Great expressions of little kids

Take a look at the paintings unveiled in the ‘Little Expressions-2011,’ an art exhibition in Preediv Art Gallery. You would definitely end up wondering if the paintings are really created by the children.

As many as 38 paintings displayed in the gallery, created by eight children takes the visitors to a different world where the children’s thoughts about the life, woman, nature and even the smallest of small things like abacus beads have taken the form of colours.

If a painting called ‘Moods’ by Cheryl Rego talks about the moods of a man and a woman, a painting titled ‘Lady’ by Varun Holla portrays a woman’s expression at its best.

When looking at the matured paintings, one would not stop but asking the painting master of these children, Preetham Fernandes, if he has lend his helping hand in drawing the sketches and there comes the reply, “certainly no.” He says, “the children come up with the unique ideas which I just polish. I have not touched the brush and interfered in their work. It is only that I suggest them as to how they can improve their work.”

Varun Holla, a IX Std student in Canara School, Dongarakeri, who has displayed 16 of his paintings in the exhibition is overwhelmed with happiness as he has got an opportunity to showcase his paintings at such an early age.

“I have been doing painting ever since I was in UKG. But my paintings actually got polished in the last two years as I got involved in painting seriously. If some of the paintings are my own ideas, some of them were told to me by my art teacher Preetham,” he says with a pinch of joy.

For Suraksha P, a student of Sharada Vidyalaya, it was a learning experience to sit and paint for days, frame them and exhibit in the gallery. “It makes me feel nice when the people visit the gallery and praise the paintings. It is the first ever experience of mine to take part in an exhibition and I am proud,” she says.

The children namely Varun Holla, Cheryl Rego, Aashna, Suraksha P, Rahul, Sakshi Shetty, Muralidhar Rao and Suhan have experimented on the paper with varieties of styles. May it be charcoal painting or pointism theory based-pen on paper, charcoal to knife painting, photograph to painting, water colour, pastel on paper, acrylic, the children have tried it all.

Informing the same, Preetham said, it was a kind of experiment made by the children.
“Children can be moulded quite easily and that is the reason why I pushed them to do good paintings and exhibited them. The response has been satisfactory, but I look forward for more number of Mangaloreans to develop the interest towards art in their children,” he wishes.

Despite the fact that painting is one of the best activities for the children which helps them to experiment and express themselves and also offers them the physical and psychological benefits, it seems to be quite ignored in the coastal region. When hardly we can find any children’s exhibition taking place in the city, “Little Expressions” has come out as a ray of hope.  The painting expo will be open for public viewing at Preediv Art Gallery, Bejai New Road till May 31.