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Operated by the Calgary Contemporary Arts Society May 1 to May 17, 2008 |
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Numbers Don't Count: Admission to this Exhibit is Free! A Celebration of Children's Art
The Arts Centres, operated through the Department of Recreation of The City of Calgary, employ artists within our community to teach a variety of programs designed to stimulate, nurture, and develop children’s creativity. Acquiring proficiency in art requires learning how to see, interpret and make sense of peripheral stimuli. The education programs in visual arts provide children with the tools needed to create meaning and to express their thoughts There are refreshing and distinctive qualities found in the art produced by children. Spontaneity, purity, unencumbered expression, and a lack of cynicism – qualities adult artists often struggle to attain – are just a few of the characteristics inherent in the art of children. These works have the power to move us in unexpected ways and take us back to a time in our life where everything was good and promising.
Join us in promoting and celebrating the artistic achievements produced by these junior creative intellects! Jacek Malec Jurors' Statement
As jurors, we were drawn to the rich colour palettes in the paintings, the thoughtful consideration given to the forms of clay and papier mâché, and the bold choices made with line quality in the drawings. These young artists have offered us a unique glimpse into the joy of creating art, and we appreciate the opportunity to share in their joy. Jody Williams
List of Images (left to right, top to bottom):
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This is the 21st Year the North Mount Pleasant and Wildflower Arts Centres have presented an exhibition comprised of children’s art. The show has previously been held at various locations: the Mayor’s Office, Municipal Atrium, Gulf Gallery and the Devonian Garden Gallery. In 1995, the Triangle Gallery of Visual Arts was selected as the official host for the children’s art exhibit. Since then, the Triangle Gallery has enthusiastically embraced the opportunity to become a vital stimulant to various inter-community activities including the Calgary International Children’s Festival.
The art works in this exhibition were created by children (ages 3 to 17) enrolled in art programs this past year at both Arts Centres. 
and feelings in visual forms. Using a variety of materials and techniques, children gain knowledge in the practical use of traditional and contemporary tools, materials and media.
Examined in the broader scope, an art exhibition of this kind provides an excellent opportunity to create a bond between the arts community and the community at large. In addition, it allows children to connect with, and feel a sense of belonging to their community. Given that art is intrinsically connected to the culture from which it originates, the art created by these children not only give us insight into their own personal psyche, but also demonstrate how societal values have changed over time. 
Numbers offer us the ability to keep track of things which may initially be outside our realms of reason. Abstracted concepts such as “how much time doing a certain task equals the value of a bowl of soup” would be overwhelmingly complex without numbers. Numbers equate hours, dollars, streets, miles, ounces, minutes and years. But numbers are simply a way for us to enumerate the things in our lives, perhaps existing solely for the purpose of giving order to our existence. Numbers, however, lack imagination—quantifying effort and experience, while limiting the freedom to venture beyond what seems orderly, expected, or logical. Imagination need not be logical. 
The young artists’ who have attended the City of Calgary’s Arts Centres this past year possess imagination in abundance. With this realization, we were faced with the daunting task of selecting the artworks for this Triangle Gallery exhibition. Gradually, as we progressed in the process, it became apparent to us that our strongest positive responses were towards the works in which we could sense the young artists’ personal voice. This collection of children’s work, as a whole, informed its’ individual parts, and we were able to discern the tremendous efforts represented in this collection of fine children’s art.
