The Education team works very hard to make your summer vacation fun and exciting for families and kids of all ages. So it only makes sense that we play just as hard! Some of us had some big art-related vacations, exciting camping adventures, and we had a lot of fun working in between (with or without our pups!). Check out some of our summer highlights!
Madeleine visited Mykonos, an island in Greece known for it’s bright blue skies, windmills and clear water.
Madeleine and her friends at the Basilica of the Annunciation with the US’s mosaic. Each country has one!
Madeleine stayed with her friend’s family in Israel. This is the view of the Mediterranean from her house!
Madeleine finally visited the Acropolis! A dream she’s had since her first art history class in high school.
Emily led a touch tour in the Sculpture Garden for students from DISD with vision impairment.
After Emily’s touch tour, everyone made a Minimalist sculpture inspired by Richard Serra using cookies!
George and his Uncle Cosmo celebrated the Fourth of July in style!
George also prepared a dog-themed nursery for his future BFF. Crib skirt and dog pillow by Leah.
Sarah stayed close to home and visited the Fort Worth Zoo with her son Rhys.
Rhys enjoyed watching the playful penguins and his favorite animal, zebra!
Leah hiking in Utah with her sister.
Leah and her sisters about to do a ropes course at the Olympic Park in Park City, Utah.
Amanda taught at MoMA as part of The Art of Examination forum.
While in New York, Amanda and her mom saw the Broadway musical Matilda.
Amanda saw the Martin Creed installation at the Park Avenue Armory while in New York.
Lindsay took a selfie with this Renaissance-inspired mirror while at an antique store on King Street.
Lindsay visited her parents in Charleston, South Carolina.
Lindsay captured a Gone With the Wind sunset while in the Lowcountry Region of South Carolina.
Lindsay’s pup Hattie celebrated Independence Day (with a bandana from Whitney Sirois)!
Andi visited Epcot and Disney World in June.
Andi went on a safari at Disney World and hung out with giraffes!
Jessica’s family hit the open road this summer!
Jessica’s family camped out, ate s’mores, and hiked through the Badlands.
Jessica’s daughter Julia loved seeing Mount Rushmore up close and personal!
I recently embarked on a two week road trip to see parts of America I’ve never seen before. As my family and I drove across the country–through the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico–the landscape and sites constantly reminded me of works of art from the Museum’s collection.
Red River, TX
Nic Nicosia, River, 1981, Dallas Museum of Art, General Acquisitions Fund
Haystacks in Kansas
Florence E. McClung, Squaw Creek Valley, 1937, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Florence E. McClung
Road signs, Kansas
Coreen Mary Spellman, Road Signs, 1936, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Helen, Mick and Thomas Spellman
We saw expansive flat lands transform into rolling hills, then the rough and brittle Badlands. We saw Mount Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Monument in the Black Hills. We saw purple mountains and red rocks in Colorado and camped among tree filled peaks. We were even visited by a moose in the Rio Grande National Forest.
Carhenge in Alliance, NE
Laurie Simmons, Stonehenge, 1984, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Fredericka Hunter and Ian Glennie, Houston
Windmill well in Nebraska
Peter Hurd, Windmill well at Night, 1935-36, Dallas Museum of Art, bequest of Rozwell Sam Adams in memory of Herndon Kimball Adams and Loither Iler Adams
We drove past mesas, buttes, and Glen Canyon Dam. We kayaked in the clearest fresh water at Lake Powell and jumped off cliffs. We visited the (inaccurately named) Aztec Ruins left behind by an Ancestral Pueblo society. We saw the adobe houses and desert landscapes that inspired Georgia O’Keeffe. And then we made our way back home though west Texas.
Badlands, South Dakota
Frances Skinner, East of Socorro, 1940, Dallas Museum of Art, Museum League Prize, Eleventh Annual Dallas Allied Arts Exhibition, 1940
Distant rainstorm, Wyoming
Edward Bearden, Storm on the Plains, 1944, Dallas Museum of Art, Ted Dealey Purchase Prize, Fifteenth Annual Dallas Allied Arts Exhibition, 1944
Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado
Alexandre Hogue, From Harriett’s Cabin, 1927, Dallas Museum of Art, The Barrett Collection, Dallas, Texas
Take a break from the Texas heat and take your own journey across the world and through time in the DMA’s permanent collection galleries this summer.
Water splashing on Lake Powell, Arizona
Everett Spruce, Canyon at Night, 1945, Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Art Association Purchase
Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona
Adrian D. Clem, Construction Work Boulder Dam #1, 1934, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the Public Works of Art Project
Jessica Fuentes
Manager of Gallery Interpretation and the Center for Creative Connections
The end of the school year marks the beginning of the DMA’s summer camp program, where each week campers make friends while exploring works of art in the collection and making their own art in the C3 studios. Yesterday we welcomed a fun and energetic group for our first two Summer Art Camps of 2015: New World Kids and Paint, Print, and Pattern.
