After I took “art” class in high school you’d think I would have given up on the hopes that art or art history could actually be fun. The teacher was unenthusiastic and boring and gave the dullest assignments leaving most of those kids to think that that was it for art. Who cares about exact dates and quizzes? Who wants to draw a picture of their shoe? How could art suck this bad?
Good art isn’t academic and by the books. Likewise reading page after page of encyclopedia art bios and painting a stupid flower exactly the way an instructor tells you to isn’t going to be fun. What I hope to accomplish with this blog and specifically with this series is to let people know that enjoying art can indeed be a lot of fun.
1. Take the family to the museum
Chances are you are within driving distance to an art museum, so why not fill the family station wagon with the little ones and head on over. These museums are there to entertain you; they want you and your kids to come back, so they will likely have a calender chock-full of activities.
“Make and take” workshops are a big hit at museums. Many of these workshops are targeted at kids to let them get a hands on feel for some type of art such as clay, finger paints, acrylic paints on canvas, textiles, or even something like silk-screen printing or calligraphy. When was the last time you finger painted? Whether they are for your kids or just yourself, these workshops will let your inner artist burst free and allow to get instruction and experience with a new art.
Events such as dance theaters, ballets, and films are all good for you and the spouse while the kiddies play. Something like a puppet theater is enjoyable for the whole family. All of these things are on my museum’s calender for the first week of January alone. Your museum will surely have a similar lineup, so visit the museum or check out their website.
2. Nothing planned for Friday? Go to Art After 5
Once again at the museum, the Art After 5 program has been going on at every museum I’ve been to, and is a fun way to spend the first part of a Friday evening. From 5 o’clock, after normal museum hours to about 9 o’clock, you can sip some wine or liquor while enjoying a live jazz band, or piano, or even something like traditional Japanese music, all depending on the theme.
They might show a silent film while the music is playing or some other type of entertainment. The nice part is, after listening to some live music, you can head on over to the galleries and browse through the collections in a more exclusive way without bumping into rooms full of people. And checking out classic art while a little tipsy can give you a whole new perspective.
3. First Friday fun
This is something I used to frequent around my local area which is whole lot of fun. The first Friday night of every month, a few blocks of the historic part of my city opens up its art galleries to the public. Some galleries can host quite the part with music, alcohol, food. One place had a Celtic Irish band playing some diddies on fiddle, squeeze-box and guitar.
People just hop from gallery to gallery at their leisure, eat some good food and get a look at some local up-and-coming artists, some of whom will be there for discussion. All the art is priced depending on the gallery and the artist for serious buyers. First Friday lacks the stuffy, and sometimes pretentiousness of usual galleries, because people aren’t expected to buy, and there is no pressure. It’s mostly just a fun way to spend an early Friday night.
4. Art games for all ages
Who said all those video games are just for kids? While targeted at a young audience, and sometimes a little cutesy, there are several art video games which can be quite fun and addictive at all ages.
Mario Paint for SNES is one that requires mention. This is more than just a game which brings back some familiar characters, but a complete art program which even includes a mouse. It allows you to paint with an infinite number of brushes and effects, compose music, and even make animation. It gives your brain a total workout, and since it’s Nintendo it’s bound to be a lot of fun.
Another one I used to love is a little obscure program for Windows 3.1 called Microsoft Fine Artist. This one is definitely directed at little kids but the concept is a good one. It is a thousand times better than Microsoft Paint. It includes an impressive collection of ClipArt, which can be put into the paintings, allowing you to create your ClipArt, or stickers, for use in future paintings.
5. Art movies for movie night
Good movies involving art can be an excellent way to learn about famous artists and give you a splash of culture at the same time. Check out 6 Films About Painters, and 6 More Films About Painters for my list of good art movies.
6. Be creative
Creativity and the act of creation releases endorphins in your brain which make you feel not just satisfaction for accomplishing something, but an overall warm and fuzzy feeling. In other words: it’s good for you! There are so many ways you can be creative:
- Get your hands dirty: get some clay and see what you can come up with. If you want to go all out, get a kiln or a pottery wheel and make your own projects.
- Take an art class. Community colleges provide an inexpensive way to learn an art such as drawing or painting.
- Play with Photoshop. Photoshop or its spinoffs can be a lot of fun to tinker with. Take a couple of unlikely pictures and splice them together in a funny way. Then print it out as a birthday card, etc.
- Go to workshops. Like I said earlier, find a museum that has adult workshops for art. You can take all kinds of workshops such as quilt-making and textiles, or even tea tasting!
- See 10 Ways To Boost Your Creativity
So I’m sure you can find all kinds of fun things to do with and about art. Check out Have Fun With Art, Part 1, and Part 2.
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