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Art, Anger and ‘Sketch’: How Kids Work Through Big Feelings

My dad is an artist. And while my own artistic skills are (ahem) somewhat lacking, I’ve always had a huge appreciation for art.  Not just how it looks on your living room wall or even how it might make you feel, but how it can be such a strong, powerful expression of what the artist is seeing, thinking and feeling, too. Art can be a window to the soul.

Maybe that’s one of the reasons I liked Sketch so much. Sure, it has some content issues to navigate (check out our review, as always), but it deals with that connection between art and emotion—in this case, how a young girl named Amber is trying to work through her feelings of grief and anger. The catch here? Amber’s bright, terrifying pictures come to life.

Sketch is a fun, clever and deeply poignant film—one that deals with some important underlying themes. And as such, we wanted to bring in an expert on the intersection of grief, anger and art, especially as it relates to kids. Jan Wilkenson is a Christian counselor whose Colorado Springs’ ministry—Play 4 Healing—helps kids through art and play and other creative avenues.

Jan knows her stuff, and she offered some great thoughts about the movie, art and how important it is for kids to express even uncomfortable feelings. Take a look and listen.

Paul Asay

Paul Asay has been part of the Plugged In staff since 2007, watching and reviewing roughly 15 quintillion movies and television shows. He’s written for a number of other publications, too, including Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. The author of several books, Paul loves to find spirituality in unexpected places, including popular entertainment, and he loves all things superhero. His vices include James Bond films, Mountain Dew and terrible B-grade movies. He’s married, has two children and a neurotic dog, runs marathons on occasion and hopes to someday own his own tuxedo. Feel free to follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.

One Response

  1. Most of the young families we know, were disappointed with Angel on this one.
    A kid’s summer movie, partially paid for conservative Angel supporters, with unnecessary language and scary parts was sad. They may lose subscribers if they keep adding harsh language etc in their family movies.

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