“Both my parents were artists. As a child I often played with their art materials and was left to explore. There was no teaching as such, however they used to help me occasionally with technical details. Very early on I experienced the great satisfaction of being creative.
As an adult, the first time I walked into a CEA studio in Zurich, I was allowed to sit quietly, showing no reaction, in a children’s session. I was amazed at the children working intensely and in silence for one and a half hours; occasionally a child sat down quietly for a while. I realised they were experiencing total absorption in the outpouring of the creative process. I decided then and there to take up this work professionally.”
Children’s Art
“A person who values child art should know that the main thing is not the representation of the subject, but the transformation of sensations into form and colour. So it is not the house, the funny little man, the tree or the sun that are important, but what the form of the house, the tree and the sun embody, independently of the figurative meaning of these pictures. For it is a fundamental fact that self expression comes in symbol form. And pictures are their packages, their justification.”
Arno Stern, founder of CEA
Adult’s Art
In the CEA studio adults can relax and explore their imagination. The experience of the creative process in the studio affects daily life, giving greater assurance and creative decision-solving ability. Artists may find a new source of their own creativity, or adults who have had their creativity eclipsed may find it again. Participants report being able to dialogue with their intuitive side and explore the relationship between chaos and creativity.
Concentration in the studio.
Observation of the painting.