Ann Arbor Art Center reaches out to everyone

FOCUS ON NONPROFITS

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Ann Arbor Art Center reaches out to everyone^

D EDITOR'S NOTE: Focus on Nonprofits is a new
weekly feature of The News' Community Journal
section. Each week we highlight the work of one
area nonprofit agency that is at wor^ in our commu-
nity. a

By SARAH PRINCE

NEWS STAFF REPORTER ______________________________

Art is not just for the people vvl the time and
money to drive downtown to take .->. masses, or visit
seemingly exclusive exhibitions. Art is for everyone.
The mission of the Ann Arbor Art Center, in addition to
engaging the c6mmunity in education, exhibition and
exploration of visual art, is to appeal to the uninitiated,
the unfamiliar, as well as those with a deep under-
standing, a command of art.

Marsha
mberlin,
^ntof

i Arbor |
Art Center,
looks over a
display at the
center.

NEWS PHOTO
ELLI GURFINKEL

The Ann Arbor Art Center is "a dynamic organiza-
tion engaging the community," says President Marsha
Chamberlin; "we don't take this phrasing lightly." The
Art Center is very serious about being responsive to
new ideas.

That is why the center works so hard to provide pro-
grams that cross cultural, generational and even class
lines. An example of a program that truly reaches out
to the community is Art Start.

Art Start offers free art instruction courses to low-in-
come families in community centers such as Pinelake,
Scenic Lake, Kettering and Arrowwood. These classes
have been brought to the neighborhoods "to make the
arts as accessible as possible," Chamberlin says.

nities for teens who might not otherwise have had
them by providing invaluable work experience.

Art Ventures is an example of a project-based pro-
gram with an intergenerational drop-in art activity cen-
ter in which octs are multicultural. The program
extends to Uiv; ydiools by bringing the projects devel-
oped in the studio to the classrooms by invitation of a
teacher. ArtVentures Outreach visits Mott Children's
Hospital.

The art center also offers several classes ranging
from pottery to drawn0 pnd special courses in which
the attendees create like cards and card boxes.

Art education and exploration also comes through
the viewing of exhibitions. People who do not necessar-
ily have an interest in creating a painting, for example,

may have an interest in acquiring a skill in viewing a
painting. Currently the Art Center is working on devel-
oping art history classes for the fall and winter. ;j
Volunteers are needed to instruct classes and for or- ;

ganizing fund-raisers, Winefest, the Sommelier Dinner j
and donor dinners. Volunteers are also needed to staff |
the gallery shop located at the center, 117 W. Liberty
Ave and to do bulk mailings.

1 Ann Arbor Art Center works to promote regional
artists through exhibitions, and offers work space for a
nominal fee, especially for members. »|

An instruction-based employment program for at-
risk teens called stARTwork definitely makes the arts
accessible. Teens without parents, those at the poverty
level, or wards of the court, are brought to a camp to
both create art and be instructor assistants to children
participating in the Art Center's summer camp ~
Summer at the Art Factory.

The purpose of stARTwork is twofold. It provides a
mentoring environoment, building self-esteem, a sense
of accomplishment, and self exploration through the
{•n'.iiinn of art. And it broadens the horizon of opportu-

To recommend an agency for Focus on Nonprofits/ con-1|
tact Joanie Domer at The News. Phone: 994-6949; fax: |
994-6879; e-mail: letternews@aol,com

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