For Art's Sake

For Art’s Sake stresses the importance of nurturing art and creativity in children from a young age.  Art's journey shows the enriching effects of tapping into one’s potential and becoming involved in artistic pursuits. 

Art is an 11-year-old boy who, despite his name, has no interest or appreciation for the world of art.  Art’s mother is too caught up in her work life to take an active interest in her son’s activities.  A whole new world opens up for Art when she gives him a gift of a sketch book and a felt pen and encourages him to visit the art gallery. 

There Art meets Franny, who introduces him to the works of famous artists such as Van Gogh, Escher and Chagall.  The audience follows Art’s learning through a series of visual projections of the works being discussed.  Through his interaction with Franny, Art gains the confidence to pursue his own artmaking and nurture his imagination.  She gives him a frame which, when mounted on his bedroom wall, becomes a window into the world of Art’s Imagination, complete with creative puppet characters: Wazo, representing Art’s first drawing; Scrap-Heap, a monster of discarded drawings; and Scribble, a singing “tangled old mess of lines.” 

The script includes the lyrics for two short songs but no score is provided.

Winner, Outstanding Production for Young Audiences and Outstanding Original Script, Jessie Richardson Awards, 1997

Recommended Audience: For Children

Themes

• Creativity/Imagination
• The Arts