9 to 13-year-olds and 14 to

17-year-olds. Art from some of the youngest and oldest entrants will

be displayed on the walls.

“We’d like every child that’s interested, between 5 and 17, to

have some fun,” Ferguson said.

Youngsters will be able to use any medium they like for their

designs.

“They can use any media they want, it can be oil or acrylic,

crayon or collage,” Ferguson said. “It’s up to the artist.”

Laguna Outreach Community Arts has agreed to sponsor the

exhibition by paying for the palettes, which will cost about $4 each,

said Mada Leach, an education program coordinator with the group.

“It’s a fairly minimal cost but it’s an exciting event,” Leach

said. She said her group will be able to round-up participants once

school is back in session. The group works with local schools, and

will be able to get the word out during classroom visits.

“This will probably happen as the kids get back to school,” Leach

said.

The exhibition, Cultural Arts Manager Sian Poeschl, said, is a

chance for future Laguna artists to get an early taste of the city’s

civic arts scene.

“There’s been various children’s exhibition projects, but this one

seemed to be so wonderful because it’s almost like training young

people to be active in public art,” she said.

Young artists have plenty a time to think of an idea and transfer

their imaginations to paper, the deadline for submissions will be

Nov. 5. The opening of the exhibition will be celebrated at the

Artists’ Recognition Ceremony on Dec. 2.