Ethan Lee's ceramic creations are steeped in fantasy. He likes fire-breathing dragons, humongous dinosaurs and scary monsters.
His tiny creations recently attracted a lot of attention at the ACT, where he was enrolled in a pottery and ceramics class.
A novice when it comes to working with clay, the Grade 7 student breezed through the class projects and decided to challenge himself by creating figurines of his favourite subjects – dinosaurs, dragons and monsters2.
"He is a driven, dedicated and talented boy, but he did experience several heart-breaking failed attempts as he learned how to handle the clay," says instructor Nicole Smith.
"Eventually, through persistence and dedication to the image in his head, he created a few beautiful successful pieces, which should be celebrated as a job well done."
Prior to finishing the dragon, Lee decided to add blood to its beak. The dragon has dripping blood seemingly oozing from the gums and off the teeth.
When asked if the dragon was attacking something or defending someone, Lee said, "No, he was just hungry".
The inspiration for the dragons came from the novel The Fire Within by Chris d'Lacey.
He now has three pieces on display at the ACT: Fire Breathing Dragon, Dragon hatched from Egg and Wyrm (pronounced worm; inspired from a drawing book on dragons and fantasy).
Lee recently got a book on monsters, which he is using as inspiration for his future art work. He is particularly interested in flying and giant monsters.
The arts council has promised to provide Lee with the dimensions of the art studio kiln so that prior to beginning his next project at the ACT he will be able to determine how "giant" a monster he can create.
• Registration for 2013 arts programs is open now at www.recreg4u.ca. For information on the clay art classes at The ACT and all other art programs offered by the Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows Arts Council, visit www.theactmapleridge.org/programs.