Wednesday, January 26, 2005, The Brampton Guardian

Emily Kowalik, 13, a Grade 8 student at Robert H. Lagerquist Senior Public School, is the first-ever recipient of a Platinum Award from Visual Arts Brampton. She has been with Visual Arts Brampton for five years and has won five gold medallions from the group in that time. The VAB created the Platinum Award to recognize her level of achievement. Kowalik started with the non-profit group when she was just eight years old. She achieved her first Gold Award at the age of eight and each year thereafter, with the judges unanimous in their decision each time. Future winners won't have to be consecutive gold winners to be eligible for the Platinum Award, they will just need to be five-time gold winners. Young artists, age eight and up, can attend open sessions in the studio for two hours each Saturday, in one of three timeslots. Visit www.visualartsbrampton.com or call the studio at 905-459-2683 and ask for Keith Moreau.

Visual Arts Brampton youth sessions are now in their eighth year at the studio, 1 Bartley Bull Parkway. Kowalik's work, alongside that of Animex instructor Tony Tarantini and VAB president Moreau, is on display at the VAB studio's Golden Pheasant Gallery until Feb. 5. The work of local painter Jack Reid is also on display in the group's Artway space at Shoppers World until the end of the week.

Photo by George Beshiri