Yellowknife (Feb 28/03) - Brett Goulet and B.J. Vogt spend two afternoons a week with their heads down and paint brushes sweeping carefully across the page.

They are so fixated by what they are doing the boys barely lift their heads except to seek advice from their mentor, Dene artist Antoine Mountain.

Last August, Brett, now in Grade 8, won a scholarship at the National Elks Convention in Yellowknife.

The money paid for six weeks of art lessons with Mountain, who works mainly with acrylic on canvas and has been working professionally for more than 20 years -- 10 of those years in Yellowknife.

Mountain enjoys helping youth develop their own talents and is a patient teacher.

B.J., who also loves art, was invited to join Brett during his special sessions at Weledeh Catholic School.

The two have spent the past five weeks learning about art from the ground up -- from contrast and composition to colour wheels.

"I'm showing them the practical end of being a professional artist," said Mountain as he watched the progress of his young proteges.

While Brett enjoys painting monsters, B.J. has a knack for creating cartoon characters. He is especially inspired by Japanese-style animation.

"It's important because they love art. They have the skills and talent in the area and it's important for them to explore that," said Weledeh principal Merril Dean. "There's more to school than just book learning."