The unconditioned expressions of young children are among the best works of art. When my son was a toddler his drawing would remind me of Cy Twombly’s work; free ranging scribblings that wouldn’t stop where the wall did, but just continue on window panes, floors and doors. When he was about 5 he would simply assemble things to make a ‘canvas’ large enough for his idea, using tape or staples to hold it together, and get cracking. Lovely pieces he has done and we preserved quite a lot, in drawers but also up on the walls in our home.

He is nearly 8 now and his subjects as well as technique have changed into more ‘common’ for his age group. But luckily in the school there’s no end of ‘early work’ by younger children out in the hallways. I like to collect them, taking pictures and sometimes post them on my Facebook page, they’re just so lovely, fresh and quirky! From now on they will appear here under ‘Early Works’.