Youth Art Month - March 2018

Guest Post by PSAE Board Member:
Ava Hughes
Arts Education Director
​Chapman Cultural Center

We in PSAE celebrate the creativity of our young people every day in all that we do! But nationally, the month of March is designated as Youth Art Month.

Youth Art Month is a celebration of the visual arts through student exhibitions, public artworks, art festivals and school events which raise awareness and support of the visual arts to local and state education officials, business and community leaders, and state and federal legislators.

The Art & Creative Materials Institute (ACMI) created Children’s Art Month in 1961 as an event to emphasize the value to children from participating in visual art education. In 1969, the celebration expanded to include secondary school students, and the Children’s Art Month event officially became known as Youth Art Month. In 1984, ACMI created the non-profit organization The Council for Art Education (CFAE) to advocate for visual art education.

Communities throughout the country celebrate Youth Art Month in many ways. In Spartanburg, SC, the Chapman Cultural Center hosts a student exhibition with works from every public and private school in the county, grades K-12. It’s a wonderful tapestry of colorful and imaginative artwork filling two floors of our exhibition building! Each year, a different Spartanburg School District hosts a reception, and the local SunTrust Bank sponsors the exhibit, providing volunteer greeters at the reception, which is usually attended by over 1,000 people! The 2018 reception will be the evening of Monday, March 19th hosted by Spartanburg School District Four.

​According to the CFAE, Youth Art Month exists to:

1. Recognize art education as a viable factor in the total education curriculum that develops citizens of a global society.
2. Recognize art is a necessity for the full development of better quality of life for all.
3. Direct attention to the value of art education for divergent and critical thinking.
4. Expand art programs in schools and stimulate new art programs.
5. Encourage commitment to the arts by students, community organizations, and individuals everywhere.
6. Provide additional opportunities for individuals of all ages to participate in creative art learning.
7. Increase community, business and governmental support for art education.
8. Increase community understanding and interest in art and art education through involvement in art exhibits, workshops, and other creative ventures.
9. Reflect and demonstrate the goals of the National Art Education Association that work toward the improvement of art education at all levels.

To find out more, visit councilforarteducation.org. Join with others in your community and celebrate Youth Art Month in your own unique way! And share your celebrations with PSAE!