What We Want to Say – GetArt 2022 Children’s Aesthetic Education Exhibition
Exhibition Dates
2022.9.24 – 2022.12.16
Location
286 A Lakeshore Rd E, Oakville, ON L6J 1J2
Organizer
GetArt Art Center × Prometheus Art Gallery
In the unique context following the COVID-19 pandemic, Prometheus Art Gallery and GetArt Art Center proudly present What We Want to Say – 2022 Children’s Aesthetic Education Exhibition. The exhibition features over one hundred works created by students from GetArt’s Oakville and Mississauga campuses, spanning painting, sculpture, installation, picture books, and other media. Centered on the theme of “observation,” the works capture children’s perceptions of everyday details, their imagined worlds, and the expression of their inner emotions.
The exhibition also marks the launch of the White Cube – Children’s Public Art Program, a charitable art education initiative aimed at creating equal and open opportunities for children to engage in artistic experiences.
Since its founding in 2016, GetArt Art Center has been dedicated to aesthetic education for children and youth, becoming the Greater Toronto Area’s first all-age art education institution. In 2018, GetArt partnered with Prometheus Art Gallery to launch the “Gallery + Aesthetic Education Program,” integrating art exhibitions, professional courses, and community initiatives. This collaboration spans artist residencies, master workshops, plein air painting activities, children’s art publishing, digital art, and AI-based art education.
GetArt’s aesthetic education projects have established close collaborations with renowned North American institutions such as Sheridan College, OCAD University, and Parsons School of Design, as well as with charitable organizations including SickKids, Gifted People Services, and Villa Charities. Internationally, GetArt has partnered with major national art museums in China, including the Jiangsu Art Museum, Sichuan Art Museum, and Shenzhen Sea Art Center, fostering rich cultural exchanges between Eastern and Western art education.
Guided by the core philosophy of Individual Growth + Observation Skills + Emotional Expression, GetArt advocates an accompanying, non-intrusive teaching approach that respects each child’s unique perspective and creative voice. We believe that aesthetic education is not merely the development of technical skills but also the nurturing of the heart and mind.
Through the process of art-making, children learn to appreciate life’s subtle beauty, build self-confidence and happiness, and form emotional connections with the world around them. Each artwork is an extension and externalization of a child’s inner world.
"They say there are cat people and dog people.
But why must we choose?
I dream of a cat-dog person —
a world where we don’t have to be divided."
— From the words of a child growing up through the pandemic
What We Want to Say is not only a concentrated presentation of children’s art but also a collective statement on observation, perception, and expression. It reflects the vital role of aesthetic education in contemporary childhood—helping children discover their own voices through free creation, and encouraging them to share, dialogue, and resonate with others through art.
