Ten-year-old artist inspired by Leonardo da Vinci taking his home town of Sawbridgeworth by storm

For most four-year-olds, drawing a stick man is an accomplishment. For Marcel Daniluk, it was fully-formed sheep and boats – and six years on he is rapidly getting his work known in his home town of Sawbridgeworth.

Marcel's mum Urszula Ossowska proudly told the Indie how her oldest child had taken to art to express himself, as he was a late talker.

"He started when he was four-and-a-half and he wouldn't draw a stick man – for him it was always something different," said Urszula, who said Marcel was five before he started to speak.

For a while Marcel was passionate about drawing, but last year he received a request from his old infants school, Fawbert and Barnard, in Knight Street.

"We found out Mrs Gibson was very poorly, so Marcel was asked if he would do a picture to make her happier," said Urszula.

Marcel decided to turn to paints and his picture of a wasp seemed to do the trick as the teacher was very pleased. "She said, 'Marcel, you need to go to art school'," added Urszula.

That sparked an interest in painting and Urszula took her son on trips to art museums in London to further inspire him.

"He really loved Da Vinci, that inspires him," said Urszula. "His work is abstract, impressionist, but he's not yet stuck on one thing."

Although he now attends Reedings Junior School in Bullfields, he has a close attachment to his old school and still produces work for the staff there.

His night-time scene for F&B's co-headteacher Jo Brooker went down well. "This couldn’t be more perfect. I truly love it!" she said. "I feel so lucky to have an original 'Marcel' painting in my dining room."

Marcel's mum says often when he gets an idea he has to put brush to paper and sometimes gets frustrated when he cannot translate what's in his head.

"I take him to our corridor where we have put his work up and say 'Look what you've done'," she said.

Urszula, who has two younger children, Jacek, 4, and Helena, 2, believes Marcel's passion probably comes from her as when she was a little girl in Poland she was into art and won competitions. Her hobby now is photography.

She brought Marcel to the UK when he was two, spending a short period in Scotland before they moved to Sawbridgeworth seven years ago.

Urszula has shared some of his paintings on the Sawbridgeworth Facebook Group, with his depictions of a robin, a peacock and cornflowers drawing much admiration and offers to buy them.

Sadly, Urszula had to tell one person the painting had gone but directed them to Marcel's Facebook page and stressed her son was painting all the time and might have something else they would like.

Although Marcel is unsure whether to pursue a career in art, as he is concerned there is not much money in it, he will be fulfilling a wish to go to art 'school' as he has enrolled on an art class at Parndon Mill, Harlow.

Check out Marcel's work on his Facebook page, Marcel Daniluk Art.