CALLICOON AND NARROWSBURG, NY — Pablo Picasso famously said, “It took me a lifetime to learn to paint like a child.”

And he was right. Children are the world’s best artists. So the Western Sullivan Public Library (WSPL) is collaborating with the Delaware Valley Arts Alliance (DVAA) and the Barryville Area Arts Association (BAAA) to host a series of events where kids get to show off their stuff.

“We’ll host a free painting party at each of our three branches during the month of May—art supplies will be on hand,” said Kristen Dasenbrock, the library’s director of children’s services. “Then, on August 3, we’re planning an exhibition of the work at the Delaware Valley Art Alliance’s Krause Recital Hall, so young people up to age 17 can have the experience of an opening night.”

The exhibit will feature the work of the young artists, as well as their bios—plus exhibit prints of Picasso’s most childlike artwork. With parental permission, entrants could also be included in a YouTube video of the event to be posted on the Artists’ Market Community Center YouTube channel.

The next session takes place on Tuesday, May 14 at the Callicoon branch of the WSPL, from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. That’s followed at the Narrowsburg branch of the library on Monday, May 20 from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. 

Register for either of these paint-outs at www.wsplonline.libcal.com/calendar.  

School groups, Scout groups and art galleries are encouraged to host their own painting parties. 

The art created at all of these events is eligible for inclusion in the opening reception, which will be held at the DVAA’s Krause Recital Hall on August 3.

To submit the artwork of a young artist, email barryvilleareaarts@gmail.com. 

This project is sponsored by the WSPL, the DVAA and the BAAA, and is made possible with funds from the Statewide Community Regrant Program, a program of the NYS Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. It is administered by the DVAA.