Miró: The Experience of Seeing is at the McNay Art Museum until January 10, 2016, and I encourage you to bring your kids to see it while it’s here. Sunday, October 25, 2015 will be an especially good day to visit because the McNay will be hosting Family Day: Magical Miró! from 1:oo p.m. to 4:00 p.m., rain or shine.
For a few days this week, my kids had a brief Fall Break, so we visited the McNay on a quiet weekday. As soon as we walked into the Miró exhibit, my five-year-old daughter, G.N., started giggling. She was looking at Woman, Bird and Star (Homage to Picasso), a 1966-73 painting. “Why are you giggling?” I asked her. She said, “Because the hat . . . [giggles] . . . look!”
credit: Josh Huskin www.joshhuskin.com
Joy is a natural reaction to Joan Miró’s late works, paintings and sculptures from 1963 to 1983, visiting San Antonio from the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid, Spain. The paintings have light backgrounds, loose black brushstrokes, fields of primary colors, and images of natural elements like stars, birds, and the female form. The sculptures are cast in bronze but are assembled from humble elements like wooden spoons and baskets; you can imagine Miró venturing from his studio to the beaches of Mallorca in search of interesting junk. In the paintings and the sculptures alike, accidents and drips are part of the beauty.
On our Fall Break visit, my kids enjoyed hands-on activities that are available every day in the gallery. F.T. (my son, age 8) and G.N. each decorated several postcards with Miró-style drawings and mailed them to out-of-town cousins. (Bring your address book: the McNay will provide the postage if you mail the cards from the cute yellow mailbox in the exhibit.)
An assemblage table lets you play with bronze-painted pieces and make your own Miró-style sculpture. Or, spin the wheel and build a picture using magnets with elements from Miró’s paintings.
We are looking forward to Family Day: Magical Miró! on Sunday, October 25 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. If you don’t already have a membership, then Family Day is a great opportunity to try the McNay for free. The best part about Family Day is that the education staff set up extra activities that keep kids busy and engaged. For Magical Miró!, look for Miró Twister on the lawn, collage-making with handprints and paper cut-outs, bendable-wire sculptures, and surrealist automatic art made with artbots. Aerial Horizon will perform at 3:00 p.m., and there will be a screening of Ferdinand the Bull. Catch a free shuttle bus from Parman or Forest Hills libraries, starting at 12:30 p.m.
More upcoming family activities at the McNay:
- Halloween at the McNay, Thursday, October 29 from 5:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., including an outdoor screening of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial at 7:00 p.m. (which is now one of my kids’ favorite movies, ever since the San Antonio Symphony presentation
- Family Art Play on Sunday, November 22 at 3:00 p.m. and Sunday, December 27 at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.
- ArtStrolls on Fridays in November (6th, 13th, 20th & 27th) at 10:00 a.m. for children under 12 months and 11:00 a.m. for children 12 months to 2 years
- Toddler Art Play on December 11 at 10:30 a.m.
credit: Josh Huskin www.joshhuskin.com
Read more about Miró and the McNay:
- “Miró at the McNay: ‘The Experience of Seeing'”, Tami Kegley, Rivard Report, September 30, 2015
- “The Source: Spanish Artist Joan Miro Exhibit At The McNay”, Texas Public Radio, September 30, 2015
- “Tony Parker spends the night in the paint (and sculpture)”, Elda Silva, San Antonio Express-News, October 15, 2015
- “Introducing your kids to art appreciation at the McNay Art Museum”, Inga Cotton, Alamo City Moms Blog, January 30, 2014
- “Enjoy it with your kids: Intimate Impressionism at the McNay Art Museum”, Inga Cotton, Alamo City Moms Blog, September 25, 2014
As noted, some exhibit photos courtesy the McNay and Josh Huskin.
