Old Jail reaches out to statewide audience
By Sidney Bartee
The Old Jail Art Center virtual camps are continuing this week, with Frontier Fort Kids closing the annual summer events next week.
Last week, students participated in the Cultural Connections Camp centered around India.
Crafts, snacks, activities, games, and gifts were provided to students who participated in the camp.
According to education director Erin Whitmore, the camps went amazingly well this year, with good participation.
“We didn’t have the same numbers as we did during COVID in 2020 because everyone was staying closer to home, but we are still triple the numbers we used to do in-person since we are able to ship across the state,” Whitmore said. “The camps have been going great. We shipped out all the crafts a couple weeks ago, and we have been posting videos each day of the camps.”
Today (Thursday) is the last day of the Things on Strings: Puppet Workshop.
“This year, participants got to create stages along with their puppets,” Whitmore said, “because the puppets are based on an Indian shadow puppet tradition.”
Next week, students who registered last month will participate in the Frontier Fort Kids workshop.
Students will learn about what life was like for children living in forts across Texas
“Students will be able to see what school was like, what games they played, eat snacks, and participate in some pioneer games,” Whitmore said. “It’s been fun getting to mail kits and do crafts with kids across the state.”
Ongoing Programs
OJAC’s Activity Trunk will continue indefinitely for members of the community.
The trunk can be found outside the Old Jail’s gates and includes two crafts every week. It is free to everyone.
The Tiny Tours program is also ongoing. Tiny Tours includes short virtual tours of the various galleries and collections that can be found at the museum.
The Diwali Family Festival is scheduled for Nov. 6, and the education department will be back in class with Region 14 schools for Art to Go next month.
For more information about events at the Old Jail, go to theojac.org.
