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We are committed to the growth and development of the Arts in the rural South.
When the Gallery opened in April 2005, we knew that community outreach would be a central element of our mission and that our outreach initiatives would focus on leveraging existing community successes. With only that compass in hand, we charted a course that has yielded a coordinated and consistent emphasis – education.
Of all Jefferson County’s many remarkable qualities, none surpasses its devotion to public education. Recognizing this, we engaged the leadership of the County public schools from the Gallery’s earliest days in an effort to lend our support wherever it made sense. Today, the Gallery operates lively educational outreach programs, each with its own special emphasis including The Art of Thinking and Gallery Days. Keep up with all the exciting outreach commotion by visiting us regularly on Facebook where we post fresh photo albums and notes about our outreach initiatives all the time! test |
The Art of Thinking
In fall 2008, after careful planning with Louisville Academy principal Hulet Kitterman, the Gallery launched a six-week pilot of our Art of Thinking program. Using artistic expression as a means of teaching basic categorical distinctions, this program provides Louisville Academy fourth graders with a weekly afternoon program of guided observational, discussion, and artistic exercises designed to strengthen their conceptual appetites and abilities. In fall of 2010 we expanded this program to fourth graders at Carver Elementary School in Wadley. Now Friends staff lead four classes of six week sessions of The Art of Thinking program each year. For more information on The Art of Thinking Program watch this great video from one of our previous AoT classes!
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Gallery Days
In an effort to make art an everyday part of our children’s lives, the Gallery established the Gallery Days program in collaboration with Louisville Academy. For several Gallery exhibits that occur during the school year, the Gallery’s Curatorial Fellow works with Louisville Academy staff to plan class visits to the Gallery. Instructional presentations to help young students develop an understanding of basic artistic concepts, such as the distinction between representational and abstract art. Through this program, the Gallery has become a familiar community point of reference for many children who might not otherwise have ever visited this or any other art gallery as part of their elementary education.
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