Harlem Artist Turns Scribbles Into 3-D Art

GARDEN CITY, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- In Emmett Wigglesworth's art class at Nassau Community College, students quickly learn that his work always begins with a scribble.

The Harlem artist says he discovered his talent for scribbling as a child more than 70 years ago.

"It finally dawned on me, I didn't want to draw; I wanted to scribble, which told me there was something in those scribbles I should investigate," Wigglesworth told CBS 2's Dana Tyler.

From those scribbles, Wigglesworth has created a series of 3-D murals with exploding color that is attracting a new generation of fans. The murals appears to reach out for each other.

"All the colors make me think of all the different people and how we're all different colors," said Christina Lightbouran, of Uniondale. "And how we move about, and how we touch each other and we don't even know we touch each other, but we do."

Wigglesworth teaches students of all ages that his murals purposely feature cutouts of all shapes and sizes to symobolize transparency and openness as the answer to ignorance and to offer a window into the soul of an artist.

Kele Lightbouran, 3, is among the artists who are learning from Wigglesworth how to turn their scribbles into works of art that will eventually be displayed in the school's gallery.

"I draw stuff because I like to," Kele says.

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