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Creativity unleashed: camp teaches elements of art
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A little girl concentrates on gluing yarn to her art project during art camp at the Bowen Center for the Arts June 21. - photo by Jessica Taylor

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Art teacher Jennifer Gray demonstrates the difference between actual and implied texture during last week’s art camp at the Bowen Center for the Arts June 21. - photo by Jessica Taylor

Kids got their creative juices flowing at a recent summer art camp at the Bowen Center for the Arts in Dawsonville. 

The camp was hosted June 19 through June 22, and Jennifer Gray, art teacher at Dawson County High School, taught the camp for her third year in a row and focused on making lessons on the elements of art fun. The camp was open to participants aged six to 11.

Participants worked with watercolors, tempura paint, foils, rocks and weavings during the week-long camp.

But the biggest thing they learned at the camp was the difference between warm and cool colors.

“They understand the warm versus cool. I feel like that’s almost the major theme. Almost every artwork is warm colors, cool colors,” Gray said. “They get so excited about knowing the difference. They know their primary and secondary (colors) now.”

On the first day, the students learned how to mix those secondary colors – creating oranges, purples and greens.

“Some of them are even using the term ‘tertiary’ now. I think even our four-year-old said ‘tertiary’ today, which was awesome and it was actually tertiary. It was a blue-green,” Gray said, laughing.

Gray said she loves teaching the kids about the elements of art because it gives them a good foundation to build on for future art classes. Similar to lessons that she teaches her high school students, students in the camp learned about textures, patterns, movement, shapes, colors, tones and more throughout the week, which all were combined into one big final project on the last day of camp.

“It’s funny. Its high school knowledge but they’re young enough they get it young,” Gray said. “Give them a bit of information then they’ll bring it and they’ll completely manipulate it to their own way.”

For more information about future summer camps and other activities for kids, call (706) 216-2787 or email director@bowenarts.org.

The Bowen is located at 334 Hwy. 9 N in Dawsonville.

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During the art camp at the Bowen Center for the Arts, kids had the opportunity to learn all the elements of art and create projects emphasizing each element. - photo by Jessica Taylor