Young at art

Young Chang

Claire Kohne uses the word “surrealist” and she’s only 11 years old.

She has two pieces in a local gallery show that opens to the public

Sunday. The first is a still-life copy of a Paul Cezanne.

“The second is one that came out of my mind. It’s a surrealist one,”

the Newport Beach girl said.

“What does surrealist mean?” she was asked.”It’s not all real. It’s a

dream, maybe,” she offered slowly, making sure the listener understood.

The painting shows an underwater scene. There are snorkelers and all

sorts of sea creatures. But, it’s the animals that are catching the

humans. Snorkelers are seen trapped inside bubbles blown by fish and

underneath a net guarded by a gargantuan octopus. Claire decided her

surrealistic touch should entail a bit of role reversal.

“They’re very talented kids, I love my kids,” said Sher Swaim,

instructor at and owner of Sher’s Art Gallery and class in Newport Beach.

Works by kids between 8 and 15 years old will be exhibited at Sher’s for

the next two Sundays. “We teach all the traditional types of things, plus

they learn to pull from their own creativity and do surrealistic work

once they get more advanced.”

Some of Swaim’s more than 60 students have taken classes for as long

as 10 years, since the gallery/class first opened. The instructor thought

it was time they received some praise. The show will feature drawings,

pastels, oils, multimedia projects, ceramics and acrylic paintings.

But the students are not exclusively artists. They play basketball,

baseball, soccer, you name it, just like any other kid.

“I think it’s very emotionally and intellectually healthy for them,

and creatively healthy for them,” Swaim said. “It’s a very healthy

outlet.”

Trevor Davis, 9, has two such outlets -- hockey and painting. Playing

the sport makes him feel happy.

“And it’s really cool to paint,” he said, smiling shyly. “It feels

good to paint.”

His contribution to the show is a ceramic plate he shaped from an

amorphous lump of clay. It features a Hurley logo -- a popular brand of

clothing that people consider “cool,” he said.

“I like clay because it’s like random -- you can make anything you

want to make,” Trevor added.

Ariana Longley, 12, is also adventurous about adding her own touch.

For an acrylic painting she is currently finishing, the young artist

works off of a photo of a semi-immersed dolphin she snapped at Sea World.

But she’s not being completely true to life.

She’s put a purple flower -- about the size of a clenched fist -- in

the upper left hand corner. It has no purpose or place being there other

than that Ariana loves painting flowers and wanted to bloom a boring

corner with a not-so-typical violet hibiscus.

It has been suggested that she make this her signature mark.

“I was thinking that,” the young girl said, while working on the piece

at the gallery.

She and Swaim’s other students are at home here. They’re accustomed to

working in the inconspicuous little space on the Balboa Peninsula, where

they get ample encouragement. But in Swaim’s opinion, it never hurts to

be praised by someone other than the teacher.

“I’m excited for them to show up here with their parents and

grandparents on opening night and get that validation,” she said.

“Because when other people give it, it means something else.”

FYI

WHAT: Exhibit at Sher’s Art Gallery

WHEN: 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday and March 18

WHERE: 2830 Newport Blvd., Newport Beach

COST: Free

CALL: (949) 675-9306