The Visual Arts Institute

Emmaline has been taking art classes from a local studio for a while, but I wasn't very happy with their curriculum. I think the focus was keeping kids interested in art, but there wasn't a lot of structure. I was looking for something to give her a better foundation in the basics of drawing. I finally talked to the director of the Visual Arts Institute. He seemed to really understand what I was looking for and I really liked his credentials (he is a former professor at B.Y.U. and the U.) and was impressed with the other teachers at the Institute. He felt like it would be best for Emmaline to join a Figure Drawing class for kids in 7-12th grade. When she first heard about it, she was nervous. The thought of drawing nudes is a bit daunting to her. We've assured her that she won't have to do that until college.

When I picked her up after the first class, she was in tears. It was so hard and all of the other kids obviously had a lot more experience. When she came home, she decided to continue to work to be ready for the next class. First obstacle, finding a model. She began offering the boys money to sit for her to practice drawing them. The promise of a quarter was all Tucker needed to be game for a sitting. As she was getting everything ready (sharpening pencils, readying paper)- Tucker climbed up on the chair. Emmaline looked up and exclaimed, "Tucker! I'm not in college yet!!"

We haven't begun potty-training Tucker yet, but he randomly takes off his diaper to use the toilet. This just happened to be one of those times, but we didn't notice, since his shirt covered him and he was wearing a cape that Grandma made him, that he was nude from the waist down. A quick diaper change and he was ready to model.


Her progress during the second class was amazing. She was very encouraged so I think we've found the right place!!