How much would you pay for your child's art?
That's the question one Australian kindergarten posed to dozens of families this week when it asked them to stump up A$2,200 (£1,000; $1,400) for the pleasure of taking home a curated portfolio of their child's artwork.
The folders included many a random blob and splodge, alongside happy snaps of the would-be Picassos making creations only a parent could love.
Billed as a fundraiser, the debt-ridden centre said the money from the portfolios would go towards whittling down a long list of overdue bills, including unpaid wages for educators.
Craigslea Community Kindergarten and Preschool in Brisbane closed last month after funding was halted amid an investigation into claims about its governance.
Its obscure request, however, has sparked anger in Queensland, with the state's leader calling it emotional blackmail, regulators staging an intervention, and one parent allegedly going to extreme lengths to take back their child's collection of artworks in the middle of the night.
The controversy has been months in the making - tensions between management and parents at the kindergarten centre, about half an hour north of Brisbane, have been steadily brewing this year. The centre, affiliated with the Creche and Kindergarten Association (C&K), has seen a mass resignation of its board members and subsequently faced mounting complaints from parents.
On Sunday night, an email from management requested parents to bear the cost of their children’s portfolios to pay off debts and enter voluntary administration. This prompted a chain of reactions leading to police reports over alleged theft of artworks by parents dissatisfied with the request.
As the saga escalated, public backlash intensified, with many criticizing the kindergarten's actions as 'un-Australian'. Fortunately, the Department of Education stepped in to ensure parents could reclaim their children's artworks without charge, declaring the original request inappropriate.
For these parents, their children's art is now both priceless and free.