Second grader Riley Funderburk was eager to show off his work last week at the Town Hall Student Art Show in Brunswick.

“My favorite part about my painting is the background,” Riley said, as he and 20 classmates hosted parents, teachers and community members. “I used cardboard for the trees, a little paper plate with black paint on it and another little strip of cardboard. You could either dab it or swipe it with paint. We worked on our paintings for weeks.”

In an art gallery conceived by retired pediatrician and town planning board member William Wilkoff, students from Coffin Elementary School painted pictures in art class and donated their artwork to the Town Hall to be hung on the second floor hallway walls.

“I was impressed at how sterile the white walls were,” said Wilkoff, who attends meetings on the second floor of the building. “It was bugging me and I thought ‘we have to do something about this.’ Kids’ art is just so appealing and they make a ton of it, it’s easy to access and there’s something universally positive about it.”

Wilkoff connected with Coffin Elementary art teacher Amy Crosby, who said her students were “eager to participate.”

“The paintings are all based on different things,” said Crosby, whose kindergarten through second grade students painted for the art gallery. “For the kindergardeners, we read ‘The Orange Aardvark,’ and some of the kids painted aardvarks. The kids don’t realize how beautiful their artwork is.”

Wilkoff worked with Town Manager John Eldridge to secure 22 frames, and set to work hanging the paintings throughout the hallways this past week.

“The town employees are giving this gallery rave reviews,” said Wilkoff. “They’re really benefiting from the cheerful atmosphere.”

Eldridge said that the gallery is “really nice and a great way to showcase the children’s art, and a terrific effort by Dr. Wilkoff, Amy and the kids.”

Wilkoff said that he plans to rotate new paintings into the gallery, and believes that the Coffin Elementary students will keep producing works of art.

“We have to figure out how often that will be, but the kids’ production seems to be infinite,” Wilkoff said.