Family Saturdays at a Glance

February 5 – April 16, 2011 
The Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College
presents a series of ten Family Saturday programs to accompany the work in our exhibitions this spring, including The Jewel Thief; Environment and Object in Recent African Art; and others.
Held on Saturdays from February 5 through April 16 (except March 19), the programs include a brief tour followed by a hands-on art activity, with all materials provided.
 
The programs run from 2:00 – 3:30 PM, and are free and open to the public.
Suitable for children ages 5 and up along with their adult companions, the Family Saturday programs are fun and educational.
 
Reservations are highly encouraged as space is limited and the programs are very popular.  You may sign up for each program up to one week in advance. For additional information and reservations, or to be added to our Family Saturday e-mail list, please call the Tang’s Visitor Service Desk at 580-8080. {If you have a reservation and have not arrived by 1:55 PM, your seats may be given to someone on the waiting list.  Please let us know in advance if you have a reservation and find you cannot attend, so that we can give your places to other eager artists.}
Programs are subject to change without notice – you may call a few days ahead to find out about changes.
 
Feb. 5  - Eccentric Chandeliers
       After looking at Jessica Stockholder’s “chandelier” in The Jewel Thief that includes plastic cups and chains among other unexpected materials, we will make some abstract “chandeliers” of our own.

Feb. 12  - Recyclables as Art
We will look at Nigerian artist Bright Ugochukwu Eke’s installation made from thousands of recyclable plastic bottles, then make our own sculptures out of the same kinds of bottles.

Feb. 19  - Make a Fuzzy Garden
After looking at Paula Hayes’s fascinating terrariums in her exhibition Understory, we will make gardens of our own out of pipe-cleaners and beads.

Feb. 26  - Abstract Tape Art – Jewel Thief Grand Finale!
       After discovering and analyzing several geometric shapes in artwork in The Jewel Thief, we will make abstract art out of colored tape in a zillion widths and colors.  Even if you came to do this in the Fall, it’s fun to do again!

Mar. 5  - Double Dioramas
We will look at the paintings and photographs in Unstable Ground, then make double dioramas showing the same scene as it looks now and as you imagine it might have looked in the past, or might look in the future.

Mar. 12  - Recyclable Drapes
We will look at El Anatsui’s elegant curtain made from discarded materials, then create small “drapes” out of recyclable paper and plastic.  Please bring as many gum wrappers as you can to share!

Mar. 19  - No Program this week

March 26  - Faces in a Bottle
We will look at the mask-like forms of Beninese artist  Romuald Hazoume, then create faces using gallon and half-gallon plastic jugs.      

Apr. 2  - Mountain Climbing
We will look at Andrew Mania’s installation of mountain paintings and drawings that he combined with a ladder that drapes to the floor; then we’ll draw our own mountain pictures and add objects that we make especially for this project.

Apr. 9 - Mixed Media Constructions
       We will explore Senegalese artist Viye Diba’s mixed-media installation and Nigerian artist Nnenna Okore’s wall-hanging of plastic bags, then construct artwork using similar materials discarded from everyday use.

Apr. 16  - String and Eggs
We will look at Lenore Tawney’s two Shrine pieces, then make sculptures using colored string, plastic eggs, and other materials.