The Conversation (0)
Harriet Brewis
Apr 22, 2021
The little girl’s artwork was hailed as ‘provocative and engaging’
@GemLeighton/Twitter
Is there anything more disheartening than doing a piece of work you’re proud of only to have it snubbed?
That’s what happened to a six-year-old girl following a session at an after school art club, her mum said.
Twitter user Gemma Leighton wrote on Wednesday: “My 6 year old daughter painted this amazing scene,” as she shared a colourful depiction of a tree-lined path.
But, she added: “Her art teacher told her she had done it wrong?! You can’t do art wrong! She was so upset as art is her favourite thing to do.”
In a plea to fellow users of the platform, the proud mother asked: “Can you please show Edie some support and like her painting?”
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Her request was met with a flurry of responses, garnering more than 71,000 likes, 8,000 comments and 5,000 retweets in less than 24 hours.
Fans were quick to praise the little girl for the “spirit” and beauty of her work and encouraged her not to give up:
I think this rocks! https://t.co/4PRgaUpckW— Titus (@Titus) 1619060587
Edie your art is beautiful and engaging and provocative and makes me want to take a walk right inside of it. It’s a… https://t.co/U2UnjOy91N— Zoie palmer (@Zoie palmer) 1619045391
Honestly a six year old .. Get me that teacher on the phone!! THIS IS MOST WONDERFUL https://t.co/3204w4y6Kc— Henry Winkler (@Henry Winkler) 1619044065
@GemLeighton When I was in middle school my English teacher told me to stop writing rhyming poems because they were… https://t.co/pKV6dRNIYG— Kimya Dawson (@Kimya Dawson) 1619065657
@GemLeighton Edie, I will never forget coloring a horse blue when I was about your age and being told it was wrong.… https://t.co/DvZB46oU9P— Helen Kennedy (@Helen Kennedy) 1619045165
@GemLeighton Edie, I have a 5-year old daughter who loves art too; Keep up the stellar work and never regret your c… https://t.co/i4sW6uyGIg— Jon Hillenbrand (@Jon Hillenbrand) 1619055564
Even Philippa Perry, psychotherapist and wife of iconic artist Grayson, showed her support:
@GemLeighton It’s a good painting— Philippa_Perry (@Philippa_Perry) 1619068956
While others praised it from a more technical standpoint:
This is just fab! Love the way she's got perspective in here and the colour of the sky is fantastic. Go #edie x https://t.co/wBDIMIAUwe— Kate's World of Words (@Kate's World of Words) 1619074599
Woah, better perspective lines than what i drew at 19 https://t.co/FrkwUiQkID— StellarDan (@StellarDan) 1619064788
Edie, you paint just like Christopher James Tate, a great Cornish artist. Keep painting, you're very good. https://t.co/lwjKe5d12j— Sarah Walton (@Sarah Walton) 1619042079
@GemLeighton Gemma, show Edie this picture by the French artist, Raoul Dufy, and please tell her that her painting… https://t.co/1YlzNY1o71— Jan Bird (@Jan Bird) 1619037658
@GemLeighton I'm an artist, here's one of my paintings. I love your daughters depiction of a sunset landscape. What… https://t.co/Q7qzAxKFPC— Zoompad AUTHOR OF TIP #FreeAssangeVegan Socialist (@Zoompad AUTHOR OF TIP #FreeAssangeVegan Socialist) 1619075803
Meanwhile, scores of others said they were so impressed that they decided to transform the image into a screensaver for their phones or computers; some even printed off copies for their walls:
@GemLeighton https://t.co/ME4ERkXXb4— Brendan Benson (@Brendan Benson) 1619062950
@GemLeighton Tell Edie I’ve put it up on my wall at work in Australia for everyone to admire. https://t.co/PD2rnCRevS— 🌏 Karen Orridge (@🌏 Karen Orridge) 1619053139
And others responded that they’d love to buy a copy of the now famous work:
Dear Edie, Your Art teacher is very mistaken and must have left her glasses at home. Your painting is a beautiful… https://t.co/g96aKayJas— Vnusinblujeans^(••)^ (@Vnusinblujeans^(••)^) 1619074285
It seems as though their wishes will soon be granted, according to a video message from the artist herself.
Clutching her original painting, the six-year-old said in the clip shared by her mum: “Hello everybody, thank you for all your kind comments.
“I’m putting a shop on Etsy called ‘Edie’s Art’ and if you don’t have it… just download it.”
Edie would like to thank everyone for the kind and encouraging support. She feels much more confident than she did… https://t.co/34wJ5P6lHx— Gemma Leighton (@Gemma Leighton) 1619020777
In a follow-up post Leighton expressed her own gratitude to all of her daughter’s admirers.
“I am absolutely blown away by the response from all of you amazing twitter folk,” she said. “Thank you so much for all of your encouragement, support, links and resources.
“You’ve all helped to inspire my little girl and for that I cannot thank you enough.”