Contributed by Cheryl West-Hicks
You know those places you can’t wait to share.
They seem too good to be true.
“Is it possible that I could be the one to introduce someone to this gem?” you think, imagining your heroism.
Creation space is one of those places.
Alie is a phenomenal artist.
Seriously, check her out here.
Fiona took her community art classes last year and it was easily her favourite part of the week.
We couldn’t have been more excited to learn that she would be starting Creation Space in the Roots on Whyte Community Building.
With many classes, workshops and even open studio time it isn’t hard to find something that fits your family.
We eagerly enrolled for the PD day camp for ages 4-11.
(I mean my kids and I have a great time together but there were a bunch of days off in November and I was getting stale.)
The space was immediately inviting with 2 sensory picnic tables close to the door.
A little further in we found easels with a variety of paints just waiting for the kids to dive into.
They could feel it, this was a place with freedom.
To start the led part of the day Alie had them all gather as she engrossed them in a story.
They would create 2 projects from this inspiration but this wasn’t daunting.
There was little talk of what they would end up with, Creation space is all about the process.
And Alie is a effortless guide.
I left them to it at this point and had a couple hours of precious time to myself.
When I returned I found the kids sitting quietly and stirring diligently.
Not only had they imagined hybrid animals, painted them as watercolours (seen on the back wall above) and turned them into clay sculptures (seen on the tables); they were now making slime!
It was fun and messy (like too good to be true messy) but with just the right amount of that last ingredient became a toy that they could take with them.
It was yet another example of Alie’s magic.
On the walk home I had a chance to chat with 4 very different kids about their experience.
They each had different favourites but agreed that it was the BEST morning.
And I quote, “I’m so happy I could cry”.
Doesn’t get much better than that.
“We celebrate curiosity and imagination, nurturing the process of creation rather than focusing on the outcome.”
~Creation Space
King Edward Elementary School 