New business coming to the West Seattle Junction: Young at Art

Story and photo by Keri DeTore
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

Walls are being painted bright red, orange, and purple inside the storefront at 4709 42nd Ave SW (vacated by SIMA Martial Arts, which moved to The Triangle), and some walls can be drawn on with multi-colored chalk. This space is becoming home to Young at Art, an art workshop that will be open to kids and adults to learn and play with arts and crafts.

Owner Theresa Anderson tells WSB that the space will be a combination workshop and artist’s studio, with art wor kstations positioned around the space and focusing on particular mediums.

One station may have painting supplies, while another will have collage materials, and other stations will hold different kinds of art and craft supplies allowing kids to move from one station to another. The space will be broken out by age range as well, so younger kids will be offered supplies and crafts appropriate to them and the older kids will get to play with the messier stuff. Anderson says, “We’ll be able to accommodate all age ranges all the time, so parents can come in and relax with their coffee while the kids are doing art in their areas.”

There will also be a space for adults to work in, where Anderson and her business partner Andrea Watterson will provide art classes such as stained glass, pottery and jewelry-making.

If Anderson and Watterson’s names sound familiar to you, you may have a child attending their after-school art program at Schmitz Park Elementary. That program, along with a summer art camp Anderson did in her home this year, inspired them to create a space dedicated to providing access to the arts and crafts year-round.

Open hours at the workshop will cater to the school district’s off-hours, so kids and parents have something to do while schools are on break, or have an early out day. Artists who need studio space will be able to rent the space during the workshop’s closed hours. The workshop will stay open for future West Seattle Art Walks and will feature both art from kids and adult artists.

Anderson says the workshop will be open in time for Trick-or-Treating in the Junction – October 29th, 1-3 pm – where they’ll be handing out Trick-or-Treat kits “with masks that the kids can bring back and decorate!”

Though prices haven’t been finalized, Anderson guesses that workshop attendance will be around $20-$25 per child per workshop, and open studio costs will be around $5-$8 per hour. The space will also be available to rent for birthday parties, and Anderson says they’ll provide art supplies and goodie bags.

To learn more about the workshop, pick up one of the informational flyers that will be available at Young at Art by next week.

9 Replies to "New business coming to the West Seattle Junction: Young at Art"

  • Lorelee October 13, 2011 (6:20 am)

    Can’t wait to bring my little guy in! She says “all ages” hopefully she’ll have some fun projects for 18 mo- 3 year olds!

  • WS mom October 13, 2011 (6:54 am)

    Congratulations guys!! Keegan is looking forward to it!! As his mom.

  • Neighborly October 13, 2011 (3:51 pm)

    What a great addition to our neighborhood!

  • akit October 13, 2011 (7:02 pm)

    My daughter attended their summer camp and had an awesome time. Theresa and Andrea give guidence when asked, but really let the kid’s creativity run wild. I can’t wait for their studio to open!

  • Candy October 14, 2011 (9:58 am)

    Congrats T!!!! That is wonderful! Sounds like alot of fun!!!

    C

  • sybil October 14, 2011 (12:30 pm)

    This sounds amazing! I hope drop-in hours during the day will also be available to school aged kids :)

  • Theresa Anderson October 14, 2011 (3:07 pm)

    Thanks everyone..this is sure to be an exciting adventure for our family, friends, and community. And yes we will have open studio for school age kids after-school and on the weekends. Including art time for younger children too, as well as a play area for the really young. See you all soon..:) Young at Art
    Theresa

  • Danielle October 15, 2011 (7:39 am)

    Hi, Theresa. I’d like to talk to you about reserving the space for a birthday party in November. Will you email me at daniellemcgarrity@gmail.com when you have a chance? thanks!

  • Vali Hawkins MItchell October 17, 2011 (10:34 am)

    Please contact me at oceanvali@gmail.com or phone 808-3971528 so I can drop by to introduce myself. I would love to collaborate/rent space/etc. Thanks. Welcome to the neighborhood…looks awesome when I peeked in the window this morning!

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