DRIPPING SPRINGS – Amber Scardino started Figment Creative Labs in her garage in 2013. Originally known as “Wee Warhols,” she changed the name to Figment Creative Labs when she moved to a new space in 2018. Now, she’s bringing it to Dripping Springs.
Scardino began by teaching her own kids about art and creative projects, which attracted other parents.
“I was at home with my boys when they were little and I was doing a lot of art projects and process art, sensory activities with them and some of my friends were like, ‘Oh, I'd pay you to do this with my kids,’” said Scardino. “I started teaching classes and doing camps and even sometimes birthday parties out of my house. Word spread, just word of mouth, and that's how it started.”
According to Scardino, the facility focuses on process art, which is art where the focus is placed more on the process and not the product. This is particularly helpful with younger children and helps them build confidence.
“[We are] supplying the kids with materials and seeing where they take it and allowing them to find their own creativity and to explore and to play and experiment,” said Scardino. “[We] find that it really helps build confidence in them. We don't do a lot of crafts where we would show them an example and expect them to replicate it and do something that an adult can do. We present them with challenges to help build their critical thinking and build confidence, as well.”
After moving to its current studio space off of Brodie Lane in Austin, the studio grew by 500% in its first year through offering summer camps, after school classes, creative preschool programs and classes for homeschooled kids.
“[In terms of] summer camps, we've been breaking records,” said Scardino. “So, it's been pretty cool. We sold out last year — it was like 20 minutes — we sold out of all camps. This year, it was in eight minutes.”
The Brodie Lane location of Figment Creative Labs has about 20 staff members currently, both part-time and full-time.
“I call them creative guides because we're really there just to like, guide the kids and be there to answer questions and support them, but the kids are always putting their own creativity into it,” she explained.“I think a lot of the magic kind of comes from the amazing staff that I have. Everybody kind of brings their own special sauce to the table and has their own skill set that really kind of does so much more than I could offer.”
For the new studio, Scardino selected a 2.5 acre plot of land off of Nutty Brown Road right outside of Dripping Springs, near Belterra. The plan is for a 6,500 square foot building, with the rest of the area being dedicated to playgrounds and animals. “We definitely are going to offer all the programs that we currently have, as far as preschool, homeschooling [and] after school, but we'll have extra space,” said Scardino. “We're also adding this splatter paint room that'll be an option for birthday parties, as well, [and] a space dedicated to the toddler play group. Also, open studio time, things like that that we just don't have the space for because, right now, when we have summer camps, we can't have toddler play group because space is full, but at the new space, we'll be able to make those different things work.” “We do have a lot of animals to teach kids empathy and responsibility,” continued Scardino. “That was something that was never early on in our plan, but it kind of evolved over time. Basically, when we were stuck at home during COVID, I brought a few of the animals home like our class pets and every night my family would have Movie Night and we'd all snuggle with a different animal. It was just so therapeutic for me. I thought, well, ‘If it's like this for me, it would be like this for the kids at Figment [Creative Labs]’ ... We have an axolotl, we have a hedgehog, we have a guinea pig, a bunny, a snake, goats, chickens, [it’s] a little menagerie.” The new location of Figment Creative Labs is currently slated to open Sept. 1. Scardino is currently looking for staff members for the Dripping Springs location.
“Experience is important and a background working with kids, but also a creative side,” said Scardino. “It's just finding the right people in the right fit that have something to bring to the table, to really share with the kids and then do it all together as a team.”
For more information about Figment Creative Labs or to apply for a position with the company, visit www. figmentcreativelabs.com.
