MOLLY HAWORTH Hinsdale resident since 2010 • Indiana native • Studied advertising graphic design at the American Academy of Art in Chicago • Once worked as a buyer for a flower shop
If you ever gazed into the window displays at the State Street Marshall Field's store back in the early 2000s, chances are good you were admiring the work of Hinsdale resident Molly Haworth.
While working for the Chicago department store, Haworth also decorated several homes in Hinsdale.
"The town stayed in my memory," Haworth said, and when she and her family decided to become suburbanites, the village became her home.
Haworth designed window displays for Macy's and Saks Fifth Avenue in Oak Brook before she began what is now Little Blueprints Art Studio about five years ago. Haworth teaches art classes in what once was her sons' playroom. Today, the space in Haworth's basement can seat about 20 students for group classes and private parties for kids, teens and adults.
"I have three classes a day, five days a week, and birthday parties on the weekends," Haworth said.
Students learn a variety of media and use their developing skills to create all sorts of art.
"We do kind of whatever I want to do," said Haworth.
For private parties, she comes up with a project that reflects the theme of the occasion, whether it's dragons, rainbows or whatever the guest of honor might choose. Often, Haworth said, the class project closely resembles something she is longing to create herself.
Along with painting, drawing and sculpting, Haworth said people who practice art gain skills that can be used far beyond the studio.
"In this society, it's so easy to scroll," Haworth said.
The creation of art requires the artist to sit, to focus and to pay attention to detail. As they study their own brush strokes and color choices, students learn to take notice of the world around them, Haworth said.
She and her family had plenty of opportunities to see the world around them in 2018, when they spent several months living in London and traveling throughout Europe on weekends.
Haworth said she used the time to prepare for the launch of her studio, which she had planned to call Little Boy Blueprints Art Studio. Originally named with her two sons in mind, the name was later changed to be more inclusive.
Haworth grew up surrounded by creative people. Her mother is a painter, her aunt was a ceramics artist, and her grandmother was a seamstress.
"My grandma taught me to sew my own Cabbage Patch doll clothes when I was 7," Haworth said.
Now, the family's next generation of artists is taking shape as Haworth's two sons, both teenagers, explore their creativity and hone their artistic skills.
Haworth's students, who range in age from 3 to adults, aren't the only Hinsdaleans to benefit from her talents. When the Hinsdale Historical Society set out to illustrate the village's journey through COVID with an exhibit at Immanuel Hall in 2021, Haworth worked to bring the show together. She even created a dress made of masks.
She'll lend her talents to the Historical Society again this spring as the village celebrates its 150th anniversary. Haworth is working on a display that will tell Hinsdale's long and colorful story within the space provided by Immanuel Hall. The show is set to open in April.
- story by Sandy Illian Bosch, photo by Jim Slonoff
