Archive for the ‘Education’ Category
Summer Art Camps Are Under Way
What do Cream of Wheat and fine art have in common? Summer Art Campers are learning this and much more this week at the Wild and Wacky Portraits camp led by art educator Lindsay Palczewski. The campers were inspired by artwork in the Individual to Icon: Portraits of the Famous and Almost Famous from Folk art to Facebook exhibition and created a plethora of self portraits using various media including yarn, clay, and even seeds & beans:
Literary works of art in the form of picture books were also part of the fun. So when the campers learned that Matisse liked to sketch in the art galleries of Paris, the campers decided they wanted to do some gallery sketching as well. “Sometimes I get the best ideas from my students,” Lindsay says. “I like to be flexible and accommodate their suggestions, because when children see their ideas are valued, they are all the more inspired.”
If your child missed Wild and Wacky Portraits, not to worry. Two more art camps are scheduled this summer:
Rock out with Art
July 12-15, 9 am – noon
Camp Leader: Sarah Dotzenrod
For children going into grades 4-6
The focus will be on self-portraits using the magic of photolithography.
See the Music, Hear the Art
Aug. 16-19, 9 am – noon
Camp Leader: Marcia Dronen
For children going into grades 3-5
Campers will explore the White Album: Beatles Meet the Plains exhibition and create a symphony of artwork that can be seen and also heard!
And by the way: What does Cream of Wheat and fine art have in common? I’m not telling! But you can visit the Individual to Icon exhibition and check out the artwork of Lillian Colton to find out for yourselves.
To register or find more information about our Summer Art Camps, click here or call 701.232.3821.
Sandy Ben-Haim is the Director of Education for Plains Art Museum. She can be reached via email at sbenhaim@plainsart.org.
Spring Gala Recap
As the theme for the evening suggested, our 14th Annual Spring Gala on May 1 was definitely “Ordinary to Extraordinary.”
Gala attendees were treated to an array of delights; a spectacular silent auction of art, hearty eats by Mosaic Foods (including candied bacon!), a gigantic wine tasting by Happy Harry’s, tunes by Julie Buck and Company, dance music courtesy Betty Does, spirits from the Sidestreet, coffees by Moxie Java, a knockout fashion show from MeJeanne Couture and … omigosh … incredible desserts by Nichole’s Fine Pastry. Ordinarily, these are experiences that, by themselves, would be notable. Put together in one place, it was extraordinary. We thank our vendors, sponsors, staff and donating artists for helping us make that happen.
The Museum, like its inhabitants for the night, was extraordinary as well. Many thanks to all of those who helped with planning and decoration, particularly to our volunteer committees. On her own she’s a gorgeous building, but with a little love, extra care, and sexy lighting she really comes alive.
Attendance? Well, how can we consider those who came to the Gala as nothing more than extraordinary? You really made it happen. Through ticket purchases and the silent auction, our Gala raised almost $35,000 for Museum educational programs. Thanks to you, we will be able to provide services like our Kid Quest events and tours for visiting student groups. We can’t stress enough how important this is to the Museum and to our community as a whole. In order to function properly as a full-service arts institution, we need the efforts of extraordinary people like those who came to the Gala. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Were you at the Gala? Share your experience in the comments.
(If you’d like to see more photos of the evening, you can visit the Milestones Photography blog here. You can also browse and purchase prints from the evening here.)
Andrew David Stark Given Award Through UND Grad School
Last weekend, Andrew David Stark received a Distinguished Dissertation, Thesis and Creative Exhibition award from the University of North Dakota Graduate School. Stark received the award for his MFA work at UND. He graduated last year. For more about the award and the UND Graduate School, visit their blog here.
Stark is currently showing Microcosm/Macrocosm: Recent Work by Andrew David Stark in the Landfield Atrium, although the show is currently down as the atrium roof is being repaired. We expect the work to be completed and the show to be rehung next week.
S.P.A.C.E. Vote Winner
A couple weeks ago, I wrote about the vote taking place in our atrium for the S.P.A.C.E. (Sculpture Pad Art Collaborative Experiment) Project. We displayed five proposals from students at Minnesota State University Moorhead for a piece that will be completed and displayed over the summer on our outdoor sculpture pad. Visitors were asked to vote for their favorites with the winner getting the green light to create the final project.
The results of the vote are now in, and the winner is…
(drum roll)
Star Monster (left)!
