This week, Sol Gallery welcomed a group of students from Flourish School’s La Selva class for a morning of observation, imagination, and conversation.
For many of the students, it was their first time stepping inside a working gallery.
They arrived with a simple but powerful question:
Why do we have art?
Before heading to the beach for a day of plein air painting, their teacher intentionally chose Sol Gallery as the first stop. The goal was not to teach technique. It was to expand perspective.
Art as more than paint and brushes.
Art as something larger.
Art as a language beyond words.
Owner and artist Alex Starre guided the students through the space with a focus on attention rather than answers.
Each student received a small artist viewfinder — a simple 5x7 card with a cut out square. A tool artists use to isolate composition, discover detail, and shift perspective.
They were invited to:
- Look closely at one small section of a painting
- Step back and notice how the work changed
- Compare pieces that felt calm versus energetic
- Imagine stepping inside a work — what would they hear? feel? smell?
The energy in the room shifted as they began to see art differently.
What started as observation became interpretation.
What started as looking became feeling.
There was a shared realization that art is not confined to materials. It is a way of seeing.
The visit was intentionally designed by Flourish School’s art teacher as a foundation for what would follow: painting outdoors at the beach.
Before creating, the students practiced noticing.
They learned that art begins long before the brush touches the canvas. It begins in attention. In curiosity. In slowing down.
Each student left with a postcard of an artwork that resonated with them — a small reminder that connection to art can continue at home.
At Sol Gallery, we seek to inspire not only collectors and artists, but the wider community.
A gallery is not only a place where art is purchased.
It is a place where ideas are exchanged.
Where imagination is exercised.
Where perspective expands.
We are grateful to Flourish School for beginning their day with us and for recognizing the importance of cultural spaces in a child’s creative development.