Creative outlet for the young, the restless

December 18, 2011|By Shira Springer, Globe Staff

The authors nephew Henry, 2, mixes his media at Muckykids Art Studio. (SHIRA SPRINGER/GLOBE STAFF )

Beaming with pride, Eamon Frongillo-Lofstrom, 3, offers his mother a slime muffin. She accepts it with mock excitement. At a nearby table, Coco Pierce, 5, works on a bat-shaped puppet. “I like the glittery paper,’’ she says, surveying material options. Meanwhile, a few feet away, Quentin Cooper, 4, cuts out circles with a childproof hole punch and declares, “This is sculpture making.’’

It is all part of the creative process at Muckykids Art Studio in Cambridge. The cozy, craft-filled space on Massachusetts Avenue gives children a chance to explore, experiment, and show off their artistic talents.

The slimy, batty, glittery scene unfolds on a cloudy Saturday afternoon as Muckykids hosts drop-in studio hours with four activities at four tables. Kids choose among piecing together paper strips and circles, creating bat masks and puppets, playing with slime, and making paintings with various plastic objects as stamps. But really, anything goes as they flit from table to table, more interested in the process than in finishing their projects.

“When designing activities for the week, I make sure there’s a wide enough variety,’’ says Liz Vance, Muckykids owner, who wears a bracelet made of paper circles and strips. “Depending on the temperament of the kids coming in, there’s going to be at least one that is engaging for them, if not more. For most kids, all the activities are engaging. There’s always something for every kid here.’’

The walls and shelves at Muckykids overflow with brightly-colored art projects. And glittery, silver stars hang from the ceiling, giving the studio an appropriately whimsical appearance. In one corner, there is a sticky wall, delighting children who toss large pompoms toward it and watch them stay put. A red barn made of cardboard boxes stands beside the sticky wall, marking the start of an interactive, farm-themed play area. Soon, a tractor made of cardboard boxes will join the barn and kids will decorate the vehicle. Upcoming drop-in studio activities will use farm animals and farm machines as inspiration.

“Quentin comes in here and he gets absorbed because there are a lot of different things to do,’’ says his father, Todd Cooper. “We’ve been here for almost two hours and he isn’t bored because there are different stations and other kids doing things. There’s a freedom that allows them to create what they want to at the different stations and there’s no pressure to create, to do art, if that’s not the mood they’re in.’’

Eamon’s mother, Katrina Frongillo-Lofstrom, adds: “I love doing arts and crafts at home, but there are projects here that I would never think of. And I would never want to get this messy in my own house.’’