by Micah Magee

Neeka Edwards had a headache and did not want to draw her sister's eye in the place it belonged. It was Neeka's first day at Art Nest's "Reach for the Ceiling" summer camp, and the other four girls were diligently shading portraits of each other with Renaissance accuracy. Neeka studied morosely the eye under her sister's nose. A shadow fell over the paper. Neeka looked up to see that it belonged to the teacher, Tiffany Sheely. She sunk her head in one hand and covered the errant eye with a finger of the other. Ms. Sheely smiled and mentioned Picasso. Neeka buried her face in the table. Ms. Sheely asked if Neeka would not rather turn over the paper and draw something else for a while, or take a break entirely. Slowly, Neeka reemerged from behind her hands and ventured a look at her new teacher. Within a few minutes, a maze of intricate lines was crossing the sheet and the headache seemed somewhat forgotten.

On the flyer, Art Nest describes itself as a program "created to meet Austin's growing need for quality children's programs." A low student-teacher ratio (four to eight students per course) enables teachers to provide students with a safe environment for artistic exploration in a range of courses offered this summer at the ArtPlex. Some classes combine history with production, while others are intended to enhance awareness of art and artists in Austin or to delve into a specific medium. All classes share a firm commitment to the way in which students are learning as opposed to a final work.

"A child's feelings during the artistic process affect the product deeply," said Sheely after class. "I want my students to have a good feeling about creating art, not to be overwhelmed or consumed by it. I am amazed by children's ability to be curious, responsive, and unrestrained. It is my responsibility to make a safe environment and to present material that is inspiring -- to provide pointers, not to limit their ideas. That means letting go as a teacher and focusing on the process, not the product."

Art Nest began last February when Sheely approached Austin Coalition of Artists founder Tina Jaillet to ask how one might start an educational program coordinating production with art history and appreciation. For the past five years, Jaillet has been conducting aesthetic research in addition to her responsibilities with ACA, focusing on different types of viewing. She is interested in the ways in which a vocabulary is developed to discuss art. Through observing her son's progress in Sheely's second grade class at Kerbey Hall, Jaillet knew Sheely to have educational sensitivities similar to her own. The two women decided to relinquish their positions at ACA and Kerbey Hall to invest in a small private art school.

Neeka's class, "Reach for the Ceiling," is a week-long program on the Renaissance period, cumulating in a fresco on the classroom ceiling. On the first day, the students paint on the bottoms of tables to get a feel for the techniques Michelangelo might have used and discuss panels from the Sistine Chapel. Neeka's sister, Sylvia, said the class differed greatly from other experiences she'd had with art education. "I really didn't like my art class in school. My teacher didn't really do anything. All we did was play with clay all day and we were not allowed to talk back. Anytime we talked it was talking back." In Art Nest classes, students articulate opinions on a wide range of topics. Like the rest of the production programs, "Reach for the Ceiling" finishes with a gallery-style opening. Refreshments are served and the students hang their work around the classroom. Parents and friends are invited to witness the unveiling of the fresco.

Other courses featured this summer include an interactive study of French masters, a trek through city galleries, a printing class, a program for parents who would like to work with their children, and Saturday found-object workshops.

"Artists, Save Our Earth" is another found-object program where children are encouraged to expand their definition of art. After building things from broken toys and parts of parks, the group goes to visit local artists who earn their livelihood the same way. In this way, students are able to connect art history and art work with concrete examples of professional artists here in Austin. After running through Vince Hahnmann's three-story sculpture, the last group of 6-8 year olds was asked if they thought something so huge and made out of things most people throw out could really be considered an art work. They thought it could.

"It's neat to see that art does not have to be realistic or 2D or easy to understand and that it can be physical and functional," said Sheely.

Art Nest will continue opening doors this fall. They would like to begin working in public schools where art has been cut from the budget and expand the program to include a class by Nina Jolly, who has been assisting Jaillet and Sheely this summer. Jolly hopes to eventually provide a class that facilitates the reintroduction to art for adults who thought their creative days ended when they were in sixth grade.

Although several artists have approached the school interested in teaching, Jaillet expressed a hesitance to expand. She is nervous that the program would no longer be able to uphold its grounding philosophy if faced with rapid growth. "What we really need is a bookkeeper," sighed Jaillet.