The Mulvane Art Museum Newsletter
                                    
Welcome to the Mulvane Art Museum Newsletter, where we'll keep you up to date on all the new exhibitions, activities and events going on at the Mulvane.



Read on and enjoy!
                                                       
What's Happening
 
It's finally that crispy & delicious time of year again! Fall is upon us and the Mulvane has enticing new programs to get you in the autumn spirit!
  • Join a heartfelt conversation: Memories in the Making: A Conversation with Karen Clond. On Sept. 15th from 6-7pm, Dementia Care Specialist, Clond will speak about the positive impacts that creative expression can have on those afflicted with Dementia. Come early to see the exhibition, Perspectives on Aging: Elizabeth Layton and Edward Navone.
  • Enjoy a movie at the Mulvane! We're showing
    Manufactured Landscapes on Wednesday, Sept. 16th, from 4-5:30pm in conjunction with Burtynsky: The Industrial Sublime.The documentary follows the Canadian photographer to China as he photographs the country's industrial revolution.
    A still from "Manufactured Landscapes."
  • Explore the themes of Burtnysky's photographs with the experts! Industrial Impact: A Panel Discussion with Bill Bider, Rex Buchanan, and Dr. Hui Xiao is a chance to understand the real issues surrounding industrialization and the impact it has on the world we live in today. Join the discussion on Tuesday, Sept. 22nd from 6-7pm!
  • Get your java fix with our class, Take a Fall Break - Coffee Break and Make Art! On Tuesday, October 6th, from 2-3pm, you'll be treated to a cup of coffee while you create a sepia-toned collage creation You're sure to leave perked up from the coffee and awakened by from your artistic experience!
  • On Tuesday nights in October and November, cozy up with some creative introspection in our class series, Creating Meaningful Drawings.You'll learn drawing techniques to recreate meaningful moments in your life through art. This class is for teens and adults, October 13, 20, 27, and November 3 and 10th from 6-8pm.
  • Prepare yourselves for a spooky Halloween experience! In Creatures of the Night  you can unleash your scary side, crafting creepy creatures and monsters! This frighteningly good time is happening October 3rd from 1-3pm! This class is for children six and up who have completed Kindergarten. Don't forget to register in advance on our website!
  • The sky's the limit! Dream up a village of your very own by creating skyscrapers and buildings and anything else you can imagine, using recycled items and gizmos! Box Village Sublime takes place on October 3rd from 1-3pm. This class is for children 7 and up. Don't forget to register on our website in advance!

Enroll in any of these programs now! 

View Our Current Exhibitions this autumn as well!  

 

 
Highlights from the Collection

Each month we'll bring you a different look at our permanent
collection!  
 
Luis Jiménez (1940-2006)
El Buen Pastor, 1999
lithograph
 
On May 20, 1997, eighteen-year-old Esequiel Hernandez was herding his family's goats outside his home in Redford, TX, near the Mexican border. Carrying a rifle to ward off wild dogs and rattlesnakes, he was shot to death by four marines on patrol, who thought he was a drug smuggler. According to Jiménez, "No one would dream of taking away Robert E. Lee's gun or George Washington's sword, but somehow the thought of a Mexican with a gun is seen as a big threat."
 
El Buen Pastor or The Good Shepherd memorializes this horrific event, protesting, as the print says, "the country's insane and racist border policy." To emphasize the boy's innocence, in both senses of the word, Jiménez shows him as Christ, the Good Shepherd, with his hand raised in a traditional gesture of blessing. Chillingly, his halo is marked by the crosshairs of a rifle.

 
The Gift of Generosity: Be a Mulvane Friend this Fall

As the nippy fall weather arrives, so does the holiday season of
generosity. Now, more than ever, is the time to embrace the spirit
of giving and help support the Mulvane Art Museum. We are so grateful for the funding
we received from all of you during last summer's Mulvane Art Fair, our main fundraiser of the year. But we still need your support. 
By becoming a Friend, becoming a Patron, or simply donating, you are sustaining our ArtLab, exhibitions, artists talks, films, and special events and you're keeping alive a museum that the entire Topeka community and beyond can learn from and enjoy. Include the Mulvane Art Museum in your charitable giving this season so that we can provide you with art today and for generations to come.

