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BUENA VISTA—Chaffee Arts hosted a virtual watercolor class for the ElevateHER girls in Buena Vista on Thursday, Oct. 1 on the shore of the Arkansas River. The program was funded and led by the Aspen Art Museum as part of the Rural Arts Connect Program that Chaffee Arts has been participating in since 2019.
Annie Henninger, Education Program Director for the Aspen Art Museum, led the class via Zoom showing the girls watercolor techniques before they started their painting class. Each girl received a watercolor paint kit, brushes, and paper all funded by the Aspen Art Museum.
Following the Zoom class, the girls headed outside to paint using the techniques they had just learned. Everyone had a great time with social distancing guidelines in place. Program Director for ElevateHER, Josie Johnston, said; “The girls were so excited to have this art class as another activity to add to their outdoor adventures and were especially happy to receive the painting kits!”
“Chaffee Arts has ‘pivoted’ during the pandemic to keep art visible to the community and share in new ways”, said Terry Stevens, Board Chair for Chaffee Arts. Currently Chaffee Arts is working with the Buena Vista Library to provide the Make and Take Art Kits. In addition, Chaffee Arts will be holding a Holiday Art Market at Arkansas Valley Digital Imaging Gallery on Main Street in Buena Vista during November and December.
The Rural Arts Connect program funded by the Aspen Art Museum is a collaboration of rural arts groups within a 100 mile radius of Aspen that strives to support and facilitate bringing art to rural communities. The group meets regularly to share ideas and collaborate on projects that meet the group's vision of developing new and sustainable models & practice for museum programming in remote rural communities.
ElevateHER, founded in early 2017, is targeted towards young women, grades 6-12. The holistic approach is focused around empowering the mind, body, and soul, with a mission to foster self-worth and grit in young women through mentoring, outdoor adventure, and holistic wellness programs.
