All Ages Artmaking: Family Emblems

Artists of all ages are invited to join Biennial artist Ash Arder for a day of artmaking, noisemaking, and close looking. Use collage and drawing to create your own family emblem inspired by Arder's work Consumables! Make a work of art that represents the qualities, traditions, and ideas that make up your family. In Consumables, Ash Arder uses solar panels located outdoors on the Museum grounds to power a refrigerator. Inside, the artist has placed Cadillac hood ornaments—small decorative sculptures that sit on the front of cars and have long been associated with stability and status. Instead of the usual metal, Arder cast these sculptures in perishable, nourishing materials including butter, shea butter, and chocolate. The sculptures are stored in the refrigerator to preserve them, since they are at risk of melting in warmer temperatures. Arder modeled the sculptures after a keepsake hood ornament from a car owned by the artist's late father, who worked for General Motors, the parent company of Cadillac. This program is presented in partnership with the American LGBTQ+ Museum (ALM) as part of their ongoing series Queer Ecologies.