The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
The American Mural Project partners with Winsted schools
WINSTED —The American Mural Project has formed a new partnership with the Winchester Public Schools’ CHAMPS afterschool enrichment program, serving Winchester students in kindergarten through sixth grade.
Now in its sixth week, AMP offers art and music programs on Tuesdays and Thursdays during the school year.
CHAMPS partners with community organizations in Winsted to provide activities for students after school. In addition to AMP, students can select the programs that interest them, which also include swim and gym activities at the Northwest Connecticut YMCA, Laurel Lanes, and the Beardsley Library, as well as various clubs: robotics, show choir, jazz band, and more, at the Pearson and Batcheller schools.
Twenty students in the CHAMPS program are transported to AMP two days per week, for two and a half hours per day. Program space is generously donated by Whiting Mills, next door to AMP on Whiting Street, as AMP’s mill renovation concludes and the mural assembly and installation begin in the coming months. AMP’s after-school programs are also supported by an ongoing partnership with Team Success Scholars at Northwest Connecticut Community College, which provides AMP with collegeaged interns working to develop their professional skill sets.
“This partnership brings a new level of quality and creativity to the CHAMPS program,” said Theresa Padin, director of CHAMPS. “Students have the opportunity to work among studio spaces housing working artists and craftsmen, in addition to outdoor space that is perfect for small group instruction, nature exploration, and creating art and music in a natural environment. Through our partnership with AMP, our students will be able to gain exposure to a part of our community they may not otherwise engage with. From the rich history of Whiting Mills to the evolution of the mural, students will be linked to the past, present, and future of Winsted.”
Tuesday programming focuses on musical creativity, with AMP instructors teaching students to use instruments, found objects, Boomwhackers®, and body percussion to write songs together “STOMP” style. By the end of the session, all participants will have written and performed original songs—in groups, solos, or a combination of the two. On Thursdays, participants will use all types of art materials, including found and recycled objects, to create artistic masterpieces. From masks and puppets to painting and making toys, students will use their imagination to paint, sculpt, and draw their way around the creative rainbow.
“AMP is thrilled with this partnership as the value of creative programs during ‘out of school time’ is undeniable,” commented Michelle Begley, programs director at AMP. “Connecting with the children and families in CHAMPS allows us to reveal the ‘art of work’ to elementary students and engage them in exploring the artistic community right in their backyard.”
Construction on the first of two mill buildings on AMP’s property on Whiting Street in Winsted will finish this fall, followed by the lengthy process of assembling and installing the nearly five-story mural. The exhibition—showcasing the largest indoor collaborative artwork in the world—is targeted to open to the public next year. AMP’s mill buildings will house the mural and an adjacent visitors center, which will become a destination for school and teacher programs, after-school programming, summer enrichment activities, experiential projects for visitors, an apprentice-style internship program, and lectures and workshops, as well as the onsite portion of AMP’s curriculum.
Champs After-School Enrichment Program is funded by a grant from the Connecticut State Department of Education. The purpose is to provide academically enriching programs during out-of-school hours and to help children achieve higher academic performance during the school day.
Launched in 2002 by artist Ellen Griesedieck, the American Mural Project is creating the largest indoor collaborative artwork in the world—a mural 120 feet long, 48 feet high, and up to ten feet deep. The mural is a tribute to American workers and highlights what has defined the country over the last century. It seeks to inspire, to educate, to invite collaboration, and to reveal to people of all ages the many contributions they can make to American culture. Nothing like it exists in the world.
More than 15,000 children and adults have helped create pieces of the mural, which will be housed in two former mill buildings on Whiting Street in Winsted. Scope Construction began renovations on the mural building in March 2017 and will finish in fall 2018. The lengthy process of assembling and installing the mural will follow, with the public opening projected for 2019.
Support for the American Mural Project has been provided by the Newman’s Own Foundation, Institute of International Education/ Ford Foundation, the Maximillian E. and Marion O. Hoffman Foundation, Arconic (formerly Alcoa), Northwest Connecticut Community Foundation, Northwest Community Bank, the Aetna Foundation, Stanley Black & Decker, the Draper Fund, the Diebold Foundation, and the Department of Economic and Community Development, Connecticut Office of the Arts, which also receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, among others.