Nurturing the Future – Savoring the Past: Miller Art Museum Programs

I grew up in a small town in northern Illinois, a wonderful place to grow up. We had a public park and swimming pool. We had a pharmacy with a counter to cozy up to and order a “green river.” We had a small community center with craft classes where I remember making a mosaic tile ashtray for my Dad.

What we did not have was a local art museum with school art tours. We did not have a Picture Program of Master Artists (an art history/appreciation program to learn about the world’s master artists) or a permanent collection of art to go and see again and again to witness and learn about the best of the best in art. For young budding artists, it would have been heavenly!

Early exposure to the arts can legitimize a passion in a young one’s heart, so I would like to highlight a few programs the Miller Art Museum sponsors that fall into the “under the radar” category. Yet, they are a major part of our educational mission. It fills me with gratitude and joy that these programs have been in continuous operation since 1987.

Since then, elementary students grades K-5 have been coming to the Miller Art Museum for regularly scheduled visits for several of the changing exhibits we offer. Volunteer docents (many are former teachers) prepare and present educational art tours, serving over 1,100 children each school year. Having done many of these tours myself, I can vouch for the excitement and attentiveness of the students while they are with us. I am also amazed at the level of their art knowledge, a testament to their talented art teachers. We often find students coming back to the museum on their own or with parents after a tour to experience the exhibit again. One of my favorite quotes overheard in the museum is: “Look dad, the museum is open, let’s go in!”

Lorraine Mengert, curator in 1987 and also an art teacher, was instrumental in beginning The Picture Program of Master Artists. Volunteers use art reproductions in their presentations when they go to into an elementary classroom, usually once a month. Often the classroom teacher will extend the lesson into other disciplines. Volunteers may conduct their own research about an artist, and along with contextual information provided with the reproduction, they create an interesting look into the life of the artist, the time period, and the genre of the art presented.

The following is an excerpt from the museum’s Picture Program mission statement:

“We hope to nurture future artists and art appreciators, enriching their lives with the knowledge and beauty of art, exposing them to other cultures to gain a deeper understanding of art, artists and themselves. It helps them see beauty in their environment, opens gates of tolerance, giving them a window to the world of ideas and images. It is well documented that children with a rich exposure to the arts in all forms do better in school, see more possibilities for creative problem-solving and discoveries, appreciate human history, and are much better prepared for a fulfilling life in work and play.”

The Miller Art Museum Permanent Collection began in 1984 with a few donations of artwork from Gerhard CF Miller and James J. Ingwersen. Growing year in and year out, the collection of Wisconsin art is now over 700 pieces by over 200 artists! A great source of inspiration and pride, the collection is exhibited on a rotating basis from year to year. Pieces have also been on loan to other museums. Researching, documenting, labeling, and conserving this vast collection is an ongoing effort by the museum staff.

The local community and visitors from far and wide find much to admire, and since the Permanent Collection may be photographed we often see visitors taking a picture or two for their own enjoyment. Children walk through the collection, pointing out their favorites and some even sketch them.

The Miller Art Museum is one of the “gatekeepers” of Wisconsin art “treasures,” savoring the past for future generations. Anaïs Nin wrote, “We make art to taste life twice, once in the moment and then, in retrospect.”

Along with our fellow Door County arts institutions, we are passionate about passing along a love of the Arts in all its forms and deeply thank all volunteers who carry out these programs!

Peninsula Arts and Humanities Alliance, Inc., is a coalition of non-profit organizations whose purpose is to enhance, promote and advocate the arts, humanities and natural sciences in Door County.