This colorful and slightly enigmatic piece will be constructed out of sheet metal, pressure-treated lumber and fiberglass resin. The finished project is scheduled to go up sometime in late April where it will remain through October. Congratulations to the winning students and a hearty thank you to all of the participants (you can see all of the submissions here).
We’ve Got Spirit, Yes We Do
Visitors of all ages took in the School Spirit reception.
On Sunday, the Museum hosted a reception in observation of Youth Art Month, celebrating the work of hundreds of K-12 student artists from around the region. Over 700 students, parents, and observers attended, browsing some 300 art works representing 731 students. Many pieces were collaborations among large groups of students, while others represented individual selections made by the students’ teachers.
Youth Art Month was founded in 1961 (Wikipedia) by the Arts & Creative Materials Institute, Inc., (ACMI) in cooperation with the National Art Education Association (NAEA), as a way to stress the value of art education in the development of young people, to secure the commitment of the general public to the cause of art education, and to raise awareness of art education issues with government and community leaders. Further, Youth Art Month offers a perfect opportunity to celebrate the efforts of budding artists at the beginning of their artistic lives.
Two attendees watch a performance by the Fargo Moorhead Youth Symphony.
Back in 2003, the Museum began encouraging art educators in Fargo-Moorhead and neighboring communities to select student art for display during Youth Art Month. Since then, participation with the project and attendance at the reception have grown substantially each year; our first year, 150 people came to the reception. Over seven years, it has increased to 700 attendees.
Students and teachers both enjoyed the opportunity to have student work featured in the show. Hannah Juhnke, a 10th grader from Hawley, Minn., gave credit to her teacher, Tara Hager, for finding this outlet for her students.
“There aren’t a lot of art museums around Hawley,” Juhnke said, with a laugh (You can see her graphite drawing “Tender Sympathy”, below). “Mrs. Hager is the one that seeks out different competitions and art museums where our work can be featured.” She plans on pursuing a career in the arts after high school. Paige Davis, a senior from Hawley, doesn’t want to make art for a living but she was still excited to be part of the exhibition.
Paige Davis, "Laugh Out Loud"
“I never thought my cow would make it here,” she said, referencing her print (right). “It’s pretty cool to come here and see everyone’s stuff.”
Hager and fellow teacher Hannah Meyer, a K-6 art teacher from Pelican Rapids, Minn., agreed that the exhibition was an important part of a larger effort to instill artistic skills at a crucial age. Although the decision of which pieces were to be included in the show rested in their hands, Meyer said that selecting the pieces was a good way to acknowledge deserving students.
“I have a school of 450 students and I could only choose four or five pieces,” Meyer said. “It was hard, but it wasn’t. You pick kids that really work hard and deserve it and would appreciate the opportunity to have their work hanging in a show like this.”
Ben-Haim was equally excited for the opportunities the students received as well as the opportunity for families to visit the exhibition together.
“Everybody is so thankful for the attention,” she said. “The students are proud, the parents are proud. It’s really nice.”
Hannah Juhnke, "Tender Sympathy"
The student work will remain on exhibit through March 28 on the 3rd floor of the Museum. If you have any questions about the exhibition or about Youth Art Month, please call Sandy at 701.232.3821 ext. 109.
The New Plainsart.org
Welcome to the Plains Art Museum Blog and the brand-new plainsart.org!
If you’re a frequent visitor to our website, you’ve no doubt noticed a complete overhaul of our web presence, and with good reason. Our last website, while being perfectly functional, was a bit difficult to navigate given the large amount of information we, as a museum, needed to pass along to our audience. Our new website features the now-popular drop downs in the header, plus some groovy tools lurking down below in the footer. There are some new things, like direct links to our social media outposts, as well as the necessary stuff, like information on our current and upcoming exhibitions and educational opportunities.
Plains Art Museum is proud to have an improved web presence to fulfill our mission of bringing people and art together. What better way than by giving you a glimpse into our permanent collection, offering you the opportunity to sign up for art experiences directly online, or presenting a blog to grant you better access into the daily goings-on of the Museum? We’ve worked hard to get this site off the ground (big thanks to Jesse and Caley for their many talents) and we’re glad to have it up, functioning and ready to serve our audience.
Questions? Comments? Feel free to leave them in the comments or contact me, Kris, at kkerzman@plainsart.org.
