Shaving cream and melted crayons don’t sound like one’s typical art project materials. However, the Art Club has found creative new ways to engage its members with imaginative projects that are easy and fun ways to express one’s creativity.

The Art Club is new at Southwest this year, with it being founded by junior Mallory Fahler and senior Alli Good in the beginning of the school year.

“Last year [Fahler] and I realized that besides [National Art Honor Society], which requires skills and community service hours, there are no clubs at Southwest for students who just simply enjoy doing art for fun or like to learn fun ways to do simple projects,” Good said.

After coming up with the idea for a new club, Fahler and Good approached art teacher Shawn Stelter to sponsor the club.

“I support [Fahler and Good] in their execution of the projects,” Stelter said.

These past projects include shaving cream paintings, paintings made out of the colorful wax of melted crayons, cupcake decorating and tie dying T-shirts. Fahler and Good typically find inspiration for project ideas from Pinterest and from the suggestions of Stelter. To prepare for a meeting, the girls purchase necessary materials and collaborate with Stelter to plan the meeting.

Since its establishment, the club has met every other Tuesday after school in Stelter’s classroom from 3-4. Each meeting begins with a quick demonstration of that meeting’s project, and then the members are free to create their projects.

“You don’t even have to consider yourself to be artistic to be in Art Club,” Fahler said. “It is just a fun way to get with friends and create art.”

The projects in Art Club have typically been individual activities, in which members create separate pieces of art, however, Fahler hopes to change up this aspect of the club in the future.

“[Good and I] would love to do a big group project where all of Art Club gets together to create one big work of art,” Fahler said.

New members of the club are always welcomed, and Fahler and Good are looking forward to future projects that they have planned out for the club.

“[Art Club] is a super fun and great way to get involved,” Good said. “Skills are not required – just the desire to want to create something while relaxing and hanging out with friends.”