Today I hired my two neighbor kids , a brother and sister ages 8 and 10, to paint gesso on some canvases. They did a great job. They got the first coat on at least seven canvases.
I needed their help, but mostly I wanted to teach them about the act of doing art not just the painting techniques you learn in classes. I wanted to teach them about the preparation, the application, the reason for applying a base on a canvas (or on the deer antler they had given me) prior to painting, and of course the clean up.
They were surprised how much you can accomplish in an hour without racing and being sloppy. I set the timer for one hour and went through the whole process of setting up dropclothes on my deck, putting on old t-shirts and plastic gloves, getting out plastic containers, brushes etc .
They were very attentive.
I told them the difference between being paid by the piece or by the hour, and how they would be assessed for their work. They worked quite hard and deserved their pay.
When they return from their vacation I will give them each one of the canvases, I hope they will paint a memory of their trip out west as well as enjoy their painted antlers. Hopefully they will continue to want to work for me!
