BY MICHAELA YIELDING
FOR THE OBSERVER
OPELIKA — Little Tiger fans are invited to the Creative Cubs program at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Auburn University. The hour-long program, which meets monthly, engages children ages 3-5 in art appreciation and creation with parents helping alongside.
Creative Cubs meet at The Jule on the first Wednesday of the month and encourages children to develop an early love for museums and art. Each session includes a guided tour of the museum’s exhibitions, a related story time and an interactive art activity. Upcoming sessions are planned for 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. on March 5, April 2 and May 7.
Creative Cubs began in 2019 and is one of many free, general admission programs offered by The Jule, which is located on S. College Street in Auburn.
Christy Barlow has worked at The Jule since 2018 and is the PreK-12 and Family Programs manager.
Barlow earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in art education with a minor in art history from the University of Southern Mississippi. She originally thought she would be an art teacher for K-12 classrooms, but after her student teaching experience she realized she wanted to explore a different path in art education, and she earned a graduate certificate in art museum education from the University of North Texas.
“I found museum education and was like, ‘Oh my goodness, this is it,’” she said. “It combined all the parts that I really loved and not as much of the parts that I felt like I struggled with. I just loved museum education. I’ve loved it ever since.”
According to Barlow, the main goal of Creative Cubs is part of the museum’s mission to serve everyone in the community, including the youngest among us. Creative Cubs instills the message that going to art museums is fun.
“Pre-K is one of the groups that I enjoy working with and I feel like that we need to value that group in art museums because they are our future patrons,” Barlow said. “When you start kids off when they’re really young in art museums they become comfortable, and when they’re comfortable coming to the museum, their parents and guardians become more comfortable coming, too.”
Creative Cubs introduces children to artmaking with different materials, media and methods. Barlow and a team of student guides develop and lead the monthly activities based on current exhibitions as well as permanent art on display.
For February, the program based its activities on the newly opened “Showcase: Faculty Exhibition 8,” which features works of creative scholarship from a range of fields, celebrating the innovative spirit of faculty working in film, painting, photography, new media, sculpture and textile arts.
During the art session, Creative Cubs and their parents toured the exhibit, listened to a story that related to the exhibition and crafted a mask with different materials.
“There’s one [piece] in particular that features a mask and so that’s something that is a really kind of approachable and kind of an openended project that we could do.” Barlow said.
Occasionally, the cubs meet the artists on display at The Jule.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity not only for the kids and their families, but also for the artists themselves,” Barlow explained.
To Barlow, Creative Cubs helps children form a lifelong appreciation for the arts.
“People always assume that you have to know all about art to get the most from your experience,” Barlow said. “By starting them off small, these kids are excited to come in and are comfortable being here and learning about art. The hope is that they will grow up to become lifelong art museum patrons and will raise their own kids to appreciate and love coming to the art museum.”
Those interested in attending a Creative Cubs session with their child can learn more at the museum’s website: jcsm.auburn.edu.
