ASPEN ART MUSEUM
MAGAZINE
34
Learning
YOUTH ART EXPO The Aspen Art Museum’s biennial youth exhibition has been at the heart of its wider community for more than 40 years. Its 2023 program was another gem.
Poncili Creación, founded in 2012 by twin brothers Pablo and Efrain Del Hierro, and the New York non-profit, MAPS (Music, Art, Puppet, Sound), founded in 2017 by artist Rachel Sherk and musician Aaron Rourk. This year’s exhibition opened on April 29th with a day-long celebration including pancakes, music and danc- ing rollerskaters. The headline event, however, was a set of raucous, interac- tive performances in the exhibition, set to energizing electronic music with intricately designed, handmade puppets that combined monstrous lifeforms with elements from the natural world. Featuring the four artists that comprise the two duos, as well as participating teens from the museum’s ongoing “Art in the Field” program, the perfor- mances were captivating, wild, full
of laughter and uninhibited screeches. Towering puppets loomed and bab- bled over a delighted audience of young and old alike; seemingly inanimate objects sprung limbs and came to life. Surrounding the cacophony were puppets made by the featured young artists. In short, it was a joyous synthe- sis and potent reminder of the diverse, powerful creativity of youth. The exhibition was on view for the whole of May, with masks, costumes, monsters, magic landscapes, birds in flight, stages for ad hoc performances spread across two floors of the museum—over two thirds of the space. Hugely popular with the wider com- munity, the team welcomed many new faces and a great number of people were inspired to visit the museum for the first time.
How can museums nurture the next generation’s artistic talents? How might a child’s creative confidence blossom when their artwork is exhibited on the walls of a gallery versus the door of a refrigerator? At the heart of the Aspen Art Museum’s education program is the biennial exhibition, the Youth Art Expo. Generating and gathering over 1,000 artworks made by K–12 students from throughout the Roaring Fork Valley and towns beyond, it is a collaborative, ambitious and one-of-a-kind project that has played an important part in the museum’s history since it began back in the 1980s. The 2023 edition took up the theme of “Puppets, Masks and Storytelling” and was organized by the education department in collaboration with the Puerto Rican puppetry collective,
A series of free, drop-in workshops were held at the museum in March and April, providing materials and mentorship for those wishing to partici- pate and make their own puppets on site. The Aspen Art Museum is dedi- cated to taking this work down-valley, and mobilized to bring their lessons and supplies to educators throughout the Valley and to the towns of Gypsum and Rifle, offering teachers in the area adaptable lesson plans, information, materials paid for by the museum and instructional videos developed by guest artists. Schools could tailor their projects to their own needs and inter- ests—whether the time available was 40 minutes or 4 months—the aim was to offer something flexible and inclusive, to encourage creativity for all. And for budding artists from around the world, anywhere with an internet connection, the museum provided free, artist-made tutorial videos via its website in both Spanish and English, allowing children to create wherever they were: at home, school, community spaces or in the great outdoors. This remarkable opportunity to be taught by two of today’s most inventive performance duos, was granted to as many children as possible. This is a vital component of the education department’s mission: to create shareable, modular lessons led by artists that transcend the walls of the museum and inspire as many students as possible. For the children involved, this was an extraordinary opportunity to receive support and inspiration from a community of creatives; to be allowed total freedom and a nurtur- ing space in which to explore and ex- press their ideas. Then, at the end, they were able to present their works to friends, family and the wider public within the walls of a world-renowned museum. Feeding enthusiasm and building confidence for the next genera- tion, Youth Art Expo gives an essential platform to the young voices in the region and celebrates the energy and creativity of local youth.
Below and Opposite Images from this year’s Youth Art Expo and related events. Courtesy: The Aspen
Art Museum; photographs: Simon Klein
Learn more about our learning programs, including our summer workshops, via our website: aspenartmuseum.org/ learning To support these initiatives, you can donate or become a member: aspenartmuseum.org/join
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