Racine Art Museum Association

Purpose: Supporting Lifelong Learning The Racine Art Museum will use this grant to fund exhibition and related education programs that support its research on and documentation of contemporary crafts. The museum will organize three shows that examine the changes that have occurred in the Studio Crafts Movement since the 1960s. One show will explore the sculptural approach of craftsmen who were influenced by abstract expressionism in painting and by twentieth-century sculpture. The other two shows will focus on the new respect for the functional and decorative arts that emerged in the late 1990s. Educational programs connected to the three shows will encourage the public's active engagement and the creation of long-term relationships between the artists and the community, resulting in a greater understanding of the creative process. The programs will include behind-the-scenes and gallery tours by the artists/curators who have created the artworks; master workshops conducted by artists that will involve students in the creation of works for the exhibition; a high-school program that will give students the opportunity to interact with the artists; and a series of family events during each show, consisting of docent-led tours and hands-on projects that will connect the participants to the artwork.