Doing Art Together: Garden Inspiration
Posted in Around the Garden, Learning Experiences on July 18 2012, by Matt Newman
On any given day, our Twitter feed is a flood of information from fans, friends, fellow institutions and the daily happenings of New York City. But now and then we stumble over the kind of encouraging Garden adventure that pushes us to keep doing what we’re doing. That was the case last week, when Doing Art Together found its way into the stream.
Executive Director Heather-Marie Brooks Montilla and her colleagues are heroes of a sort. I don’t think they run into burning buildings all that often; neither are they with the Coast Guard. But they’re as committed to their cause as any fireman. And Doing Art Together (DAT), the group’s long-running educational program, is something of a rescue operation in its own right. Focused on under-resourced children and young adults aged four to 21, these teachers have spent decades working to keep the city’s kids on the right path, turning to art, day in and day out, to make a positive mark on impressionable minds.
Last week’s field trip saw a group of third grade children from Thurgood Marshall Academy Lower School visiting the Garden for a day of muse hunting. Pencils and clipboards made the rounds while each student got down to the business of interpreting what they saw. Flowers and foliage, for a few moments in the week, became their inspiration.
“Part of our mission is to try and use art as an entry point to learning, education, and engagement for kids and their families,” said Montilla. “We’re kind of using art to change the culture–to get these students excited about learning and taking ownership of their education, to be successful today and in the future.”
While Montilla calls the effort a “boutique operation,” Doing Art Together’s 30 years of service in New York City tells me their resolve is anything but quaint. “We’re a lean, mean staff,” she says, “providing an in-depth art education experience to these kids.”
DAT’s ties with the city’s cultural institutions are anything but new. The organization began in the 1980s through a partnership with The Metropolitan Museum. And such a high-profile connection has made for a sophisticated foundational curriculum, with students not only dabbling in illustrated landscapes and flower portraits, but making their way through in-depth art history programs dealing with such artists as Frida Kahlo, Kehinde Wiley, and (naturally) Claude Monet. Hands-on disciplines cover painting, drawing, sculpture and collage. Every ounce of effort goes toward creating a program that encourages confidence and expression, and enhances critical thinking skills.
As an institution that always strives to make a positive impact on the community, education is high on our list of priorities. Seeing the teachers and students of Doing Art Together putting our 250 acres to such rewarding use is both humbling and gratifying. So we hope to see each and every one of those students back here at the NYBG as soon as possible!
