Warwick first-grader Christopher Casale is only six years old, but his art career is off to a good start. Christopher, who has been taking private art lessons for about a year, already has had two of his paintings in public displays.
A painting Christopher created of Harry Potter was hanging in the gallery at the Greenwood Lake Public Library. He currently has a framed painting of apples in a wooden basket on display at The Jolly Onion in Pine Island. The oil pastels work features red, green and yellow apples in a wooden basket with a blue background.
“The moment we saw it on Facebook we said that’s a really good painting and we should hang it up in the restaurant,” said The Jolly Onion chef Armand Vanderstigchel. “It definitely fit into the concept of what we’re doing, which is promoting the region’s agricultural bounty and also showcasing local artists.”
“Christopher is a gifted young artist,” said his first grade Distance Learning Academy teacher, Donna Berghahn. “He works hard to create original pieces of art that reflect his own personal style.”
Ms. Berghahn gets to see her students’ artwork when they share it in her Google classroom. In addition to the art class in school, Christopher also does directed drawing with Ms. Berghahn’s class. Christopher said he might want to become an artist someday, just like his favorite painter Bob Ross – the longtime creator and host the PBS show “Joy of Painting.”
“I like his paintings because they give me ideas,” said Christopher, who has done a painting of mountains in the Bob Ross style.
Christopher said his favorite subject in school is science. Besides painting and drawing, he also enjoys playing basketball and baseball and riding his dirt bike.
Warwick Artist of the Week Christopher Casale
