Nurturing a child's artistic talents

My 'muse' is taking a snooze of late. I have many ideas yet to execute with paint. These ideas keep me awake at night with wheels spinning and not being able to rest. I pay for it the next day, but I'll soon get them out of my system and down on paper or canvas.

I have been thinking about the way children approach art and painting. They just do it - no fear of failure or criticism. Proportion, value, color, and design 'rules' are usually ignored, but that's not necessarily a bad thing! They put their feelings, meanings, thoughts into their work, and don't worry about making others happy. They do it to make themselves happy and to give themselves a creative outlet that's so important.

So, I encourage parents to do this: if you have a child that shows even the slightest inkling of interest in painting, buy them a set of cheap paints, a few inexpensive brushes, and a decent pad of watercolor paper (say, 9" x 12" size). Reeves makes an inexpensive brand of watercolor, acrylic, and oil paints in sets of 12 to 18 colors. Canson makes good, cheap (inexpensive) watercolor paper. These can be found in Micheal's or Hobby Lobby stores, along with inexpensive brushes.
Let your kids experiment and delight in applying paint to paper. Let them dream, create, invent, and expand their world via painting. It doesn't cost much in a monetary sense, yet it can have a profound impact on their sense of self. Be that catalyst to spark the artistic side of their lives, even if you think it might be a waste of time.

Who knows what might turn up?