Creative Kids oLo Gallery art classes - New dates added!

FMWR is proud to offer discounted rates for children’s art classes at the Creative Kids oLo Gallery. For spring courses, choose one day or several from the available class dates of July 24 and 31, and August 7, 14, 21 and 28.

•  Little Picassos, $10 per session: Creative Kids has designed an early-access-to-art curriculum for children 3-6 years old. This specialized class is taught by a certified child-life specialist, giving children the opportunity to discover and express themselves through different activities that include art, rhythm, movement and even preparing their own snack. During this developmental period, children are very inquisitive and playful, and love to learn through exploring, creating, pretending and discovering. Through carefully planned age-appropriate activities, they are given the opportunity to fulfill these needs in a fun way that works with an arts education foundation and their own artwork. Classes are held from 10 a.m.-noon on each class date. The course fee includes all materials and a snack.
• Project SAC (Saturday Art Classes), $15 per session: Project SAC is open for youth ages 7-18. The studio art classes provide culturally sensitive art-mediated opportunities for positive development and expression for youth with a predisposition for the arts. Classes take place from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. on each class date. Creative Kids provides the resources and independent communication avenues that guide the children through the discovery of their own talent, interest and passion for the creative arts that is mediated through trained artists. The participating children are engaged in a “hands-on” arts and digital media curriculum that includes painting on canvas, printmaking, silk-screening, ceramics, watermedia, sculpture and graphic design. An important aspect of this program is giving the youth the opportunity to showcase and exhibit their artwork in public spaces throughout the El Paso community. The course fee includes all materials.

Both classes are held at the Creative Kids oLo Gallery, located at 504 San Francisco St. in the Union Plaza district of downtown El Paso. These special rates are available for children of military ID card holders and can be received only by booking through Fort Bliss ITR. For more information, call 568-7506.

Registration open for summer arts and crafts classes

Fort Bliss Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation, in partnership with the El Paso Museum of Art, offers arts and crafts classes to the Fort Bliss community. The classes are open to all military ID card holders and Family members ages 15 and up, as well as DoD civilians, and are offered at drastically reduced prices.

All classes are for beginners. Register for classes at ITR, Bldg. 1743 on Victory Avenue. Class seats are limited; register early to ensure placement. Supplies are included in the cost of the class unless otherwise specified.

Summer classes coast $30 each. A list of required supplies will be provided before the first class. 

• 19th Century Photography, Saturday-Sunday, August 14-15, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday and noon-3 p.m. Sunday. $30. Learn alternative methods in photography by using 19th-century processes. Build your own pinhole camera and learn how to make your own cyanotype and Van Dyke brown prints.

For more information on any of the classes, call 568-7506 or 568-3208.

* No endorsement of products, services or displays are implied.

Learn to weave at Old Fort Bliss

Do you want to learn how to weave a lap blanket or shawl using centuries-old techniques? Register for weaving classes at the Old Fort Bliss Museum! All skill levels are welcome. We provide the loom and you bring the yarn. Classes form throughout the year. For details, call 568-4518 or 588-8482.

Local cultural activities

EPMA offers FREE museum access to active-duty military, Families
The El Paso Museum of Art will participate in a National Endowment for the Arts pilot program called Blue Star Museums, which will provide active-duty military and their families free access to the Museum, including ticketed exhibitions, through Labor Day (Monday, September 6).

Tickets: Active military personnel and their families should visit the Museum Store to receive their free pass stickers to ticketed exhibitions. Current military identification is required. No tickets are required to view the museum’s permanent collections.

For more information, please call (915) 532-1707 or visit www.elpasoartmuseum.org.

KTEP broadcasts El Paso Symphony's 2009-2010 season
KTEP 88.5FM will broadcast the El Paso Symphony Orchestra’s 2009-2010 Classical Concert Series every Tuesday at 8 p.m. Concerts continue each Tuesday evening at 8 p.m. Broadcasts include interviews with the guest soloists and conductor. Concerts can also be heard online at www.ktep.org.

