Pulaski County 4-H introduced a Fine Arts club in the spring of 2018. The fine arts club provides instruction and materials for youth in the county to create an art portfolio. The fine arts club met twice a month throughout the spring to create art projects that could be entered in the county and state fair. This club was started because many students involved in the school clubs were interested in learning more about art outside of their schools art classes. Pulaski County also had several 4-H members that wanted to enter art in the county fair but had difficulty understanding the requirements of the new classes at the state level. The Fine Arts club meets the demand for more affordable art programs available to youth in the county and gives youth a space to be creative and learn from one another

Each student that participated in the spring Fine Arts club created six art pieces to add to their portfolio that they could later pull from when the county fair stated in July.  The fine arts club is using the Portfolio Pathways curriculum that the Kentucky State Fair arts and craft classes are based on.  Club members learned the principles of art and design and incorporated these principles into each of their pieces. They used a variety of mediums including acrylic paint, water colors, colored pencils, graphite, and wire to create their art work. They learned new techniques such as drawing in the round and color blending, they also encountered new tools such as fan brushes and pallet knifes.

The Fine Arts club this spring was very successful, many youth finished all six projects and had developed a well-rounded portfolio. The fine arts club also resulted in an increase in the number of county fair entries and increased the number of entries that qualified to go on to the state level. Several pieces that went on to the state fair received blue ribbons, one piece had even received class champion.

Due to the success of the fine arts club this spring it has become a monthly club this fall. Many participants from this spring returned and we have been able to add several new members as well. Participants from the spring club meetings have been able to move into leadership roles in the club. Returning members are able to give examples to the group when discussing principles of design. They are also able to give constructive criticisms to other participants to help them better capture the requirements of the classes. The returning members can offer suggestions and complements to new members as well to help build their confidence. The goal of this club was have more Pulaski County youth participating in artistic expression and it had proven to be successful.