About ACT
Artists Creating Together serves individuals with disabilities from Western Michigan, empowering all abilities with all arts - offering opportunities to celebrate, succeed, and grow with art. Learn more: artistscreatingtogether.org
On Monday, October 5, Artists Creating Together will host The Five Senses of Art, an ArtPrize Education Day, at the Grand Rapids Downtown Market in partnership with ArtPrize and Herman Miller Cares.
ACT is an ArtPrize Education Partner with the primary goal of bringing students and families to ArtPrize and giving them a unique art experience. This Education Day will specifically provide activities that are accessible and appropriate for special education students, as ACT’s mission is to serve people with disabilities. Classrooms must pre-register for this event.
Any classroom may register to participate. For the event, classrooms will visit the Downtown Market to take part in exciting art workshops. Students will embrace their creativity and express themselves in unique ways as they rotate between four activity areas with their classrooms. Activity areas will consist of truck painting, sensory arts, culinary arts and creative movement. Students will spend 15 minutes in each area.
Thanks to ACT’s generous hosts, The Five Senses of Art Education Day will take place at the Downtown Market. They will lead the creative exploration of food and art during the culinary arts workshop.
“We are always looking for opportunities to partner with local organizations,” said Claire Duthler, Leasing/Project & Special Event Manager at the Downtown Market. “Education Day with ACT is a great fit for the Market and aligns with much of the programming our Education Foundation currently provides for the community.”
Duthler said she also looks forward to “seeing the students’ excitement as they get to experience a variety of activities throughout the day at the Market.”
In the truck painting activity area, students will have the opportunity to paint a semi-truck covered with canvases using spray bottles and long-handled rollers. The sensory arts activity area will provide many multi-sensory options for students to participate in, including face painting, ping-pong ball painting and shaving cream printing. Students will also have the opportunity to create a sensory bag or bottle to take home with them.
An ACT Teaching Artist will lead the creative movement workshop, which will be accessible to students of all abilities.
“Herman Miller Cares is excited to support ACT in bringing this imaginative and engaging event to ArtPrize,” said Ryan Anderson, Director of Product + Portfolio Strategy at Herman Miller. “ArtPrize is a wonderful time when the West Michigan community experiences art in new ways, and ACT is an innovative leader in making the arts accessible and enjoyable to all.”
Classrooms must pre-register for this event by contacting Program Director Katie Brower at [email protected].
ACT is also displaying artwork during ArtPrize. In March, ACT hosted its ACTion Art Exhibit and selected three winners by a juried vote. These three ACTion Artists are sponsored by ACT and are displaying their work at Amway Grand Plaza Hotel. ACT will also offer ACT Creative Lab, a free family event open to the public, in partnership with ArtPrize Labs at the Downtown Market on October 4. For more information on these events, visit ArtistsCreatingTogether.org.
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