The St Margaret’s Primary School student also reveals that she loves to go to school, especially because she gets to see her friends and that she really enjoys going out shopping with her friends. But this might be because Dawn feels her status as an only child rather acutely. “I find it quite lonely at home even though I can paint. I envy a lot of my friends with bigger brothers…”

Despite her words, Dawn accepts her lot with equanimity and childlike directness. “I want a bigger brother. I asked my mum to adopt one but she says it’s too much to handle. My dad says he’ll get me a dog.”

Her calm, accepting attitude in this is mirrored as much in her attitude towards her art. Dawn may be a shy young girl but she is also an assured artist who simply knows if her painting is complete. “I just know it’s done. Sometimes I do three paintings at once. While waiting for one painting to dry, I do another one. Sometimes I don’t like one painting and I leave it in one corner for a while until I think of a way I can do it better. If I’m not sure, I’ll ask Teacher June. But for those paintings that I know are finished, I won’t touch them anymore, even if someone else asks me to do them again.”

And in Dawn’s case, the assuredness is only a fascinating hint of independence. She shrugs off any suggestion that she is on her way to becoming a professional artist. “I feel I can learn more. I want to go to School of the Arts, and I know when I go there, there will be a lot of people better than me. If I can go anywhere in the world, maybe I’ll go to Paris. I heard there are a lot of artists there.”

Dawn is also happy now to explore other options. “I know I can be anything I want to be when I grow up. If I don’t paint, I want to be a fashion designer or an interior designer.”