The Cleveland Museum of Art honors the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his powerful call for society to participate in a day of service

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  • Press Release
Thursday January 4, 2018

Contact the Museum's Media Relations Team:
(216) 707-2261
marketingandcommunications@clevelandart.org

Celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. through Performance and Art-Inspired Experiences Monday, January 15, 2018

Cleveland, OH (January 5, 2018) On Monday, January 15, the Cleveland Museum of Art will open its doors for a free day-long celebration honoring the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King shared a wealth of wisdom on how to create a more just, humane and peaceful world. The museum celebrates his legacy with performances and art-inspired experiences centered around his nonviolent philosophy. The museum and its galleries will be open from 10 a.m.–5 p.m., with activities and performances designed for all ages from 11 a.m.–4 p.m.

Art Activities for all ages, Ames Family Atrium, 11 a.m.–4 p.m. 

  • Building Bridges: Colorful lines lead to creative connections. In this art installation, stepping stones become easier to reach when linked by taped line “bridges.”  
  • A Sense of Place: What makes places and communities peaceful? Add your own images to our community landscape collage. Help us ensure that the landscape includes pathways for everyone.
  • In His Words: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s words are inspiration for action. How will you respond? Visit our collage station or our photo booth to share how you will celebrate MLK’s legacy.

Art Cart: West and Central Africa, Plain Dealer Lobby and Gallery 100, 11 a.m.–4 p.m.

Experience a rare opportunity to touch beautiful sculptures, textiles and metalwork of three major cultures from West and Central Africa: the Yoruba, Asante and Kuba. 

Self-Guided Tour, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. 

Use the museum’s app, ArtLens, to experience a self-guided tour of works in the museum’s collections, inspired by the wisdom, spirit, legacy and activism of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The ArtLens App is available for FREE download to iPads or iPhones running iOS9 or higher, or Android devices (4.4+) from the iTunes App Store or Google Play. Once ArtLens is downloaded, simply launch the app. 

Performances, Ames Family Atrium and Gartner Auditorium 

Today’s performers are part of the Cleveland Foundation’s Arts Mastery Initiative that represents an action toward a bigger dream for equality by helping to ensure every student in every community has access to the same opportunities to succeed––including quality arts education programs. As such, the CMA is honored to join the ranks of esteemed arts institutions who are producing arts education programs to impact, transform and enrich the lives of youth in our communities.

Cleveland Classical Guitar Society in collaboration with the Cleveland School of the Arts and the Cleveland Institute of Music,11–11:45 a.m., Ames Family Atrium 

The Cleveland Classical Guitar Society’s Education Program teaches classical guitar to more than 200 elementary through high school students in schools across Cleveland every year. They perform more than 30 times a year. This performance features some of the program’s most advanced students in solo guitar performances and ensembles, led by the society’s Director of Education Brian Gaudino

Tri-C Creative Arts Dance Academy, noon–12:30 p.m., Gartner Auditorium

Students from the Touring Ensemble and Second Company will perform works inspired by pivotal moments of the Civil Rights Movement.   

Six of Twelve Youth Performance Poetry Ensemble, 1–1:15 p.m., 3–3:15 p.m., Ames Family Atrium  

Six of Twelve is a youth performance poetry troupe of six high school youth and young adults from the Twelve Literary and Performative Arts Incubator. Their performance is a bricolage of original poetry and reinterpreted works by award-winning poets and writers that addresses the three steps of racial justice: acceptance, discussion and action.

Cleveland Public Theatre–Brick City Theatre, 2–2:15 p.m., 3:30–3:45 p.m., Gartner Auditorium

An original Brick City Theatre play honoring the lives and legacy of two great African American leaders, Louis Stokes and Carl B. Stokes, created by Brick City Theatre-Lakeview Terrace youth and elder participants, in collaboration with Brick City Theatre teaching artists. Brick City Theatre is one of Cleveland Public Theatre’s core education programs and is conducted in partnership with the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority.

Art Stories for all ages, Ames Family Atrium and galleries
Picture books, art and conversation in the spirit of the day. Meet in the atrium before heading into the galleries; led by museum educators.

Stand up and be counted! Everyone has something to offer, 12:30 p.m., gallery 227
One and Zero by Kathryn Otoshi and Number 99 by Morris Louis.

When you look in the mirror, who do you see? Let’s celebrate all the things we are, 1:30 p.m., Focus Gallery
Looking like Me by Walter Dean Myers and Going to NYC by Jae Jarrell.

What does Peace mean? We’ll use all our senses to answer the question, 2:20 p.m., gallery 227
Peace by Wendy Anderson Halperin and What Does Peace Feel Like? by Vladimir Radunsky and Celebration by Lee Krasner. 

Upcoming Events

MIX: Soul
Friday, February 2, 6–10 p.m.
Dance, vibe and enjoy a soulful concoction of music across the decades, inspired by Heritage: Wadsworth and Jae Jarrell.

Listening Session: Heritage 
Friday, February 9, 7 p.m.
Ames Family Atrium
Free, registration required
Music is an important and ongoing theme in the Jarrells’ artwork, particularly within the context of African American heritage, the experiences and history of black people in the United States, and the influence and essence of their African roots.

Over the run of the exhibition, we’re asking visitors to submit the names of songs that they “hear” when they experience Heritage: Wadsworth and Jae Jarrell. At this program, explore the link between visual art and music when we play a selection of those songs and use them as a point of conversation and storytelling between audience members and a panel of music enthusiasts. Moderated by Fredara Hadley, visiting assistant professor of Ethnomusicology at Oberlin Conservatory.

George Lewis: Experiments in Art and Music  
Saturday, February 17, 3 p.m. 
Lecture Hall
Free, registration required
In the years following the Civil Rights Movement, African American artists and musicians searched for new ways to contribute to the message of freedom and equality. In Chicago, the black avant-garde formed the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) and the African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists (AfriCOBRA) as a way to creatively highlight the communities facing racial and economic injustice. Wadsworth and Jae Jarrell, whose exhibition, Heritage, is currently on view, were among the founding members of AfriCOBRA in 1968. In this program, George Lewis, AACM’s foremost chronicler and author of A Power Stronger Than Itself: The AACM and American Experimental Music will share insights about the new music and art that emerged from Chicago in 1965–75. A member of AACM since 1971 and the Edwin H. Case Professor of American Music at Columbia University, Lewis is a trombonist and pioneering composer known internationally for his groundbreaking work in electronic and computer music and computer-based multimedia installations. His lecture will include imagery and musical examples drawing reference to works included in Heritage.