Color is the language of the world. It communicates our emotions and creates meaning. Artists use this powerful element to reveal patterns and tell stories through their work. There is something at play in the way colors interact and influence how we feel. While color perception is universal, its interpretation varies greatly across cultures and languages.
“A Celebration of Color” is a family focused exhibition that recently opened at the Mulvane Art Museum. The new exhibition, “The Relationships of Color: Exploring the Color Wheel,” opened on Jan. 31 from 1-3 p.m. which featured joyful, colorful art-marking activities with sweet treats taking place in the upper level galleries.
Stacy Ash, education coordinator for the Mulvane Art Museum, said the goal for this event was to bring a greater focus on activities geared toward children and their families. She hopes participants will experience and learn more about color and how artists can use color to evoke emotion.
“Im very interested in the younger generation, having an exhibit that’s specifically for them to get them excited about art,” Ash said.
While preparing the event, Ash found the process both enjoyable and meaningful. With her background as an art major, she loved revisiting color theory while creating the supplemental materials and exploring the works featured in the exhibition.
“It had been a while since I thought about it and I really enjoyed looking at the fun pieces for the show,” Ash said.
Robyne Goates, member of Educational Advisory Committee at Washburn Technical College, attended with her grand kids to support her daughter, who volunteered. She enjoyed the giant color wheel present at the exhibition and how it highlighted the relationships between colors. Goats added that the event provided the community with the opportunity to experience not only the color exhibit but also the other displays throughout the museum.
When asked to describe the event using a color, Goates chose yellow.
“Yellow is bright and everything in here is bright and showing a lot of imagination and artistry,” Goates said.
Megan Goates Beirne, a volunteer at the Mulvane Art Museum, helped at the event by assisting guests and sharing her insights throughout the day. She enjoys being as active as possible and contributing whenever she can. One of her motivations for volunteering was to expose her two children to art and the bright colors throughout the exhibition helped keep them engaged. Beirne’s favorite part of the day was the hands-on activities, especially the sticker station with transparent circles, which added a fun, interactive touch for kids and families alike.
As the scheduled time came to a close, the crowd gradually thinned with guests coming and going, taking their final moments to enjoy the vibrant scenery of the exhibition. Children remained engaged at the activity stations, carefully exploring different combinations of colors while finishing their creations. Before leaving, they gathered their coloring pages to take home, bringing the experience of the exhibit with them.
Edited by Arohi Rai and Bidhya Sapkota
