Chatham Artist Turns Kids into 'Little Monets'

As Valerie Lee's children get older, the art classes she offers in her at-home art studio, Little Monet, expand to accommodate older children.

"I'm trying to branch out a little," Lee said.

This change comes on the heels of her moving her Little Monet classes from a private room in her home to a shared space.

An award-winning artist and art teacher, Lee met her husband David in a ceramics class at the Mason Gross School of Art at Rutgers University. Five years ago they moved to Chatham with their two children, Nathan, 10, and Maddie, 8.

In 2010, she started Little Monet. Her students were collected from among her children's school mates and her friends' and neighbors' children. Then, 10 months ago, her third child, Delila, was born.

"Having her definitely changed everything," Lee said with a smile. Her studio was converted into a bedroom for Nathan, and Little Monet was put on hiatus.

"Finally my one friend just kept saying at the bus stop, 'Val, when are you going to start up again?" Lee said. She moved her art workshop and materials into a shared space and once again opened up her doors to Chatham children.

From within her home, Lee, 36, teaches art to a fourth grade and first grade class. On Fridays she teaches a Little Monet class to kindergarteners at as part of their school enrichment program.

LaRease Profaci, a friend and neighbor of Lee's, signed up her daughter for Lee's enrichment class. Livia Profaci, 6, is a "budding artist," Profaci said, "and [the schools] don't do art in kindergarten this year."

Profaci raved about the artwork Livia has brought home from Lee's class. "It's the kind of thing you want to hang up and keep," she said. "The projects she does are great."

Classes meet for an hour for six weeks for $120 and cover various art forms, including painting, drawing, charcoals, pastels and three-dimensional sculptures. "We just finished a weaving and tapestry project," Lee said.

Each class is coupled with a history lesson on the art form's background. "Last year we did pointilism, and I told the kids about Roy Lichtenstein," Lee said. "I want them to learn about the history of the project. ... Being an art teacher, it's not just sit and do work. I actually do want to teach them."

This summer, Lee wants to try someting new: A five-week program with 90-minute classes for $160. She wants to hold the classes outdoors to help kids enjoy the weather, and plans to set up a tent for the classes in her backyard so the students can do "messier stuff," she said.

Classes are limited to 10 students per session. "Ten is a good number," Lee said. "It's definitely where I can give a lot more focus and attention on the kids."

Among the awards Lee has won for her work include the 2005 Excellence in Art Education Award by The Hispanic Support Organization of Verizon, the 2006 Power of Art Award from the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation and Lab School of Washington, D.C., and the 2007 Palette Parade Featured Artist award with the Art Educators of New Jersey.

Lee's talents are not limited to the arts, either. She has also won the Chatham Borough Farmers Market's apple pie contest three years running, and her pineapple ribs won the Crisco Grilling Hall of Fame Contest. "Cooking is fun for me," she said. "I do it for the pure enjoyment of it."

As if that was not enough, Lee has also started a second business making Chatham-themed hair clips called "Cougar Clips." She hopes to soon make them available to residents through local stores. "I'm one of those people who's always on the go," she said.

And yet, with all this, Lee said "I feel like I'm a typical Chatham mom."