‘I make casts of their feet!’ Rachel Whiteread, Michael Armitage and more on how they get their kids into art
By Chloë Ashby for The Guardian
You could let them make a mess in your kitchen, take them to the safari park to draw animals – and if all else fails there’s always bribes! We speak to leading artists about making childcare creative
Who better to have the final word on introducing young children to art than artist parents? Gone are the days of the genius artist at work alone in their garret. Today’s creatives are making art with knee-height people at their feet. So, what’s worked for them when it comes to sharing their love of art? What hasn’t? And what’s their advice for the rest of us?
Rachel Whiteread: ‘I’d cast my children’s hand or foot, just for fun’
“Taking my kids to museums was always a bit challenging because I had two boys, four years apart, who liked to run in opposite directions. But when they were small, I encouraged them to come into my studio, a space that seemed so different to anywhere else in the house, like a treasure trove. Early on, I taught them how to sharpen pencils with knives and things like that, giving them responsibility. There would be boxes full of coloured pencils and paints and all sorts of different paper. I wouldn’t let them run riot, but I’d certainly let them play and encourage them to express themselves. Sometimes they’d make stuff with Play-Doh while I was working. I would often cast bits of them, just for fun, a hand or a foot. And we used to do loads of Lego together as well – I always think that’s such a creative toy, not so much the sets but when you have a great big box and just tip it out on to the floor. It’s about letting them be curious and play about and not necessarily have a plan, just to have fun making things.”
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