Youth Art Showcase entries invited

JULIA WADE

Following on from the success of the Easter Art Showcase online exhibition created under Covid’s Level 4 lockdown restrictions, young local artists have been invited to also share their creations with the community via the internet.

Organised by Mangawhai Artists Inc (MAI), the Youth Art Showcase aims to encourage and nurture creativity among children and young people aged 4-20.

Local mother to two young children, Ella Rickit is manager of the exciting exhibition and loves the idea of nurturing creativity among young people.

“I’m aware that children and young people created art in the holidays and term times and are looking forward to loading it on to the Youth Art Showcase as the third term gets under way,” she says. “Artworks of all sorts are welcome including drawing, painting, print, sculpture, collage and items young people have constructed out of wood or other materials. The work must be created this year, can be made at home or school and is to be submitted with a short explanation of how it was made.”

Sponsored by The French Art Shop and Mangawhai Central, work from the Youth Art Showcase will be presented at a special festive event in early spring and 20 of the young artists will be awarded with a stimulating pack of art materials at the end of the online show. There are five age group categories between four and 20 years, and all art works can be sited on the website until September.

Mangawhai Artists Inc chair, Mary-Anne Boyd, says there are many health benefits to creating art.

“Expressing ourselves through art contributes to wellbeing and can sometimes turn into a lifelong interest with so much to explore and new materials and techniques to try out,” she says. “In the future, when the Artists WorkSpace behind the Mangawhai Artists’ Gallery is completed, holiday and after school art classes are planned.”

n For more details, tips for taking photographs and entry forms, visit youth.mangawhaiartists.co.nz/about-the-showcase.

Youth Art Showcase manager, Ella Rickit, with her very own young artists Harry (3) and Georgia (6), says the showcase is ‘a wonderful opportunity for young people to engage with the wider community and to have their work appreciated and enjoyed by others’.