THOMASVILLE — The Thomasville Center for the Arts unveiled its newest exhibit on Wednesday evening, featuring the works of its youngest patrons.

Walls of the exhibit space were lined with sculptures, paintings, and drawings from the local Art in the Afternoon program.

According to Programs Manager Jennifer Vanderbeek, students enrolled in Art in the Afternoon were asked to select their favorite works from throughout the semester to display in the exhibit, where parents, friends, and art enthusiasts could all enjoy them through June 9th.

Over the past few months, the young Picassos enjoyed a variety of art techniques and mediums, all leading up to their original art project, many of which were on display.

“We bring in working and professional artists to teach the students and give them the benefit of different ideas and perspectives,” Vanderbeek said. “This semester, we had a printmaking class for our middle and high school students and a visual arts and color theory class for our K-5th graders.”

Students began by learning about colors and lines, before moving into a Teaching Artistic Behavior (TAB) model, where Vanderbeek gave the children free rein to create their own projects inspired by concepts they had learned.

“We encouraged them to come up with a plan and have an idea in mind, figure out their materials, and make it,” she said. “They did that for the last half of the semester.”

As part of the TAB model, students were self-directed and teacher-supported.

“It was up to them how they spent their time, as long as they were working on something creative,” she said.

Vanderbeek was impressed with the various directions students took, with some completing multiple drawings, while others spent hours constructing sculptures they envisioned.

Both Logan Edge, 8, and Cameron Giddes, 7, had their sculptures on display, sharing their unique concepts with their parents in attendance.

Edge and Giddes both utilized cardboard and were inspired by animals. However, their projects were vastly different.

Edge crafted a cardboard cat, wearing a sweater with rainbow whiskers, while Giddes sculpted a massive “hamster hangout,” complete with a hammock, zipline, and pool for the hamsters.

“I thought it would be really cool if I made it tall enough to fit in a cage for hamsters,” Giddes said. “I didn’t want it to just be cardboard and paper, so I tried to make it as realistic as possible.”

Giddes, who does not currently own a hamster, hopes he can soon get one, so his new furry friend can run through the cardboard tunnels and play in the waterfall he worked so hard on.

Vanderbeek said she was incredibly impressed with the creativity in Giddes and Edge’s work, but more so with all of the students.

“You never know when you’re dealing with younger students what they may be interested in,” she said. “There was inspiration from other students. But, it was just wonderful to see how their ideas progressed.”

Vanderbeek hopes her encouragement, along with the support of the kids’ classmates, will inspire the students to keep pursuing artwork in whatever medium they desire.

Edge and Giddes agreed they would be returning to craft more masterpieces in the fall, with Edge sharing his desire to work with clay in the future.

To see Edge and Giddes’ work and more amazing young artists, visit the Thomasville Center for the Arts, located at 600 E. Washington St.