Museum Makers Program

   The National Gallery of Art offers an opportunity to high school students to use the museum collection for research, personal inquiry and inspiration. The program is called Museum Makers and it invites students from the DMV to apply for this rich experience. It is a six week commitment to dive deeply in the NGA collection and all that offers!
   The NGA has been inviting students to this program since 1992 and they happily boast 600 alumni. Many of these individuals still keep in touch and return to visit the current students when they are in town. 

 Today was the culminating event, the students presented their wanderings on an artwork in the form of a research question and then unpacked their findings for us.They also exhibited their own artwork that documented their journey during the program. It was impressive to witness the poise and intellect of these 15 students!   

One of my students based his inquiry around the work of Jean Dubuffet and his disregard for conventional art making techniques. He spoke so eloquently about his findings and the dark childlike images that Dubuffet wished his viewers would experience rather than analyze. There were other students that contemplated the artwork and minds of Hieronymus Bosch, Monet, Whistler and Lichtenstein. The day was a wonderful exploration through time in the NGA permanent collection. 

I commend these students for the sharing all that they learned during this six week journey! The National Gallery of Art is a world class institution and this is such an excellent opportunity!