More Than Finger Painting: How Vancouver Art Gallery’s Summer Camps Are Inspiring Young Creatives

Picture this: your eight-year-old daughter emerges from a week at summer camp, not with the usual tales of swimming and capture the flag, but with stories about metaphorical cages, time-travelling portals, and the profound connection between forest paintings and personal expression. She’s eager to drag you back to the very place where her artistic adventure began – the Vancouver Art Gallery.

This isn’t your typical summer camp experience. At the Vancouver Art Gallery’s Summer Arts Camps, children don’t just observe art from behind velvet ropes. They dive headfirst into the creative process, inspired by the very exhibitions hanging on the gallery walls around them.

“We want them to be inspired, engaged, and walk away with new ways to express themselves,” says Susan Rome, the gallery’s Public Programs Coordinator for Youth. “We try to spark curiosity by connecting what they see in the gallery to what they can create with their own hands.”

Art that sparks imagination

One distinctive feature of the camps is their close connection to the exhibitions on view. Rather than follow a rigid curriculum, instructors design each day’s activities around the artworks currently on display, encouraging campers to respond directly and personally to what they see.

Vivian, 9, a past camp attendee, explains it like this: “Sometimes it’s sculpting, sometimes it’s painting, and we always visit the Emily Carr exhibition for our pastels. We get to see the exhibits that are taking place, and then we create art based on that.”

This summer’s camps will draw inspiration from four exhibitions: clay-based works, contemporary art using everyday materials, collage-based printmaking, and Emily Carr’s haunting forest paintings. Children might explore printmaking influenced by automatism, create rubbings with string, or interpret West Coast landscapes in pastels.

“We can make great connections between these exhibits,” says Rome. “Even when the artists are from totally different time periods and media, kids learn to see patterns, contrasts, and ideas that link them together.”

Cooper, 10, another past participant, says the best part is “walking freely around the exhibition and trying to create something similar but with my own style.” He adds, “I meet new friends who like art just like me. It’s pretty fun!”

Structure meets self-expression

Rome says the goal isn’t to teach kids to draw a perfect still life, but to encourage them to look carefully, interpret what they see, and respond in their own way. Each camp session begins with a guided gallery visit, where students are encouraged to ask questions and consider how art is created, followed by studio time to explore these ideas through hands-on experimentation.

“It’s not about how well you can draw,” she says. “It’s about how you look, how you feel, and how you choose to respond creatively.”

This open-ended approach has resonated. “I feel like I’m learning something special,” says Vivian. Cooper adds, “It’s really fun for kids like me who like art and drawing and being imaginative. We get to create art and make new friends.”

One of Vivian’s favourite memories was a collaborative multimedia project. “We put sounds in it and took so many pictures, so it formed a video. It was so fun and I enjoyed my group a lot.”

Rome notes that fostering a sense of community is central to the program’s success. “Most kids come in not knowing anyone. Our job is to help them feel confident and connected. We want them to see that there’s no one right way to make art.”

That philosophy also informs how the camp handles diverse learning styles. Rome recounts how one child with special needs thrived thanks to a custom strategy developed in collaboration with the child’s parent. “It turned out to be a success for everyone involved,” she says. “When we meet kids where they are, they flourish.”

Creative process meets personal growth

Rome recalls a moment that stood out from a past camp: a group of children exploring a Parviz Tanavoli exhibition, where sculptural imagery of cages prompted reflections on personal challenges. One child later told her mother, “We all have cages around us. They’re just things we need to overcome.”

“That was such a profound moment,” says Rome. “It shows how deeply kids are thinking about what they see.”

That depth of engagement often carries beyond the gallery walls. Cooper and Vivian’s mother, Michelle, says she has seen the impact firsthand. “My kids are so proud of their work and share it with our family and friends. They discuss what they learned and how they accomplished it. It’s inspiring.”

She also appreciates the emotional benefits. “There are so many camps available, and we choose sports camps for physical health, but this one contributes to mental health. They always have so much fun and are so happy finishing a day at the Gallery.”

Art behind the scenes

Beyond art-making, the camps offer a glimpse into the inner workings of a major cultural institution. Children meet conservators, preparators, and registrars, learning how exhibitions are assembled and preserved.

“Kids are fascinated when they realize there are jobs in art beyond being a painter or sculptor,” says Rome. “It broadens their sense of what a creative future might look like.”

Guest artists also bring fresh perspectives. Last spring break, Vancouver artist Janet Wang led a monotype printmaking session inspired by her Chinatown drawings, which were displayed on the gallery’s doors and windows. “It was incredibly accessible, and the kids were totally engaged,” says Rome.

Celebration and reflection

Each week concludes with a student-led exhibition, where campers proudly guide their families through displays of their creations. “They’re just vibrating with excitement,” says Rome. “They take their parents into the gallery and explain what inspired their work.”

Michelle calls the experience “unique and special,” adding: “I love seeing them be creative, making new friends, and the pleasure in showing us what they produced. Yes, absolutely—I’d recommend this camp to other parents.”

For families seeking a summer experience that nurtures both creativity and confidence, the Vancouver Art Gallery’s Summer Arts Camps offer something lasting: a deeper connection to art and to the expressive power each child carries within them. —Mark Sissons