ARTS COUNCIL HOLDS CHILDREN'S WORKSHOPS

More than 175 students are putting their creative skills to work during the 1997 Summer Art Workshops sponsored by the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri.

The Arts Council has sponsored a number of specialized programs this month that expose children ages 6 to 17 to art mediums they may be unfamiliar with. Most of the classes have been held at Southeast Missouri State University's Memorial Hall.

"We want them to experience some of the arts activities they generally don't get in the public schools because they don't have time," said director Beverly Strohmeyer. "They can do projects that take a little more time and get a little deeper into projects than they are usually allowed to do during the school year."

This year's theme is "ExplorArt." Strohmeyer said the workshop has made many changes over the 13 years she has been involved with it, but one thing that hasn't changed has been the children's enthusiasm and willingness to try something different.

"We encourage them to explore all the different media and the different concepts and explore their own creativity," she said. "They are presented with a concept but then it's up to them. It's not a class where everybody has to do the same thing; they're encouraged to be creative and do their own thing."

Strohmeyer said the program was initially geared to children under the age of 11. Participants started re-enrolling each year, she said, and now students up to 17 are signing up for classes.

"I guess that says something about our program," she said. "We try to offer some different classes every year so they are getting new techniques."

Saundra Fidler, an art teacher at Louis J. Schultz School, is teaching the pottery classes for 8-to-11-year-olds. She said the combination of younger children and pottery allows her to experiment with fun teaching techniques.

"The kids like clay because they don't get to do that in school, and the sculpture takes a lot more time than we can usually devote to something in regular class," she said. "I really enjoy these kids -- they're really a hoot. You just never know what's going to come out of their mouths, and when we start a project they really get into it."

Although the summer programs are geared towards younger children, Strohmeyer said some parents have chosen to get involved. Several parents who were only present to reassure their younger children ended up staying for an entire three-hour session, she said.

"This year, in the first week or two we had several parents that said they were going to stay for just a few minutes and ended up staying the entire time," she said. "That's fine too, especially with the younger children. We don't discourage them if they want to stay."

Openings are still available in the multimedia class scheduled from July 28 through Aug. 1. Strohmeyer said the class will allow children to experiment with a variety of art forms, including drawing, painting and sculpture.

Class fees for the multimedia workshop are $50 per child. Scholarships are available for children qualifying for the free-lunch or reduced-lunch program in the public schools. The Arts Council provides all the supplies, so children need only come wearing "art-friendly" clothing.

Classes are filled on a first-come, first-served basis, and Arts Council members receive a discount. Registration is through the Arts Council office at (573) 334-9233 from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.