Off the Wall.

Undaunted by a sheet of white paper and too young to be intimidated by convention or the expectations of others, 32 of them at the Harrison Lyseth School in Portland, Maine, eagerly and earnestly attack sheets of watercolor paper with sponges, brushes, and, of course, their fingers to conjure wonderfully expressive landscapes and seascapes. The inspiration for this lesson, however, is a small ink wash of a sailboat by the late William Thon, a 20th century artist celebrated in Maine for his paintings of coastal landscapes, turbulent seascapes, sailboats, and fishing boats.