Mindfulness Monday – Jun 1

It’s Monday once again, so we’re inviting you to practice mindfulness… Mindfulness is the practice of focusing on the present moment while calmly observing your thoughts and feelings. Here at the Museum, Art Educator Amy Korpieski and Curator of Education Annette Eshelman use mindfulness techniques in their educational practices to help visitors of all ages experience meaningful moments in the galleries. While we are not able to physically be in the galleries, we wanted to bring the gallery to you as we present this opportunity to practice some mindfulness.

View the video here »

« The image shown is Michael Weisel | FLIGHT | oil on canvas | 48 x 60” | 2019

Drawing the Collection – Lesson 8: Shading Techniques (Hatching and Crosshatching)

They say it takes 10,000 hours to master any given skill, so if we want to improve our drawing, we’ve got to start logging those hours! The next few lessons on shading techniques will be all about practice.

Download the Lesson 8 pdf here »

« Frank Myers Boggs | BOATS ON THE RIVER SEINE (LE PONT DES ARTS | charcaol on paper | c.1900

The Museum Is Blooming!

Sometimes it’s finding joy in the simple things, like blooming irises!

#momentsforjoy #SpringfieldMuseumofArt #smoa #springfieldohio

This Land Is Your Land

During an almost year-long cross-curricular collaboration between Language Arts and Visual Art classes, 6th grade students at Reid School in Springfield, Ohio studied the history, meaning, and controversy, surrounding Woodie Guthrie’s This Land Is Your Land. After thorough examinations of diverse representations of Guthrie’s song that included print and audio, students choose a line from the song. Next, students worked to create their own visual interpretation of their selected line using various experimental multi-media techniques. Students then created a more technical self-portrait and accompanying poem to represent their personal identity.

Click here to visit the online gallery »

Tuesday Artist Instagram Takeover – May 26

This week’s Instagram takeover looks a little different… instead of having an individual artist take over our Instagram, Hatch Artist Studios is going to give you a glimpse into their building and general operations. Their mission is to create functional studios for working artists, to provide educational opportunities for the community, and to encourage the public’s appreciation and understanding of the arts.

Click here to view our Instagram »

Mindfulness Monday – May 25

Happy Memorial Day! We wanted to offer another mindfulness exercise on this special Monday… Mindfulness is the practice of focusing on the present moment while calmly observing your thoughts and feelings. Here at the Museum, Art Educator Amy Korpieski and Curator of Education Annette Eshelman use mindfulness techniques in their educational practices to help visitors of all ages experience meaningful moments in the galleries. While we are not able to physically be in the galleries, we wanted to bring the gallery to you as we present this opportunity to practice some mindfulness.

View the video »

The image depicted here is Wendy Cross | PROTECTION | oil on canvas | 48 x 144” | 2019

Drawing the Collection – Lesson 7: Shading

This Friday’s drawing lesson focuses on shading. Shading gives dimension to our drawings as we model form with lighter and darker values. A convincing application of these value changes gives the impression of light and shadow. Let’s learn more about this concept by observing how light falls on a simple sphere.

« Paul Lacroix | STILL LIFE OF RED GRAPES | oil on canvas | 1868

Click here for a downloadable PDF of this lesson »

Charley Harper Forever!

Charley Harper is always a favorite around here, and this rainy spring weather has us thinking of his print, “Spring Wildflowers.”

What are you planting in your garden this season?

« Charley Harper | SPRING WILDFLOWERS | serigraph on paper | undated

Wittenberg Art Students Senior Thesis Exhibition

Let’s hear it for more 2020 college graduates! While Wittenberg art students graduated this past Saturday, you can still view their Senior Theses online. Congratulations to the department’s seniors in the Class of 2020!

Click here to view the art »

Tuesday Instagram Takeover with Aileen Cave

Next up on our Artist Instagram Takeover is Aileen Cave. Aileen is a painter who enjoys working with oils, watercolor, acrylic, and mixed media. She has been taking painting classes at the Museum since 2005, as well as classes and workshops from other local area artists. She received her BFA from Wright State in 2016 and currently works out of her studio in Hatch Artist Studios.