Art after school
Local youth explore their creative side in PAA program
Cyanna Goodgiond’s creative skills were channeled through the pencil in her right hand as she sketched on a white piece of paper Wednesday after school while a fourth grade class toured the Porterville Art Association, Inc. (PAA) gallery om Main Street in Porterville.
“Today I am working on a peacock feather,” said Cyanna as she stared at a feather, trying to copy the shape of it.
Cyanna is a third grade student, embracing her creative skills and also meeting new friends who love to draw.
“I have learned how to mix colors using crayons and water colors,” added Cyanna. “I like it a lot.”
Cyanna is part of an art class after school that PAA holds every Wednesday for children 7 to 15 years of age. Every session is $12, said Jonelle Mauck, vice president of PAA.
“It was my vision several years ago to start an art academy in Porterville for the young people,” said Mauck. “A lot of our members have grown older and are passing on, and we need new ones to grow up who want to participate in the arts. They are our future.”
The sessions run from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., and students get to learn and create art under Mauck’s guidance.
Wednesday afternoon students were learning about Pablo Picasso and his paintings .
“We went through the pictures, and I wanted them to do something similar, but incorporating their own creative skills,” said Mauck. “We did go thorough the basics of color tones, shades and shapes.”
This is the fourth week PAA has held sessions for the kids, and there are a total of nine students attending the academy, where they have learned about mediums and the color wheel used to create art.
“The kids must feel it, touch it and do it — that is what this place is all about,” said Mauck. “It’s something they don’t
really learn at regular school. They can create sketches just out of shapes and shading, that’s something they learned.”
Mauck said the board of PAA wanted to build a miniature art academy for the community kids and now it has become a reality. After learning about the primary and secondary colors and shading techniques, the class gets to hang their artwork on the walls inside the classroom.
“We want to convey that dreams and goals are important, and I want to help the little ones,” expressed Mauck. “I hope to fill up the academy with students who are interested in learning about art. Also in the future, I want to incorporate art as a therapy outlet that we can pursue in the future.”
The same day of the art class at the gallery, a class of 20 fourth grade students from the Boy and Girls Club from William R. Buckley Elementary School were also touring the gallery, learning various painting techniques.
“We brought them so they can see artwork from local artists,” said Vanessa Lara, Boys And Girls Club of the Sequoias lead. “For many it is their first time [at an art gallery] and they get
super excited.”
PAA art after school is a year-round program every Wednesday from 5 to 7 p.m., it gives youth the opportunity to hang out in a safe environment while developing their own creative skills through art.
“The kids were all very into the pricing of the artwork, and were eager to know why,” said Lara, adding they were learning about the different types of art and utensils needed to create them.
Lara said this is the second year they have brought the students to the gallery.
At the entrance PAA has a donation box, which they are hoping community members will continue to feed as they pursue a vision for bigger and better things for the arts in Porterville.
“We are using this money to build our own art academy,” said Linda Hinajosa, PAA communications lead.
PAA is preparing for their upcoming “A Night to Remember” fundraiser, and are hoping to secure enough money to renovate the facility during the winter.
“Now with the art academy, we have more kids roaming around the gallery and some of the outlets can be a hazard if they are not careful,” said Hinajosa. “When people come by next year, the inside of this building is not going to look the same.”