Liz Genrich is an art teacher at North Star Art Club. Genrich has 25 years of teaching experience and is seen here at North Star’s table during the 50th & France Egg Hunt event at Nolan Mains Plaza. Photos: Lightcast Creative, 50th & France
North Star Art Club helps children find confidence through creativity and belonging.
Eight-year-old Henley McLain indulges her artistic side at North Star Art Club. “She looks forward to it every week,” says Henley’s mother, Nikki McLain. “Her art has really improved, and they teach techniques she might not have learned in school.”
These art projects at the 50th & France studio often go beyond drawing and painting. “They’ve done things like clay, sewing and felt crafts,” Nikki says. “It gives her a different way to express herself.”
That sense of expression is part of North Star Art Club’s objective. The club’s founder, Richelle Norton, doesn’t just teach painting and drawing. The licensed K–12 art teacher and Linden Hills resident wants to foster community and provide belonging to her students. “It’s really the relationships and that sense of community and belonging that the students take away,” she says.
Norton started the Edina studio after she found herself driving all around the Metro area to find quality art programs for her daughter. “Nothing like this existed in the area,” Norton says. “Any sort of access … was 25 minutes away from us.” When her teaching position at a Minneapolis public school was reduced due to budget constraints, the timing opened the door to pursue a new idea. Norton drew on her experience in the classroom and as a parent to build the club. She believes art gives children a powerful way to process emotions, express themselves and make sense of their experiences.
Norton also noticed her daughter’s friends would shy away from art not because of distaste but because of confidence and worrying that their art is not good enough. “They would shut down,” she says. “At North Star, breaking down that barrier is central to the mission.”
Liz Genrich and Richelle Norton, the founder of North Star Art Club.
The studio seats around 10 students at a time. The smaller size allows for extra individual attention and a calmer and more focused environment. “It feels more like a community building,” Norton says.
For parent Sarah Bauman, the experience has become a highlight. “My friend and I signed our kids up together, and it turned into the perfect weekend morning,” Bauman says. “You can drop your kids off for a lovely art project, grab coffee nearby and then pick them up with something they’re really proud of.”
Classes typically begin with a warm-up, followed by a technique of the day. Students are encouraged to follow their ideas rather than adhere to a routine and have a set outcome. Norton frequently tells her students, “You’re the boss of your own art.” Bauman says that is a phrase children typically might not hear in school. “At school, art might only be a 20-minute block,” Bauman says. “There’s just not a lot of time to fully carry out some of your kid’s big ideas. Here, they can really stay in that creative zone.”
The club’s approach has been especially impactful for students who don’t always thrive in traditional settings. Norton reflects on one student with ADHD whose parents weren’t sure initially if it would be a good fit. “I said, ‘This is exactly the right space for him,’” she says. Without grades or rigid expectations, students can engage at their own pace and explore what interests them most.
Reflecting on Henley’s experience, Nikki says, “It just gives her a different way to express herself, and she’s become a better artist by going.”
North Star Art Club
Instagram: @northstarartclubmpls
