Chinati Summer Shake-Up 2020

What goes into making a work of art? What makes it art? Does it have to tell a story? Can artwork be a simple line or a single word? Or perhaps art is a bunch of complex thoughts and marks or even sounds? Chinati wants to know!

This summer, the Chinati Foundation will offer free online art projects for young artists near and far. We’ll focus on the process of making art every Monday, Wednesday and Friday as part of this year’s Summer Shake Up. Each day of the program, Chinati will provide clear, easy-to-understand written prompts and photo examples to help young artists explore their imaginations. Most of these exercises can be done in a composition notebook Chinati will provide to area students. We will have a sketchbook-making tutorial for those who are out of the Marfa area. (Pre-K and first graders will use materials from the Chinati brown bag handed out at school.) Everyone who makes art will be encouraged to share digital images from  their journals, by sending photos to education@chinati.org or via Instagram at #ChinatiSSU. We’ll repost those pictures on our Instagram page (@ChinatiEdu) and also publish them in a zine later this summer. 

Access these classes by going to @ChinatiEdu on Instagram or through SummerShakeUp.org. For Marfa ISD students entering 2nd-8th grades: Journals and markers will be handed out from 9 to 10 am, Thursday, May 28 at school. Supplies are limited. In addition, a Chinati staff member will be at the school pickup site on Mondays to hand out hard copies of art prompts. They can also answer any questions you might have. Depending on best health and safety practices, we might even have a pop-up, in-person project at some point this summer. We can’t wait to see what you make!

SSU INSTAGRAM POSTING SCHEDULE and suggested age groups

Process and Storytelling
Entering PREK – 1st Grade, MWF posts
June 1 – 5

Seeing, Listening, Exploring and Making Entering 2nd Grade – HS Senior
June 8 – July 3, MWF posts
Week 1: The Process of Seeing MWF 
Week 2: The Process of Listening MWF
Week 3: The Process of Exploring MWF
Week 4: The Process of Making MWF