Children have creative little minds, and with proper support and practice, they can grow into true prodigies.

Lenny McNaughton, by the age of 8, has participated in a prestigious Archibald Prize show with his avant-garde piece featuring his beloved aunt. The twist is that his aunt neither knew about this portrait of her nor him entering the competition. While walking through the exhibition, the aunt finally came across a portrait that looked just like her, and learning that it was actually Lenny’s work took her by surprise.

The video of his aunt’s heartwarming reaction got over 15K likes on the boy’s Instagram. Lots of people were also left impressed with his talent for painting.

More info: Instagram | Instagram

Meet Lenny McNaughton, an 8-year-old prodigy who painted a stunning portrait of his beloved Aunt Steph, without her knowledge

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

Bored Panda got in touch with Lenny to learn more about him and his passion for painting. Lenny shared that he started painting when he was “about 3 years old”. His inspiration comes, as he said, from: “Mum and her artwork and my imagination.”

Lenny entered his masterpiece into an art contest at the prestigious Archibald Prize show

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

This was, so far, the very first exhibition for Lenny, but definitely not the last. He showcases very promising talents and even gets compared to Van Gogh by being called Van Gogh Jr.

We asked whether Lenny took any art courses to obtain his knowledge and skills. He shared: “no, but I did attend art classes last year, and Helen taught me how to do portraits.”

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

His painting, while not winning the grand prize, did end up being a finalist in the Young Archie competition

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

When asked about why he chose his aunt as a subject of his artwork, Lenny wrote: “because you had to paint someone special that you love and my Auntie Steph is pretty special.”

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

In a heartwarming video shared on Lenny’s Instagram, we see Aunt Steph’s disbelief and awe as she gazes upon a portrait that looks just like her

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

Since his aunt Steph had no clue not only that his artwork would be exhibited, but that she would be the one Lenny portrayed, that definitely took her by surprise. We asked Lenny to describe how that made him feel seeing her so happily surprised.

“It felt funny watching her get the surprise. I was a bit nervous she wouldn’t notice it but then the sunflowers caught her eye. I was proud she recognized herself in my artwork,” shared Lenny.

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

But the biggest shock came when Lenny revealed that the painting was, in fact, a tribute to his beloved aunt

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

Now, Aunt Steph is a proud owner of her nephew’s painted portrait of her, which Lenny “gave to her for her 40th birthday recently.”

When asked about what he plans to paint in the future, Lenny shared that he does not know yet, but “might do some experimenting in my mum’s studio.”

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

This young artist not only is talented in combining abstract elements while also retaining recognizable objects but also shows art’s power to bring joy and connection to loved ones

Image credits: cre8ive_lenny

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