Hi. My name is Jean Van't Hul. I live with my husband and two daughters in the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina. Please feel free to contact me at jeanvanthul@gmail.com.
My Art Background: I drew and painted my way through childhood, then went on to study art history and studio art at Wellesley College. My first jobs out of college were at an art museum and an art magazine, although I later left the art world to work in nonprofit development.
The Toddler Art Group: After my first daughter was born, my interest in art was revitalized and I realized that I wanted to raise her in an art-rich environment and to encourage her creativity and imagination as much as possible. I read Young at Art by Susan Striker and First Art by MaryAnn F. Kohl, and thus guided by their ideas, I started the Toddler Art Group with several other moms and their toddlers. We met weekly and did everything from body painting and paper maché bowls to printing with flowers and making wood scrap sculptures. We also returned to the basics (painting, drawing, and collaging) again and again. For more about the Toddler Art Group, see FamilyFun's profile or Mothering magazine article, "Small Hands, Big Art" (Jul/Aug 2007). And if you are interested in starting your own group, here are some tips.
Why Blog? I started The Artful Parent partly to chronicle and share the art experiences we had with the art group, and also as a way for me to focus more on what it means to me to be an artful parent. I want to parent in a way that encourages creative expression, imagination, joyfulness, and a love of learning, not just in my daughters but in our entire family. I welcome you to join me as I attempt to be an artful parent...
For more about me, you can also read my interviews on the following sites:
WNC LINC
Photo by Lenka Hattaway Photography
