Art to Grow Up With

During the exhibition on Jomfruland in Norway, I noticed something interesting. Among the younger visitors, there were two of my works in particular that made them stop and take a closer look: Ascension and Carrot on the Table.

In Ascension, a white, winged horse comes towards us from a world somewhere between reality and myth. Where does it come from? Where is it going?

To me, it represents vitality and the determination to overcome obstacles, but the image offers no definitive answer. It is your own imagination that gets to complete the story.

Carrot on the Table tells a very different and more humorous story. A horse and a donkey stand in front of a table with a single carrot. Who will get it?

Some thought the donkey would never get a bite. Others were convinced that the horse would not be quick enough and that the donkey would snatch the carrot right from under its nose.

Watching these reactions reminded me of something important. There is a great advantage in introducing children and young people to visual art through images that immediately arouse their curiosity and spark their imagination.

A good image can be experienced one way when you are six, another when you are sixteen, and perhaps in an entirely new way when you become an adult.

But content is only one side of the story. Craftsmanship and quality are equally important. When giving art to a young person, I like the idea that the image will not simply hang on the wall for a few years, but may accompany its owner throughout life.

That is why available prints of Ascension and Carrot on the Table are produced as Giclée prints on acid-free, museum-quality paper. The materials and production standards are chosen with quality and longevity in mind.

The image can then become more than something on a childhood wall. It can become a work of art that someone grows up with, takes with them through life, and perhaps one day passes on to the next generation.

Art can be a wonderful gift for a young person when it sparks the imagination and is made to last.

- Eldar Einarson