Educational Opportunities

Education & Community Programs Updates!

Highpoint’s Education & Community Programs experienced a flurry of activity this fall with new partnerships and grant projects, community events, and another productive session of the ACCESS/PRINT Project mentorship program for teens.

A highlight from this fall was the kick-off of the MN Lakes and Rivers Journey, a grant project partnering Highpoint with 4th and 5th grade students from Lyndale Community School and Stonebridge Community School. Funded by the Mississippi Watershed Management Organization, this innovative project spans the entire school year and integrates visual and literary arts with earth sciences to explore Minnesota’s waterways through printmaking and poetry. The two rain gardens on site at Highpoint have been a teaching tool for students to learn about the characteristics of these special green spaces and how they benefit the Mississippi watershed. During this ongoing project, students have used native Minnesota plants from the Highpoint rain gardens to create embossed monotypes and to make natural plant dyes for dyeing paper. Students have also created relief block prints of plant and animal species found within the Upper Mississippi watershed. After the final printmaking workshop this upcoming spring, students will select their favorite prints to accompany poetry that they have composed in their language arts classes. These prints and poems will be on display at Highpoint in a student exhibition April 19 – May 11.

Earlier this fall, Highpoint's Education and Community Programs Manager Johanna Winters attended a training conference hosted by Artsage, an organization that fosters opportunities for creative expression with older adults in Minnesota. Ms. Winters learned about successfully implementing quality and sustainable programs specific to this population and Highpoint will begin a partnership with the Walker Methodist Adult Day Program this spring where visitors will explore storytelling through printmaking.

This fall marked the 5th year of theACCESS/PRINT Project, a mentorship program that grants full scholarships for 8-10 teens each year to learn about printmaking and develop a body of print work in the Highpoint studios. Five high school students from all over the Twin Cities metro area were selected to participate in this fall’s session, and spent over 70 hours learning different print processes and developing series of prints to be exhibited in the Highpoint galleries this spring. Conor McClun of Washburn High School, Hayoung Lim of Minnehaha Academy, Anthony Lockhart and Makayla Niko Fearing-Fairbanks of Perpich Arts High School, and Marissa Nicol of Southwest High School produced work that included large-scale relief prints, intricate drypoint etchings, screenprints layered with textured monotypes, and a fabric and print installation. Don't miss the exhibition opening on April 19, 2013, showcasing the work of all these industrious students!

Highpoint is looking forward to expanding our school and community partnership programs in 2013. One of our new partners is Adelante College Prep, a middle school that is part of the Hiawatha Academies charter school in Minneapolis.

In May of 2012 Hiawatha Academies were ranked the #1 school for closing the achievement gap in Minnesota. 6th grade students from Adelante College Prep will visit Highpoint to learn about printmaking and make monoprints to take home.

YouthCare MN is another new partner that will bring students to Highpoint in 2013. YouthCare MN is a Twin Cities-based nonprofit organization that provides education, employment, and leadership opportunities for urban youth facing economic and social barriers. Fifteen teens from this program will visit Highpoint over a series of three sessions to learn drypoint intaglio, monoprinting, and relief printing.

This fall and winter Highpoint continued its partnership with Veterans in the Arts, an organization that serves veterans through hands-on creative experiences with professional artists. Veterans completed three 4-week sessions at Highpoint for in- depth instruction in drypoint intaglio, relief printing, and screenprinting.

We look forward to another season of inky fun in the Highpoint classroom with students of all ages. Be sure to check out our spring and summer class schedule for other opportunities for every type of printmaking enthusiast.

Many thanks to our Fall 2012 – Spring 2013 Education team, which has been invaluable to our education and community programs: Ashlin Mears, Christine Cosentino, Tyler Green, Kat Aymeloglu, and Emma Colón. Without the incredible amount of time and energy contributed by these people, the growth of our programs would not be possible. Thank you!

Free Ink Day

The ever-popular Free Ink Day events at Highpoint continue to entice visitors to our studio to learn about printmaking. Join us Saturday, March 16 for the Spring Fling Free Ink Day and make colorful monoprints!

Prints & Puppetry Free Ink Day on Saturday, July 20 will have printmaking and another amazing puppet performance by Open Eye Figure Theatre, now a summer HP tradition!