by the Clubhouse staff

Looking at Joshua Burkhardt’s fun clay creations, you’d never guess that several years ago this 12-year-old thought he didn’t have any artistic ability.

"I didn’t think I was an artist, because I never could paint or draw anything," Joshua says. "I tried, but I just couldn’t do it."

Then in September 1998, Joshua sat down with his mom when she was making tiny clay mice for a craft show. He started to play around with the clay, quickly made a few mice and discovered it was fun. Plus, he was good at it.

Within months Joshua had come up with many of his own clay designs and was selling his creations at craft shows and on the Web.

"The first thing I sold was a nativity scene," Joshua explains. "Most of the stuff I do is based on the Bible. I know my talent is from God. I couldn’t have done any of this without Him."

God has even opened doors for Joshua to gain some notoriety. He’s done three television interviews and been featured in numerous newspapers. Clubhouse magazine even did a short story about him in the "Lookout" section of the December 1998 issue. And this summer Joshua published his first book of clay art, Hangin’ Around With Noah.

Joshua and his family worked for nine months on the book. Because he’s home-schooled, Joshua’s able to work an hour or two a day on various projects—including teaching other people how to sculpt.

"Clay’s really easy to do," Joshua says. "Everyone can do it. I haven’t yet worked with anybody who can’t do it."

	Q: How do bees telephone one another? A: They just give each other a buzz. Zephan S., 9, Kentucky Clubhouse Jr. Click here to subscribe