6/15/2009 4:50:00 PM From refrigerator to art gallery
The Father/Son Art Exhibit
Who: The father-son artists in the exhibit are Irve Dell and Isaac Dell, 8; Michael Kareken and Owen Kareken, 6; David Lefkowitz, Carter Lefkowitz, 5, and Emmet Lefkowitz, 8; and John Schuerman and Max Folina, 9.
When: June 18-July 23, with an opening reception June 18 at 6-8 p.m.
Where: The Minnetonka Center for the Arts, 2240 North Shore Drive in Orono.
Traditionally, career day gives children the opportunity to go to work with their fathers to see what they do and possibly begin to learn a trade.
A new exhibit at the Minnetonka Center for the Arts that opens this week takes career day one step further. It displays the work of four professional artists together with art created by their five young sons.
"We all come into this world with creativity and curiosity," said Bob Bowman, Minnetonka Center for the Arts exhibits director. This exhibit pairs the naive curiosity of children and the cultivated curiosity of adults.
The father-son exhibit has been in the works for a year, said Bowman.
The artists, Irve Dell, Michael Kareken, David Lefkowitz and John Schuerman, approached Bowman with the idea of doing an exhibit with their sons and coordinating it to open around Father's Day weekend.
All four are working artists who have also worked with their sons in their studios. They were interested in elevating the childrens' work from the refrigerator to a professional gallery.
"Kids like to draw like fish like to swim," said Schuerman. "I think the art of children, before they learn the rules of art, provides a unique view into the human need for creative expression. Pictures made without any knowledge of perspective, color theory or what things 'should look like' show the natural human, intuitive attempt to make sense of the characters and objects around us."
In this show, fathers and sons work, study, imagine and create together. The focus is on the dialog between the fathers and sons.
"What will we make? What will we show? How will it work together?" said Bowman.
The sons also are being introduced to the commerce of producing and selling art and they will experience their personal artistic expressions on public view.
The aim is not to push the kids into becoming the next generation of artists. Instead, high quality art and fun are part of the mix.
The primary goal of the exhibit was to facilitate the building of relationships between the fathers and sons through a shared endeavor.
A walk through the gallery is a unique opportunity to study the creative process and the sociology of father-son relationships. It also is an opportunity to contrast what adults and children think about and try to say as they engage in creative expression.
The exhibit, which was installed by the father-son artists, includes pieces that were created by each individual, plus father-son artwork collaborations.
"The sons have access to the inside track with working artists as fathers," said Bowman.
A book of activities goes along with the exhibit, giving children who visit an interactive piece. Bowman said it includes questions that look at what it means to make the art.
The exhibit, which is installed in the Laura H. Miles Gallery until July 23, also gives visitors the chance to see children's work getting the same kind of respect as adult work.
