Corral your kin for a Western- themed spring-break trip to the Denver Art Museum.
Kids and parents who have traded spring fever for cabin fever should explore DAM’s “Best Spring Break Ever” event for a full roster of Western-themed activities.
Scheduled to coincide with the Denver Public Schools’ spring break, all kids under 18 receive free general admission today. The program kicked off last weekend and continues through Sunday.
“The education department created a week’s worth of family-friendly activities for spring break,” said Kristy Bassuener, spokeswoman for the museum. “The theme this year is ‘Giddy Up,’ focusing on Western art and culture.”
Activities are spread throughout the museum, including the original building on the north and the newer Hamilton building to the south. In the Kids’ Corner, a permanent family-activity space on the first floor of the original building, children can color and cut out their own paper cowboy boots. The museum provides the paper designs, markers and glue; all kids need to bring is creative vision.
“The paper boots will fit over kids’ shoes,” Bassuener said. “So they can literally wear the new boots out when they’re done.”
On the newly reopened seventh-floor Western-art gallery, kids can get into character by dressing up and reading books in the Western Discovery Library. And across the street in the Hamilton building, families can check out backpacks from the Family Activity Cart that are full of games, puzzles and art projects.
“All the games and activities are designed to slow people down as they make their way through the galleries, but in a fun way,” says Lara Writsel, coordinator of community and family programming for the museum.
“For instance, one of our ‘hot spots’ includes two authentic Navajo looms where we’ll have trained facilitators on hand to welcome kids and teach them about art processes.” Located in the Native American gallery on the third floor of the original building, this stop offers a hands- on learning experience where kids can see how piles of simple wool are corded and spun into yarn before the weaving process even begins.
“They can feel these natural fibers and maybe think about how the wool sweater that Grandma made started out as just wool fluff,” she says. “It gives them an appreciation of the time and effort that goes into these textiles.”
In addition to the weaving process, participants also will talk about patterns and designs ranging from very traditional to modern and contemporary.
“We usually design most of our activities for ages 6 through 12,” Writsel adds, “but they are also accessible for preschoolers and teens.”
Denver Art Museum’s “Best Spring Break Ever” continues today from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. 100 W. 14th Ave. Parkway, 720-865-5000.
