The Art at Heart exhibition, organised by 11-year-old Dunedin North Intermediate pupil Sylvie Wardell, is on display this week inside the Hope Centre Te Whare Tūmanako, as part of the Dunedin Fringe Festival.
Sylvie said she had always liked art and being creative, but thought it was "unfair" older people could exhibit their work at big shows for everyone to see.
"Younger artists don’t really get to enjoy that.
"I thought it would be a good idea to be able to ... give little artists that feeling that their art is important and what they do actually has an effect."
A total of 45 of these "little artists", aged 13 and younger from around Dunedin, had signed up to contribute artwork to the exhibition.
The exhibition’s theme is "big feelings" and the artworks canvassed emotions ranging from excitement, stage fright and being anxious at school to topics including climate change, racism and the death of the family cat.
The artworks are displayed at a child’s height, and visitors are invited to participate on a large shared canvas.
It was important for people to understand what children were feeling and hear about emotions they might share in common, or feel a lot themselves, Sylvie said.
"The kids especially — even if they don’t have any art in the exhibition, that they know they’re ... taken seriously and that what they do matters."
She hoped adults would be able to see a bit of their younger selves in the works, and be reminded of what it was like to be small.
Art at Heart is on display inside the Hope Centre, at 63 Hanover St, until Sunday.
