Like Picasso, let African masks inspire you!  Discover the secrets of creating luminous artwork using soft pastels and charcoal while working from the outstanding collection of African masks at the museum.  Explore the basics of using pastels and learn to create contrasts of value to suggest light, shadow, mass and volume.  All materials included.

This fun family workshop begins by scouring the museum with a list of clues to unearth the amazing animals and mythical creatures lurking in paintings and sculptures throughout the collections. Finish off the hunt by creating a puppet inspired by your favorite beast and talking about your exciting discoveries. All materials included.

Explore a different artist, artifact, art element or art movement one Saturday a month this fall at the University of Michigan's Museum of Art (UMMA).  Each workshop you will explore a different work, or group of works from either the permanent collection or temporary exhibits.  In response, you'l create your own masterpiece and learn a variety of art making techniques, including mixed media and collage.  Along the way expect gallery games, scavenger hunts, and fun!  Come with an open mind and a sense of adventure. (Take one workshop or all four.  All levels welcome!)

Each of these fun and informative hands-on workshops focus on the techniques from different art movements represented in the museum's collection.  Learn about important artists and movements while getting your hands dirty and exploring different pastel and /or acrylic painting techniques!

OCTOBER 2nd: Create a landscape pastel that captures the fresh colors and spontaneity of the Impressionist.

OCTOBER 9th: Disregard the traditional subject and explore the possibilities of the persona expression through creating a study inspired by the German ans America Expressionist movements and artist such as Jackson Pollock and Max Beckman.

OCTOBER 16th:  Delve into Minimalist Art and learn how artists in this movement focused on stripping objects down to their elemental and geometric forms.

(Take one workshop or all three; all levels welcome!)

* Workshop sessions will be held at the U of M Museum of Art in the multipurpose room.

Learn about one of the 20th century's most ingenious and influential artists, Alexander Calder, in this fun hands-on family workshop.  You and your child work to create your own movable 3-D sculptures inspired by everyday materials that Calder used to make extraordinary art.  Children must be accompanied  by an adult. 

All materials included.

 * This workshop will be held at the U of M Museum of Art in the multipurpose room.