Want to read about a REAL home that integrates toddler art throughout shared spaces in both pop up and permanent ways? One where art is used as therapy to support a child? Then you’ve come to the right interview. Angel just confirmed what I already knew, she is a very thoughtful, loving and supportive mother!

Tell me about yourself and your family 

My name’s Angel and I live in the Philippines with my husband Mark and where we homeschool our son, Buddy. 

How have you set up an art space in your home?

We live in a tiny condo home, which we love, but with a small space we have to make creative solutions. We do pocket art spaces, as I call them. 

Like this board that my husband used before for his work is now Buddy’s. He scribbles here when he wants to work alongside his dad during the day. 

We have a portable art caddy so we can bring it if we want to work at the dining table, in a room, or even outside. 

For some messy art with paint, I leave it in the bathroom so it’s easy to clean both Buddy and the bathroom walls. Haha

Does Buddy have a favourite art experience or material?

Buddy was diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder, so he avoids a lot of materials which makes a mess in his hands. He won’t touch paint with his hands before, so he would do this no mess paint activity where I put paint on paper inside a ziplock. 

But he’s slowly warming up to them and art is a big part of our therapy. Right now he uses the Stabilo Woody that you recommended everyday.

What would be your advice for parents who are just beginning to set up an art space?

Just do it! Start with whatever you have in your home and test it with your child. We started with 3 colors of paint, repurposed glass bottles as containers, a book stand as an easel, and a few brushes. We’ve changed and tweaked our our spaces a lot of times to find what works best.

Why do you think art is important for young children?

It was so daunting for me to introduce anything art related to my son because I believed I was not “artsy”. I realized that we’re exploring together and that is what’s important with learning art. I think that if I was introduced to or allowed to explore art as a child, I will never think that art is only for artistic people. 

It’s also a great tool for children to be engaging all their senses. Like what I said, we use different mediums to help Buddy with his sensory issues. 

Finally, who is your favourite artist or favourite artwork?

I don’t have one but I want to take this opportunity to share this painting by a Filipino artist Fernando Amorsolo.

“Amorsolo is best known for his illuminated landscapes, which often portrayed traditional Filipino customs, culture, fiestas, and occupations. His pastoral works presented “an imagined sense of nationhood in counterpoint to American colonial rule” and were important to the formation of Filipino national identity. Idealized agricultural Philippine scenes are the heart of Amorsolo’s work. They present a lifestyle that was disappearing quickly.

Many of the rice fields in the paintings are now the sites of new communities; nipa huts, are replaced by new homes. But Amorsolo continued to paint the traditional rural life in the Philippines.

Many consider Amorsolo’s portrayals of the countryside as “the true reflections of the Filipino Soul.”

You can find Angel on Instagram @agratefulmomma and at her website http://www.booksandbuddy.com/