• July 27 (January Program)
  Goldmark: Rustic Wedding Symphony
  Dvorak: Cello Concerto in B-minor (Zuill Bailey, cello)
  Guest conductor: Alexander Platt
• August 3 (February Program)
  Mozart: Concerto for Flute & Harp (Melissa Colgin-Abeln, flute, and Grace Cloutier, harp)
  Holst: The Plantets
• August 10 (April Program)
  Verdi: Nabucco Overture
  Verdi: “La donna e mobile” from Rigoletto
  Puccini: “Che gelida manina” from La Boheme
  Puccini: Intermezzo from Act III of Manon Lescaut
  Tchaikovsky: “Lensky’s Aria” from Eugene Onegin
  Tchaikovsky: Polonaise from Eugene Onegin
  Wagner: Prelude Act I from Lohengrin
  Serrano: “La roca fria del Calvario” from La Dolorosa
  Sorozabal: “No puede ser” from La Tabernera del Pueblo
  Tchaikovsky: Romeo & Juliet Overture-Fantasy
  Wagner: Prelude Act III from Lohengrin
  Guest conductor: Tito Muñoz
  Diego Silva, tenor

For further information contact the El Paso Symphony office at (915) 532-3776.

Apply for summer class scholarships at EPMA
The El Paso Museum of Art received generous awards from Morgan Stanley Foundation and JPMorgan Chase totaling $5,000. The awards will fund 50 scholarships for El Paso area youth and adults to attend summer art classes between June and August. Each scholarship, in the amount of $100, will be used to cover the cost of tuition and supplies. Classes include working with clay, learning to draw, painting portraits, creating zines and more.

A complete list of courses is available at www.elpasoartmuseum.org.

Interested students may apply by filling out the scholarship form available on-line or by requesting the form via email or a hard copy at zamarripali@elpasotexas.gov. Scholarships are based on financial need, and will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Scholarship recipients are placed in classes based on availability and student age. Specific class requests will be considered but are not guaranteed. Applications will be accepted until scholarship funds are exhausted.

Scholarships for adults are also available through the El Paso Museum of Art Foundation in Memory of Isaac Lopez. The scholarships, in memory of art advocate and art consultant Isaac Lopez, are specifically available to adults ages 15 years of age and older. Each scholarship can be applied to an adult summer workshop or class to cover the cost of tuition. For more information, or to apply for scholarships please contact Laura Zamarripa, Museum School Coordinator, at (915) 532-1707 ext 27.

History museum presents reenactment of World War II's end
In celebration of the 65th anniversary of the end of World War II, The El Paso Museum of History will present a reenactment of the end of World War II Saturday, August 21 from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. The free event will take place at the museum, located at 510 N. Santa Fe St.

In August of 1945, Japan was the only belligerent remaining from the world war. VE or Victory in Europe Day had been joyously celebrated May 8 with Europeans celebrating one day later, but the War in the Pacific continued to rage. Finally, on August 6th, the first of two atomic bombs were dropped. The Enola Gay, piloted by Col. Paul Tibbets dropped the Uranium bomb “Little Boy” on Hiroshima followed by Bocks car piloted by Maj. Charles Sweeney dropping the Plutonium bomb “Fat Man” on Nagasaki August 9. On August 15 the Japanese announced their surrender to the Allied Forces.

The 65th Anniversary of the End of World War II Reenactment is presented by the El Paso Museum of History along with the Friends of Fort Selden, 79th U.S. Infantry Division and Pittsenbargar’s Own SS Living History/Reenactment Groups.

This is our chance to honor the Veterans that fought during those final days of World War II; some of which paid the ultimate price with their lives. To the many veterans of World War II who have made El Paso their home, and to those of Fort Bliss who are now fighting overseas in Iraq, this presentation is a way for us to say “thank you” by teaching younger generations of the sacrifice made by our military so we in the Borderland can enjoy our everyday freedoms.

Presented will be two small patrol skirmishes, one at 11:30 a.m. and again at 2:30 p.m. The skirmishes will take place in Cleveland Square adjacent to the museum. Inside, in the first floor lobby, there will be a display of original and reproduction small arms and accoutrements of the soldier of the World War II period. Reenactors will be available to answer questions and demonstrate arms and equipment as well as uniforms that soldiers possessed during the Second World War.

For more information, contact Sue Taylor at (915) 351-3588 or taylorsl@elpasotexas.gov.

Join the Bravo! Alliance and enjoy opera nationwide
El Paso Opera supporters who join the BRAVO! Alliance become part of a nationwide network with great benefits: OPERA America’s Young Friends of Opera initiative. This exciting program gives you the opportunity to see and hear opera in El Paso plus other cities around the country. Take advantage of discounted opera during business trips, weekend getaways or family vacations!

