Global Art on my mind

If I told you that I learned about Global Art Philippines when I was 33 weeks pregnant with my son, way back March 2010, right after my maternity photoshoot at the now defunct Blow Up Babies Studio, which happened to sit right beside their Serendra branch, and that I tacked their flyer on my corkboard to serve as a reminder to enroll my son there when he turns five years old, would you find that incredible, freaky, or both?

Well I did (and boy, am I glad I did!), and as with everything etched on my planner, fast forward to Summer 2015 and there we were (my son and I) for his trial classes.

To be perfectly candid, I never doubted that my son would love it, or that his teacher would love him too (I know he loved art, his fine motor skills were excellent and he can sit still and focus at the task-at-hand even longer than most adults I know), but what I didn’t expect was that he would love it that much to carry the flame all-year-round, so much so that until now, three years after that fateful day, he still gets a high from attending his Global Art classes.

For those who are not familiar with Global Art, below is a short description straight from their website:

Global Art Philippines
Source: https://philippines.globalart.world/about-us/

Since 1999, Global Art Creative Learning Methodology have been nurturing and developing children’s creativity throughout the world. Through our art enrichment programmes in our inspired learning setting and environment, learners will improve and reinforce their discipline of learning, creative expression and artistic abilities, optimising their learning experience and inner potential in life.

VISION

• Towards a better world by embracing creativity and innovation
• Nurturing young minds to be Imaginative, Creative and Innovative unlocking their creative potentials and enriching their lives

MISSION

• Promote creative and innovative thinking in children’s life.
• Apply creative Ingenuity to deliver the best products, training and services
  Strive to be more efficient, effective and to deliver more

Personally, what I love about Global Art is the discipline by which they teach art and foster art appreciation via a rigorous progression of art techniques from foundation to basic, to advanced. My son, for example, as with most kids, was drawn to drawing and painting, but before he can do those, he needed to start with the most foundational technique of coloring, using the simplest and easiest medium to blend – oil pastels. Thereafter, he was introduced to colored pencils, and only recently, moved up to freehand drawing.

This structure taught my son the virtues of patience, perseverance and tenacity as he needed to finish each module, page by page, mastering each technique before he can advance to the next, and as a result kept his passion for art burning.

Now we’ve all heard the word GRIT at one point or another, as it recently became a buzz word, not only in corporate trainings but also in parenting and raising kids who maximize their potential. As I’ve witnessed in my son, Global Art fosters this much-sought-after, albeit, now-elusive attitude by the way their classes are structured and by means of the two events they hold every year.

First is the Art Exhibition where students get to showcase their best artwork/s, and second, the National Art Competition which gathers Global Art students from all their branches across the Philippines to vie for the Grand Champion Trophy and represent the Philippines in the International Competition.

After joining for three consecutive years, we haven’t really bagged any of the major awards yet, but as my son always proclaims year after year after being called as one of the Top 10 best artists of his age group, “I’ll try again next year mom!” And for us, this determination in him to work hard, endure struggle (he undergoes thrice-a-week training to prepare for the competition), fail (gracefully if I must say) and try again is our best ROI and is the reason that we love and promote Global Art to our family and friends.

Incidentally, this weekend, the Global Art Exhibit of Salcedo Makati branch where my son is enrolled in, will be happening at Robinson’s Magnolia. It’s a bit far from our residence at 18 Kms away and we probably will be faced with heavy traffic and less-than-ideal weather, but my son has been looking forward to this event for months and we won’t miss it for the world! For those in the area, please drop by the atrium. 🙂

Disclaimer: This is not a paid advertisement or a sponsored post and I am not affiliated with the owners and management of Global Art Philippines.