Crisp Museum putting emphasis on community

The Crisp Museum wants more community involvement and more art in the coming year.

The museum, on Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus, is opening the hallway and atrium to artists in the region for the "Transitional Spaces" series. In June it started hosting a monthly event to bring families closer to art education.

The "Transitional Spaces" series is open to artists living within a 150-mile radius of Cape Girardeau to display in nontraditional spaces, such as the walkways around the museum.

"It's based off a new museum experience that the transitional spaces in a museum are a unique opportunity to do creative displays," said Jim Phillips, curator of collections and exhibitions at Crisp Museum.

Peter Nguyen, the museum's director, said he hopes to have two local artists display in the transitional space for two months.

He said the halls and atrium were "dead space that we weren't using." The series is intended to liven the experience walking into and around the museum.

The new Family Days program will be from 1 to 4 p.m. one Saturday a month and give children and their parents the opportunity to experiment with different art forms.

"The goal is to make the museum more visible to the community," Nguyen said.

The free family event kicked off in June and continues Saturday with activities based on the museum's Equity exhibit, which is on display until Aug. 9 and features selections from the museum's permanent collection. Saturday's activities include a tour of the exhibit, printmaking, collage making and painting.

"There will always be some type of hands-on activity," Nguyen said.

Other family day themes will explore artist's issues, archaeology and pop art. Artists, professors and museum staff will be involved, depending on the month he said.

The activities will help children develop critical thinking, observation and reasoning skills by encouraging dialogue about art, said Ellen Hahs, the museum's curator of education.

"It can be historical," she said. "It can be political. It can be about problem solving."

The themes from the family days will be explored more in depth during the museum's Tuesday workshops, which are held at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. every week, Hahs said. The Tuesday classes are free, but registration is required and can be completed at 651-2301.

abusch@semissourian.com

388-3627

charris@semissourian.com

388-3641

Submit artwork

Emerging, mid-career or established artists living within a 150-mile radius can submit artwork for the "Transition Spaces" series. For more details, call 651-2260 or visit www.semo.edu/museum/exhibitions/index.htm. To submit exhibition proposals for the Greene Gallery -- the main art gallery in Crisp Museum -- call 651-2260.

Family Days

The Crisp Museum is hosting themed Family Days from 1 to 4 p.m. on these dates:

• Saturday: Visual Voices
• Aug. 29: Artist's Issues
• Sept. 26: Connecting People with the Land
• Oct. 24: Pop Art
• Nov. 21: Inside Out
• Dec. 20: Shaping Space

Pertinent address:

518 S. Fountain St. Cape Girardeau, MO