As a BRAVO! Alliance member, you can take advantage of special pricing and events that El Paso Opera and other participating opera companies have to offer. Membership is $25 per person or $45 per couple. All proceeds benefit the El Paso Opera Foundation, which helps keep arts education and opera outreach going in our city.

One of the biggest benefits of BRAVO! Alliance membership is 10 percent off season tickets for our best year yet! Join now or renew your membership in the month of July for a big deal that includes both memorable performances — Opera For All! on September 11 and Madama Butterfly in March 2011 — from the best seats in the house for a great price. Other benefits for our BAM-ers include:

• Exclusive pre-show receptions
• Subscription to the El Paso Opera mailing list, giving you invitations to special events and discount offers before anyone else
• Invitation to the El Paso Opera Annual Gala, "Encores & Overtures", at the Camino Real Hotel
• Subscription to the Young Friends of Opera program giving you reciprocal ticketing benefits from participating opera companies around the country (click here for a complete list)

Join BRAVO! Alliance and make the most of these benefits today! Call El Paso Opera at 915-581-5534 or visit www.epopera.org to join online.

New and exciting local theater
El Paso's newest art and culture offering, the Border Theatre, proudly presents its launch event "Exhibitions in Dis/Connection" August 13-15 at FORUM Arts + Culture (1500 Texas Ave.).

Be the first to capture the innovative work of the Border Theatre as "Exhibitions in Dis/Connection" debuts four original works under the guidance of award-winning director and company founder Austin Savage. Witness the start of this groundbreaking new theatre company and be a part of El Paso history!

Enjoy wine, cheese and socializing before each performance with live music by some of the city's best performers following every show. All shows start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $7 or $15 for a three-day pass. Visit www.bordertheatre.org to purchase your tickets or find out more about the Border Theatre.

El Paso Artisan gallery hosts "Hues of Blue" exhibit
Artistic interpretations of the color blue are showcased in a unique, interactive art show opening Aug. 5 inside the El Paso Artisan Gallery at Lynx Exhibits.

“Hues of Blue” features one work by each of 15 area artists. Visitors to Lynx Exhibits and the Artisan Gallery will be given a ballot to cast in favor of the artist they believe created the best artwork incorporating the color blue. Artists are competing for a cash prize, while everyone who votes will be entered into a drawing for Lynx Exhibit prizes.

There is no fee to visit the Artisan Gallery or to see “Hues of Blue.”

The innovative art show was created in honor of the current exhibit at Lynx: “Color Play, Exploring the Art and Science of Color.” An entire room of the Color Play exhibit is devoted to the color blue, proven by scientific studies to be the favored color of both genders of all ages.

“Hues of Blue” is open only through Sept. 5, when Color Play also closes. Color Play features an array of color-themed activities and games for the entire family. Prices for Color Play are $6 for children 4 to 11; $8 for seniors, students and military with ID, and $10 for adults.

Lynx, across from the convention center parking garage, is El Paso’s only traveling exhibit museum. Located at 300 W. San Antonio St., Lynx is open Tuesdays through Sundays. For more information call 533-4330 or visit www.LynxExhibits.com.

El Paso Museum of History to host summer day camp
The El Paso Museum of History introduces the next two of its second annual history summer day camps for children. The first one will be Blast to the Past Camp. Children 6 to 8 years old can attend camp from 9 a.m.-noon July 27 through 30. Travel back in time with this really fun camp. Make a tin-can banjo, float a boat out of soap, learn about nature in the city, create a shadow puppet, make a picture using the sun, make your own bug and other fun things!

If you like the movie Night at the Museum and you are 9 to 12 years old, then this camp is for YOU! Night in a Real Museum Camp will run from 9 a.m. to noon August 3-6 with a sleepover starting at 6 p.m. Friday, August 6 and ending at 9 a.m. Saturday, August 7. A parent or legal guardian must attend with the child for the overnight portion. Activities will include: how to marbleize paper, work with leather, create a time capsule, learn about archaeology under city streets, and more. Become a historical character. Get locked in the museum overnight and meet museum ghosts and enjoy pizza!

The registration fee is $64 for El Paso Museum of History members and $80 for non-members. All camps will include a morning snack break. The sleepover camp will include pizza, an evening snack and a continental breakfast. Become a member for as little as $20!

Registration is accepted on a first-come, first-served basis as attendance is limited to 15students per camp. Contact the museum at (915) 351-3588 for the camp registration form or go online to our website at www.elpasotexas.gov/history