On the first day of New World Kids, campers got to work with plants . . . and get their hands dirty while doing so!
It was a fun day, and the campers were excited to show their families the plants and other activities they had worked on.
Some of the campers were, admittedly, a little excited to see their families at pick-up…
Although all our camps are fully booked, if you would like to see a list of the types of summer camps we offer, for ages ranging from 4 to 19, visit our website, DMA.org.
Josh Rose is the Manager of Docent and Teacher Programs at the DMA.
If you haven’t already, you should take the advice of my colleague Hannah and Vacay at the DMA. Not only are there family-friendly experiences to uncover, there are lots of works of art to inspire your summer vacation. For example:
Soak up some sun on the beach.
Albert Marquet, The Beach at Trouville, c. 1906, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the Meadows Foundation Incorporated
Spend the afternoon playing tennis.
George L.K. Morris, Mixed Doubles, c.1948, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of David T. Owsley via the Alvin and Lucy Owsley and Alconda-Owsley Foundations
Paint en plein air in France.
Paul Signac, Comblat-le-Chateau, the Meadow (Le Pre), Opus 161, June-July 1887, Dallas Museum of Art, The Eugene and Margaret McDermott Art Fund, Inc., in honor of Bonnie Pitman
Do some gardening…but beware of those pesky garden snakes.
Mark Handforth, Dallas Snake, 2007, Dallas Museum of Art, DMA/amfAR Benefit Auction Fund and Lay Family Acquisition Fund
And when the heat becomes too much to bear, go swimming.
Fernand Leger, The Divers (Red and Black), 1942, Dallas Museum of Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, gift of the James H. and Lillian Clark Foundation
Back when I was in grade school, classes began after Labor Day weekend. I am still getting accustomed to the fact that students and teachers now return to school before the holiday. And, with temperatures still well into the 100’s, it is difficult to believe that summer is over.
Amy:
This has been a summer of unexpected things and exciting moments. A highlight for me is definitely the Mavericks winning the NBA title—go Mavs! I also got to see my kid brother graduate from college, scored some tickets to the Colonial in Fort Worth, and recently took a fun river trip in Austin with friends from college. Summer was great, but I’m definitely ready for some cool(er) temperatures.
Amy & her brother, after a very long day moving out of the dorms!
Loryn:
Despite the sweltering heat, this summer has been a monumental milestone in my life. Not only did I achieve a life-long goal and land my dream job here at the DMA, but my husband and I also bought our first house, which was the very home my great-grandmother lived in. Best of all, I spent most of my time in the galleries with students, teaching and learning about art.
Melissa:
I escaped the Dallas heat and spent ten days in the Pacific Northwest. Over five of those days, my friends and I hiked 47 kilometers (29 miles) along the Juan de Fuca Trail on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. We walked through lush rainforests with huge ferns, scrambled over the roots of enormous fir trees, waded through muddy bogs, and climbed up and down rocky cliffs along the coast. Some of the scariest moments were crossing over bridges hewn out of logs and expansive suspension bridges. Afterward, we treated ourselves to a three-day weekend in Victoria and Vancouver, where we visited Granville Island Public Market and enjoyed the deliciously famous JapaDog!
Nicole:
This Summer I Learned a New Word…“extirpate.” It means to pull up by the roots; to totally destroy. Extirpatedanimals are those that no longer exist in the wild in a certain area, but may exist
elsewhere in the world. I learned this new word during my summer vacation trip to the Elkhart County 4-H Fair. It’s one of the largest county fairs in the world and it’s held in my Indiana hometown. I LOVED going to the fair as a kid and hadn’t been back in quite some time to see the chickens, rabbits, and goats; watch the harness horse races; check out the new tractors and other complex farm machinery; and sink my teeth into a sugary, fried-dough concoction called an elephant ear. I don’t remember what extirpated animal I am in this picture. Turkey? Hedgehog? I’ll have to return next summer to be sure.
Shannon:
Although I didn’t make it to the beach during my summer vacation, I did visit the Paris Plages. Each summer, sand is placed along the right bank of the Seine River in Paris, transforming the streets and walkways into a temporary beach. Each section of the Plage was decorated with different colored beach chairs, umbrellas, and cabanas. It was cloudy and rainy during my day “sur la Plage,” but I had a lot of fun walking through the sand along the Seine.
Tom:
Though I didn’t have the grand, romantic odyssey that Shannon had in France, my summer was full of travel and excitement. In May, I drove to Louisiana for the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival (also known as Jazz Fest). Jazz Fest features two of my greatest loves: fantastic music and copious fried food. In July, I flew into Chicago where my brother took me out for one of the most delicious hamburgers I’ve ever had. From there, I drove to Fall Creek, Wisconsin, home of the Fall Creek High School’s Fighting Crickets! Fall Creek is also home to my grandmother and my many, many precious great-aunts.