Monsters have invaded Post Falls.

The Jacklin Arts and Cultural Center is showing The Monster Project, which features artwork from 242 students, emerging artists and professional artists.

Last spring, kindergartners from the Lakeland School District drew monsters — good monsters, mean monsters, scary monsters and silly monsters alike.

Those drawings then went to high school art students in the Post Falls and Lakeland school districts who created their own rendition of the monster they received. Local emerging artists and professional artists also took part in the project.

The original monsters and the renditions will hang side by side at the Jacklin Arts and Cultural Center Friday evening from 4:30 to 7 for one night only.

Sara Forsythe, the ceramics and art teacher at Lakeland High School, took part in a monster project in Missoula and wanted to bring the fun here.

“There’s just a freshness and rawness of being a kid so I’m always attracted to kids’ work,” Forsythe said. “It’s just so amazing, they don’t care what other people think.”

The renditions vary from sculptures to drawings to paintings. Color blobs have been transformed into abstract birds and octopi and monsters with many arms and even more eyes have been converted into 3D.

Tyler McCandless is a freshman in the Lakeland School District. The best way he could describe his monster is “spider-like.”

“When a kid draws something, their imagination goes wild,” he said. “My favorite part of the project is that it reflects a lot about the person who makes it.”

All art pieces on display will be for sale from anywhere between $20 and $100. All proceeds will go to the high school artist and the Lakeland School District art program.

Entry is free and there will be live music performed by Approximate Paranoia and the Frantz Coeurtet.

The Jacklin Arts and Cultural Center is located in Post Falls at 405 N. William St., Post Falls, ID 83854.

Forsythe said she is proud of her students and is excited for the community to see the show.

“Instead of just putting art up for art’s sake, it has more meaning to it,” she said.