Exhibitions of their work by art students are the norm, but how often does one get to enjoy an exhibition of their instructors' work? Not very ¿ but then the Kaleidoscope Arts Foundation (KAF) is not "the norm". As Bermuda's youngest gallery, it strives to be innovative, which is why, for the first time, the creative heart of the Foundation will be on view to the public.

Five of its instructors have joined forces to mount the mixed media exhibition, 'Kaldeidoscope Arts Foundation Faculty Show 2007', which opens at the Elliot Gallery this evening. They are: Fiona Rodriguez-Roberts, founder-director of the Foundation, Charles Anderson, Ernst Bauer, Emma Ingham-Dounouk and Gail Santucci-Palacio.

The quintet's diverse talents include photography, crafts, textiles, drawing and illustration, painting and three-dimensional art.

Charles Anderson's creative style, technical expertise, and years of commercial experience are the basis of his teaching. He is showing a short, black and white series of textural studies.

Ernst Bauer's work has been seen in some of the most respected galleries in Europe, and he has been an important addition to Kaleidoscope's faculty. His painting classes offer students an opportunity to discover painting from a classical perspective, and the more avant garde.

Emma Ingham-Dounouk holds classes for adults who learn to appreciate and enjoy the discipline of drawing. She is showing a body of work reflecting her particular love for the figure. Ordinary people in everyday situations are captured in quick drawings, and studies of a model posed in a wide-brimmed hat are drawn from life.

"My inspiration comes from the opportunity to work with the figure, both in a studio setting and in those everyday situations which we tend to overlook," she says.

"The joy of somebody sharing a conversation across a dinner table, neighbourhood 'collecting points' like Al's Laundromat on Brunswick Street, an exchange with a friend on the telephone, are all represented, as I enjoy capturing a snapshot of Bermudians' daily life. That is as colourful, interesting and different for me as those artists who paint architecture and seascapes."

Gail Santucci-Palacio's skills and experience contribute to the high calibre of instruction at KAF, and her personal work exhibits the vitality, depth and discipline of the true artist. Situations which reflect the personalities, attitudes and characteristics of our community have long inspired her work. She acknowledges that it is the importance of 'life experiences' which truly influence her own work and her teaching.

She is exhibiting an installation, for which Genesis 1:22 is a reference, and recreates a scene she sees around every day in her own back yard. It includes a chicken coop, and paintings of her grandfather, a chicken, flowers, and objets.

"I started from the beginning with 'What's in my world?'," the artist says. "It is the first time I have shown my work in over ten years, so it is very exciting, and fulfills for me a new beginning, so I am doing what they tell writers writing for the first time: 'Write what you know, what is inside you'. Basically, for me that is showing what is around me."

Fiona Rodriquez-Roberts is a practising artist as well as a full-time KAF instructor. Her paintings are often large, expressive and 'gritty', while her work with textiles is dramatic. She consistently strives to challenge the boundaries ¿ with great success. She defines her work in the show as "sculptural" but declines to discuss it, preferring instead to comment on the exhibitors and the Foundation's mission.

"What is really interesting is how very different all of our personal styles are, although we are all in the one building teaching, which is nice and refreshing," she says. "We are a community art centre focussed on education, so if we are going to teach we have to be creating, producing and showing our work as well."

Mrs. Rodriguez-Roberts founded Kaleidoscope nine years ago as an education resource for the visual arts. The organisation subsequently became a Foundation and registered charity last year when it relocated to its current location in the former Elliot School on the corner of Parsons and Jubilee Roads in Devonshire.

¦ 'Kaleidoscope Arts Foundation Faculty Show 2007' continues through November 26. Tonight's opening reception is from 6 to 8.30 p.m. For gallery hours/further information see 'Exhibitions' below on this page.