By Grace Heimsness

Austin ArtWorks Festival

Every buzzing arts community begins with an important investment in artistic potential — that is, the kiddos.

Those with kids as well as anyone who’s been one (which is, I hope, most of you) knows the feeling of attending an event like the ArtWorks Festival: the day invites adventure and is full of possibility.

Endeavoring to live up to those high hopes, our children’s activities this year is all about fresh adventures and old favorites (budding artists take note: the VW Beetle will be ready for another coat of paint).

Just a few of those adventures: Those who enjoy a good story can sit down and listen to authors Lydia Emma Niebuhr, Lisa Soland, and Grant Blackwood read from their own books as well as the classics.

Kyra Bellrichard will be throwing pottery on the wheel, for young clay enthusiasts. And our featured artists in this area, mosaicist Patrick Hansel and muralist Jimmy Longoria will be helping kids explore what it means to create.

Longoria, the first and so far only Latino to be awarded the Bush Foundation Artist Fellowship in Fine Art, is well known for his signature style (murals containing dazzling color and innumerable brushstrokes) and his dedication to passing on artistic knowledge and passion to the next generation. His organization (Mentoring Peace Through Art) includes projects such as MuralWorks, which rallies youth in the name of deterring gang graffiti and producing “exuberant, community-based art.”

Art’s highest form, according to Longoria, is giving back to the community. So parents, your kiddos aren’t the only ones who should be excited. Our community is about to get a full infusion of color, and thanks in part to Longoria, it’s your kids who will be doing the coloring.

Until next week, hold on tight.