December 16, 2009
For Immediate Release
Contact: Amelia Wiggins
Educator, Public Programs, Stark Museum of Art
409.886.ARTS (2787)
awiggins@starkmuseum.org
Stark Museum of Art Introduces New Family Guide
ORANGE, Texas, December 16 – Are you looking for something new to do with the family during the school break? Visit the Stark Museum of Art and try the new Family Guide, designed to make learning about art fun for children and all family members. The Guide will be available in the Museum starting December 22, 2009.
The Family Guide, a series of sixteen colorful printed cards, directs visitors to works of art on view in the Museum. The cards give background information about the art, introduce new vocabulary, and prompt family discussion by asking interpretive questions. The Family Guide is designed for upper elementary and middle school children, although questions can be adapted for younger kids.
Amelia Wiggins, Educator, Public Programs, invites families to try the Family Guide, saying, “We are very excited to introduce this new learning tool into our galleries. It is our hope that the Family Guide will bring the Museum’s collection to life for children, and make learning about art a fun experience for the entire family.” While Wiggins suggests visiting the Museum over the Winter School Break, the Family Guide will stay in the galleries permanently, and can be used at any time during open hours.
Local families contributed to the making of the Family Guide by testing it in the galleries. “I am grateful to the children, parents and grandparents who served as evaluators,” says Wiggins. “It was especially helpful to observe how different age groups used the Family Guide, and the testers’ suggestions helped us refine it.”
The introduction of the Family Guide is part of a museum-wide effort to bring children together with art for education and cultural enrichment. The Stark Museum of Art also hosts quarterly Family Days, as well as serving thousands of students each year through its school programs. The Stark Museum of Art also has education areas with art activities and magnet boards.
Located at 712 Green Avenue in Orange, Texas, the Stark Museum of Art is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am – 5 pm. The Museum will be closed Christmas Eve Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Admission is free. Group tours are available by appointment. For more information call 409.886.ARTS (2787) or visit www.starkmuseum.org.
The Abshire Family talks about art using the Family Guide at the Stark Museum of Art.
About the Stark Museum of Art
The Stark Museum of Art focuses on the stunning land, the dramatic people and the diverse wildlife of the American West. Paintings, sculpture and prints interpret the West from nineteenth century frontier artists to the twentieth century artistic colonies in New Mexico. Artists include John James Audubon, Frederic Remington, Charles Marion Russell and Georgia O’Keeffe.
The Museum also features a significant collection of American Indian objects, including baskets, pottery, clothing and weavings. Other permanent collections in the Museum include the complete porcelain American Bird Series by Dorothy Doughty and the only complete series of The United States in Crystal, a collection of crystal urns produced by Steuben Glass to depict the 50 states and the Union.
The Stark Museum of Art is a program of the Nelda C. and H.J. Lutcher Stark Foundation, a non-profit organization whose other programs include the Frances Ann Lutcher Theater for the Performing Arts, Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center, and The W.H. Stark House.
###