Creative Edge Art Studio co-owners Caroline Serna and Janet Rogers said they have always been enamored by art. Interior designers by trade, the two began discussing a change in industry in 2015.
“One day we just got to talking about other possibilities that may be out there,” Serna said. “I have two daughters [who] are 5 and 7, and I have always been interested in art and teaching. I threw the idea out there that starting up an art studio for kids in Pearland might be something fun to do.”
The two opened Creative Edge in fall 2015 and have been teaching art classes to children ever since. The studio offers weekly classes to children ranging from ages 2 to 14; it also hosts art camps, birthday parties and Friday night activities.
Although Rogers said the pair were not unhappy at their design firm—Rogers was a principal designer and Serna was an associate principal— plans for the studio came out of a common dream.
“We started dreaming up what it would be, what we wanted it to become and why it was important,” she said. “What’s important about art in a child’s life? We both have a really strong passion about that. It was really easy for us to roll into it and come up with everything that we wanted.”
Serna said the lessons learned in their interior design education rolled right into their career change.
“We still use a lot of the skills with color, composition and balance,” she said. “A lot of the things that we were taught in design school translate over to art. I think we still use those skills every day.”
The weekly classes are broken up into four categories based on age. The “Messy Masters” are the youngest at 2 and 3, and the “Mini Masters” are made up of 4- and 5-year-olds. Serna handles the instruction of these two groups.
“We had some kids start back in the spring that had never been in a room without their parent before,” she said. “At first, the parents would have to stay in the room with them. Gradually, as the weeks went on, they were able to leave. Now the kids come in the door and go running back into the room and don’t even tell mom and dad goodbye.”
The next group—instructed by Rogers—is the “Junior Masters” who range from ages 6 to 9. She also teaches the 10-14-year-old range, the “Mega Masters.”
Rogers said these groups are able to use the skills developed at the studio far beyond a brush and canvas.
“The bottom line is when you start playing with paints, cutting things and drawing, you’re developing your motor skills,” she said. “Your brain cells are connecting in ways that don’t really happen [anywhere else].”
Although Creative Edge caters to children up to the age of 14, Serna said she has a goal to reach older students.
“[We want to be] a place for the community that maybe teenagers can come and want to hang out here,” she said. “They can bring their coffee and sketch in their sketch books. We can be more of a community center and a community hub.”
Creative Edge Art Studio
2975 Kingsley Drive, Ste. 137, Pearland 832-295-9099 www.creativeedgeartstudio.com Hours: Tue.-Thu. 9 a.m.-7 p.m., Fri. 9 a.m.-noon., Sat. 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Closed Sundays-Mondays