Welcome New & Renewed Members!
March: Marilyn Nellis, Donna Lalonde, Jean Attebury, Christel Marquardt, Peggy Welsh, Pamela Rettele
April: Karen Hiller, Gail LaGrove, Chip & Pam Munk, Mark Dechand, Jane Kluge
May: Laurie Niehaus, Ken Peterson, Audrey Leamon, Carole Hawkins, Susan Garlinghouse, Lynette Joe-Beck, Robert Richmond 
June: Catherine Connell, Mike & Katy Franklin, Randall Warren, Susan Sebring, Ethel Edwards

Education in the Arts
Here's what you should know!
The Mulvane Art Museum's education program provides art education for youth through our Art After School program. Typically students tour the museum's
exhibitions and engage in an art activity in the ArtLab. The ArtLab, outreach, and educational classes give children an opportunity to experience art as a way to see and view the world and to develop and experiment with art making tools and media. The creative art lessons and activities in Art After School align with the National Core Standards for the Visual Arts. For most of these students, this program is their only access to the arts. More than 89% of the participants live in economically disadvantaged situations. Our programs provide access to a vital component of the learning experience for those who might not otherwise benefit from art engagement. 
 
The Mulvane Art Museum will receive the 2015 Kansas Art Enhancer of the Year Award for our outstanding education programs. The award will be presented to the Museum's education program at the Kansas Art Education Association (KAEA) Conference on October 9, 2015, in Pittsburg, Kansas. 

KAEA will recognize the Mulvane's dedication to providing opportunities for individuals--adults and children--to experience art as a part of daily life. Visitors to the museum and participants in exhibition, outreach and in-house education programs gain an awareness of arts-based knowledge and art appreciation and of civilization and society. The Museum's programs add to the educational and cultural fabric of northeast Kansas and enhance the overall quality of the life for those who live in and visit the communities we serve.



"The Mulvane Art Museum and ArtLab are invaluable resources for the Topeka community. My kids enjoy the opportunity to express themselves visually through creating art, and viewing each other's art sparks their imaginations and awakens their hearts."   --Lisa Sage                                                         
Rekindling a Love of Art at Any Age
 by: Elisabeth Warsinske

When I was a wide-eyed kid, I was flat-out obsessed with the world of crafting. Googly eyes, pipe cleaners, feathers, glitter, markers, construction paper, basically anything that could be found in "The Barney Bag," I craved. My first and foremost love, however, was cardboard, which I believed made every craft better. I would scour my parent's garage daily, searching for the perfect cardboard box to use for my next project. This pastime earned me the title, "The Cardboard Queen," graciously bestowed upon me by my older brother. I wore that invisible crown with pride.

Years and years passed, and I changed my lifelong dream of becoming an artist to becoming a museum professional. So when I entered the Mulvane Art Museum for a marketing position, those crafty days were behind me. Then I saw it. The ArtLab.

Almost hidden away downstairs, the ArtLab was a like a breath of fresh air with its electric green, yellow and red walls and Dia de los Muertos masks hanging all around. My eyes went straight to the art making stations. I had never seen anything like this in my life. There was a Lego section, a library and an archaeological rock wall where you could make cave drawings with chalk! There was a place where you could do printmaking, a watercolor station and a spot where you could look in a giant mirror and create a self-portrait. In the middle of all of this was the main crafting area. There were tables filled with the best parts of my childhood - yarn, markers, sequins, crayons, glue, the list goes on and on.
Needless to say, my inner eight-year-old was extremely happy. I thought to myself that I wished there had been a place like this when I was younger. I was happy such places like these existed now for my nephews. 

Then I learned the best news of all, the ArtLab is not just for kids! College students of Washburn University can come down and craft if studying gets to be too stressful. Adults can come down and craft with their kids or without! The ArtLab is a community environment where everyone can let out their inner eight-year-old and be an artist. The ArtLab holds Family Days for everyone and welcomes groups of all ages. It's completely free and insanely fun because sometimes you just need to shed your adult layer for awhile and have some good, old-fashioned, guilt-free, little kid, craft time. 
STAY CONNECTED:
  Mulvane Art Museum | 785.670.1124 | 1700 SW Jewell Avenue, Topeka, Kansas, 66621