Contemporary Art Studio (CAS) — an After School Program

CAS is a free after-school program for pre/teen students from local middle schools. The first run of the program was hosted in Spring 2022 and included participants from four different middle schools in the Athens area. The Athenaeum aims to host new iterations of the program every spring semester, with the program centering on the work exhibited in the gallery.
 
CAS is led by faculty and students in UGA’s Art Education program. Preservice teachers (undergraduate students who are preparing to become certified art teachers) enrolled in ARED 4060S: Art Education in School, Museum, and Community are mentored by faculty and graduate students to develop the program content and serve as the lead instructors for the 10-week program.
 
In Spring 2022, the program focused on sound and video art in connection with artist Lisa Tan’s installation of Dodge and Burn 2017 - 2020 July 4 in the gallery. Preservice teachers had an opportunity to meet with Lisa Tan and share in dialogue around the work, brainstorming possibilities for using the work as a catalyst for art making with middle school participants.
 
For the duration of the program, UGA students and middle school participants explored experiential and artistic concepts developed in Tan’s work—concepts such as failure, surprise, juxtaposition, multi-sensory experience, and more. Participants engaged in emergent inquiry of these concepts by experimenting with video, sound, narrative, and embodied art practices. Ultimately, the participants created their own works of video and sound art that showcased their unique interests and identities and shared these works in a celebratory film screening during the final session of the program. Beyond these art-focused aspects of the program, there were snacks, games, and outdoor explorations, and loads of fun was had by all!
 
Be on the lookout this fall for information about the Spring 2023 CAS!
 
The 2022 CAS After School Program was supported by a 2021-2022 Willson Center Public Impact Grant