Hirshhorn’s ARTLAB+ Announces Winter/Spring 2012 Programs
ARTLAB+, a design studio for teens and the Hirshhorn’s signature youth program since summer 2010, has reopened after a short holiday break. ARTLAB+ programs provide Washington, D.C.-area teens with free access to the latest art-making technology and to the inspiring works of modern and contemporary art in the Hirshhorn’s collection. Participating teens connect with creative, like-minded peers and knowledgeable mentors who have diverse backgrounds in digital media, filmmaking and art education. As the first museum-affiliated member of the YOUmedia Network, a nationwide group of out-of-school learning centers conceived and funded in part by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the ArtLab space is equipped with an amazing array of resources and hosts a full menu of workshops, club meetings and special events.
The ArtLab is a hub of teen social and artistic activity Monday to Friday from 3 to 7 p.m. and Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. Participants are encouraged to experiment with an array of technology. While some may opt to take photographs and post them to Facebook, others may pursue video, photography and animation projects using Macintosh computers and professional digital still and video cameras. Teens are invited to record their own music in the sound booth, which is fully equipped with professional sound production hardware, such as keyboards, mixers and microphones, and software, such as Reason and Logic. Hanging out in the ArtLab’s new gaming area is also encouraged. Here, a carefully curated selection of more than 50 video games for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 (ranging from hard-to-find indie art games to more mainstream titles), awaits teen testing and review.
Registration is now open for multiweek and one-day workshops that begin in February, including “Art Breakers,” “Women Represented” and “Visual Storytelling,” each of which introduces teens to a range of media and culminates in the production of a final project using newfound skills. Weekly club meetings unite teens who share common interests in gaming, radio broadcasting, photography, fashion or music. The ArtLab’s dynamic Creative Consultants club, formed in fall 2010, continues to conceptualize and host teens-only programming at the museum. All programs are free and open to teens ages 13 to 18. For more information about ARTLAB+ programs and events, and to register for clubs and workshops, visit http://artlabplus.si.edu.
About the ArtLab and ARTLAB+ Programs
The ArtLab is the studio space, located on Jefferson Drive in the Hirshhorn’s Sculpture Garden, where ARTLAB+, the Hirshhorn’s signature youth program, happens. Through workshops, clubs and special events, ARTLAB+ gives Washington-area teens the space, resources and technology they need to explore their creativity while developing important visual- and digital-literacy skills. Teens from across the region take on unique roles in a design-studio environment, often using the museum’s modern and contemporary art collection to inspire their own creative projects. Guest artists and mentors offer support and guidance throughout the creative process, nurturing the next generation of artists and innovators.
The ArtLab space is funded, as a member of the YOUmedia Network, by the MacArthur Foundation. ARTLAB+ programs are funded by the Pearson Foundation, in partnership with the New Learning Institute, along with internal Smithsonian Institution funds from the Youth Access Grants Program. Additional funding is provided by the Entertainment Software Association Foundation and Vivian and Elliott I. Pollock.
About the Hirshhorn
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Smithsonian Institution’s museum of international modern and contemporary art, has nearly 12,000 paintings, sculptures, photographs, mixed-media installations, works on paper and new media works in its collection. The Hirshhorn presents diverse exhibitions and offers an array of public programs that explore modern and contemporary art. Located at Independence Avenue and Seventh Street S.W., the museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (except Dec. 25). Admission to the galleries and special programs is free. For more information about exhibitions and events, please visit hirshhorn.si.edu. Follow the Hirshhorn on Facebook at facebook.com/hirshhorn and on Twitter at twitter.com/hirshhorn. To request accessibility services, please contact Kristy Maruca at marucak@si.edu or (202) 633-2796, preferably two weeks in advance.
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SI-12-2012
