An exciting evening is coming to Clarendon Fine Art in Haslemere in July – a chance to admire the artworks of local children amid works by recognised professional artists. The evening is the result of a collaboration between Linnet at Clarendon Fine Art in Haslemere and Lucy who owns and runs The Little Art Space.

The Little Art Space offers art classes for both children and adults. It does so from a beautiful studio on the Petworth Road within easy walking distance of Haslemere High Street. Lucy’s children’s sessions are aimed at ensuring younger artists can develop their creative skills whilst, importantly, having fun. And she is at pains to stress that classes for adults are equally relaxed. The environment she has created is intentionally warm and friendly, so that everyone can feel equally comfortable, whether they’re a total beginner or an experienced artist. She told us, ‘I want to make art accessible and enjoyable for all. I like to make sure that everyone can gain some skills and build confidence in a friendly setting.’

Lucy has studied art at A level and then at the Putney school of art and West Dean college. She began her working life as a primary school teacher, before creating illustrations and commissioned work. She subsequently worked with adults with additional needs at Post 19 Farnham before setting up The Little Art Space. Her wealth of experience puts her in a great position to make sure her pupils can flourish and grow in confidence. 

Clarendon Fine Art is a leading gallery group, specialising in contemporary art, limited edition pieces and original works. It shares a similar outlook to Lucy in that the intention behind its creation was to make purchasing art an accessible, welcoming and inspiring experience rather than an intimidating one. They opened a store on Haslemere High Street back in November 2021.

Lucy told us that she has built up a great relationship with  Clarendon Fine Art’s Haslemere store and Linnet over the years. Lucy runs art camps in the school holidays. These will always involve two high quality activities each day and a home cooked meal but to give the children an opportunity to burn off some energy, they will always head up to the rec or enjoy a walk around town. And whenever they do the latter, they tend to pop into our fantastic local galleries to look at the artwork. Linnet has welcomed the children, and encouraged their curiosity and learning as they chat about the different art mediums on display and talk about what they like… and don’t like!

On the evening of Wednesday 15 July, approximately 40 of Lucy’s pupil’s artworks will be added to the main body of work on the walls of Clarendon Fine Art. The children’s art will be interspersed between artworks for sale by highly acclaimed and recognised artists. To ensure the children’s work gets the attention it deserves, children have the opportunity to include a professionally displayed biography so that those attending can find out a bit more about the artist and why they chose that piece of work to share with the public.

Lucy stressed, ‘I have intentionally left it to the children to decide which of their artworks they want to display in the gallery. They have created so many amazing and varied pieces over their time with us in a huge variety of mediums. There are collages, drawings, paintings, mosaics, sewing projects, clay sculptures, fabric printing and much more.’  She went on to say, ‘The children are so excited about the evening.’  We’re not surprised. It is such a fabulous opportunity and seems a lovely continuation of all the wonderful art we have had the pleasure of enjoying throughout our town over recent weeks thanks to the Haslemere Fringe festival and the collaboration with Gallery Thirteen.

Approximately 40 artworks will be on display on the night, alongside the portfolio that you will see in Clarendon Fine Art during normal opening hours. They will cover an eclectic range of artistic mediums reflecting the huge variety of creative projects the children have enjoyed over the past 12 months.

The event follows on from an extremely successful event at Lucy’s studio last Summer when the children’s art was displayed on her studio and kitchen walls for visitors to see. Lucy is extremely excited about the opportunity to display them in a thriving art gallery this time around.

Linnet and Lucy would love to see a great turn out from the community. As a reminder, the event will be held on 15 July between 6 pm and 8 pm. Entry is free of charge and all are welcome to attend. Those attending will also be able to enjoy a glass of fizz and nibbles. Please do show your support for our budding artists.

Good luck to all involved!