We’ve had quite a few little visitors lately to "_The Color Inside_":http://landmarks.utexas.edu/artistdetail/turrell_james, James Turrell’s new Skyspace. Two-year-old Stella took in the Skyspace on a recent clear evening with her mom and dad, headed home, took out her colored pencils, and went to work enthusiastically drawing her impressions of the experience. Eight-year-old Elianne visited the Skyspace and later crayon-captured the intense moment between changing colors washed against the ceiling oculus and night sky. Six-year-old Nathan liked the early part of his visit to the Skyspace the most, when the sky was particularly blue and the colors of the room were vibrant.
The Skyspace isn’t the only piece in the Landmarks collection which is popular with children. Take advantage of the gorgeous weather Austin’s had lately, and head to campus with your kids to explore any and all works in the "Landmarks collection":http://landmarks.utexas.edu/artists for free. For suggestions on how to look at and discuss art in the collection with your kids, Landmarks has "activity guides":http://landmarks.utexas.edu/education/activity_guides which are available for three stages of development: "younger children":http://landmarks.utexas.edu/education/activity_guides/younger_children, "older children":http://landmarks.utexas.edu/education/activity_guides/older_children, and "adolescents":http://landmarks.utexas.edu/education/activity_guides/adolescents. Each guide suggests an activity that demonstrates a relevant theme. There are many ways to talk and think about modern and contemporary art with children. You might want to bring a small notebook and colored pencils to use for sketching or writing stories. One really wonderful thing about the experience is that kids don’t generally approach works with specific pre-conceived thoughts about what art is or should be, and they are very interested in new ideas. "We’d love to hear from you":mailto:landmarks@austin.utexas.edu if you have any great stories you’d like to share!