This year’s summer library program has wrapped up. This year’s theme, Color Our World, was art-related, so besides our usual reading program, we added an art challenge as well.
We offer a summer program for kids, teens, and adults. The kids are challenged to read for fifteen minutes each day for a set number of weeks. Those who brought in their completed challenge form received a prize pack that included a scratch art set, a bookmark, stickers, and more. I used a book called "This Book Will Make You an Artist" by Ruth Millington for the kids' art challenge. The book created projects that reflected the art of historic eras, art movements, or specific artists. We handed out three “take and make” craft kits for kids to complete. The first project was a Roman mosaic-style mural made with tiny colored paper squares. The second project was a silhouette portrait, and the third was a paper collage in the style of Henri Matisse.
Teens and adults could participate in both a reading challenge and an art challenge. For the reading challenge, we handed out small book review forms. Participants were asked to fill out a book review for each book they read. Each review equals one entry in a drawing for a $50 Barnes and Noble card. This year, we had 16 participants who turned in a grand total of 74 book reviews. We have reviews tucked into many of our books on display. Be sure to stop by and see what readers have to say about the books.
The teens and adults who signed up for the art challenge were given a BINGO card that listed a different art project in each square. Anyone who finished five projects got a “Bingo” and was entered into a drawing for a $50 gift certificate from Michael’s arts and crafts store. Jessi Stolfi of Owen was the winner of the drawing.
The summer reading program is over, but you can still come in and read some of the book reviews and see some of the art created by challenge participants. Currently on display at the library are works of art made by three families that participated in the art challenges this summer. Come in and see projects from the kids' art challenge by Anna Devine. Earlier in the summer, Rachel Devine and her summer school class brought us drawings based on The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds. Those are still on display.
Lisa Westaby brought in a painting that she did for the BINGO challenge and her daughter Sadie contributed a drawing to our show as well. Sean, Jessi and Shea Stolfi brought in pages from their sketchbooks for me. Dom Stolfi and his uncle, Dustin Fredrick each provided us with a painting.
In addition, we are fortunate to have some of the handmade books of Karen Grow Horan on display now. Karen grew up in Owen and went on to become an art professor at UW-Eau Claire. She taught art to education majors there and generously shared her artistic talents with many others over the years. For the Owen library, Karen led a handmade book workshop and signed copies of her book Eulogy to the Wisconsin Barn at our booth for Santa Days. The library is grateful to Karen’s daughter, Kelly Horan Speckian for lending these beautiful books to us.
In a final stroke of luck, the Owen-Withee Area Historical Society offered to loan us the Centennial Quilt, created by members of the Curtiss Corners Quilt Club, for display. This is a wonderful way to end the summer. Please come and visit us at the library and enjoy our art displays. The library would like to thank the Owen-Withee Lions Club for funding our summer program. We are also grateful to Kelly Horan Spreckian for the loan of her mother’s artwork and to Karen Swiggum and the Owen-Withee Area Historical Society for the loan of the Centennial Quilt.