By Mary Ann Inman

The year 2004 marked the 50th year for the Association of Wisconsin Artists (AWA). To celebrate, the nonprofit held the first “Bridging Generations” Youth Exhibit in Prairie du Sac at the River Arts Center for children ages 5 through 12. It was a huge success and it was decided to annually continue the exhibit. Exhibits and workshops have been held in Middleton, Milton, Madison, Mineral Point, Verona, Platteville, Janesville, Oconomowoc, Brookfield, Whitewater and Clinton.

Bridging Generations Clinton 2021 is a collaborative project co-sponsored by the Clinton Public Library at 214 Mill St, the Association of Wisconsin Artists, and the Stateline Community Foundation. Bridging Generations has three purposes: (1) artmaking, (2) exhibition, and (3) artists’ reception.

Twenty children attended the artmaking workshop on July 27 which included Garrett, Kelby, and Evan Schneider; Kaitalyn Perez; Emma Martin; Stanley and George Rehberg; Myloh Capes; Emma Watkins; Titus and Gus Miethke; Gideon and Benaiah Langer; Willow Wales; Jelena Glisic; William Uffenbeck, Adelyn Gerth; and Nolan, Maryana, and Olivia Troxel who were unable to exhibit due to moving out of State. Their art will be displayed at the library for the month of August.

Adult mentors who made this program successful included Rita Carpenter, Nancy McKinnon, and Oliver Melson. The mentors demonstrated acrylic paint pouring on the circular planets and assisted the children as they created. Chris Vance and Heather Schneider aided with check-in and fitted the children with smocks. Suzette, Rudy and Lily Nunez helped children at the rock marbling station. Madi Miethke and Mary Ann Inman facilitated at the artists’ statement and self-portrait station. A sincere thank you to parents who offered assistance, to those who attended the artist opening on July 30, and to Library Director Joseph Langer for hosting. It takes a village to encourage visual art making!

Art groups, organizations, or individuals who would like to sponsor a similar event can apply for AWA funding at https://wiscartists.wildapricot.org. Applications should be submitted at least 90 days in advance. Contact Bridging Generations Coordinator Rita Carpenter at bridginggenerations@wiscartists.org.

Registration is now open for Wisconsin Trustee Training Week 2021, which will be held Aug. 23-27. There will be one webinar each day from noon to 1 p.m. on a topic that’s relevant to public library boards, friends, and trustees. Webinars are available free of charge, and are open to anyone.

You must register for each webinar individually at www.wistrusteetraining.com. More information is also available at that link, and you can also access recordings from the 2015-20 webinars.

Trustee Training Week is coordinated by the South Central Library System. This year, Trustee Training Week is supported by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI), Public LIbrary Development Team, with funding support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

Some of the issues covered:

• The four problems with the way most people do backup.
• Exactly how to provide backup correctly.
• How to use backup to train new staff.
When: Thursday, August 12 at 1:00 PM Central time (2 PM Eastern, noon Mountain, 11 AM Pacific)

Length: 1 Hour

Pre-Registration Required: Register here!