The Alabama Center for the Arts’ annual Youth Art Month (YAM) celebration is underway. The Annual Showcase of Young Talent features 116 pieces of art divided into Early Elementary, Elementary, Middle School, and High School categories. All of the artists are K-12 students from Morgan County, Decatur City, and Hartselle City schools, as well as students from some area private schools.

The exhibit will be open from February 27 – March 30 in the Alabama Center for the Arts’ Main Gallery and Walking Gallery. An Awards Reception is planned at the ACA for March 9 at 5:30 pm.

Youth Art Month encourages support for quality school art programs and promotes art material safety. Administered by The Council for Art Education, the program helps children of all ages develop problem-solving, observation, and communication skills while enhancing their creativity.

The event is sponsored by the Alabama Center for the Arts and the Carnegie Visual Arts Center, with artist awards to be given by Daybreak Rotary Club of Decatur. The Carnegie provides educational and cultural opportunities to the Decatur area and strives to encourage greater involvement in art at all levels and ages. Their excellent children’s art education program promotes creativity via hands-on activities. In addition, the Carnegie often awards scholarships to their summer camps and offers a variety of other programs, events, and collections for all ages.