CLARK ART INSTITUTE LAUNCHES PROGRAM FOR PEOPLE DIAGNOSED WITH DEMENTIA

For Immediate Release

November 17, 2014

Williamstown, MA—Meet Me at the Clark, a program for people with dementia and their caregivers, will be held at the Clark Art Institute on Mondays from 10 am–12 pm on December 1, January 5, February 2, and March 2, when the museum is closed to the general public. The program provides a chance to engage with the Clark collection and participate in guided, themed conversations about art in a way that welcomes all contributions.

To register in pairs (persons with dementia with their caregivers or loved ones), call 413 458 0410. Registration is required for each program date.

“Engaging with art offers such a rich in-the-moment opportunity for meaningful experience,” said Ronna Tulgan Ostheimer, director of adult, school, and community programs at the Clark. “There are no ‘wrongs or rights’ in the conversation. The program really provides a tremendous relief and is so satisfying for everybody involved—including the educators!”

A pilot program initiated last fall met with “an overwhelming response from the community,” Tulgan Ostheimer said. “We knew we were filling a niche, and we’re so excited to get the program in full gear.”

The Clark based the program on a similar one at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City in 2006.

About the Clark
The Clark Art Institute is one of a small number of institutions globally that is both an art museum and a center for research, critical discussion, and higher education in the visual arts. Opened in 1955, the Clark houses exceptional European and American paintings and sculpture, extensive collections of master prints and drawings, English silver, and early photography. Acting as convener through its Research and Academic Program, the Clark gathers an international community of scholars to participate in a lively program of conferences, colloquia, and workshops on topics of vital importance to the visual arts. The Clark library, open to the public with more than 240,000 volumes, is one of the nation’s premier art history libraries. The Clark also houses and co-sponsors the Williams College Graduate Program in the History of Art.

The Clark opened its expanded facilities on July 4, 2014, unveiling new and enhanced spaces that accommodate the continued growth of the Institute’s programs. Included in this final stage of the project are the new 42,600-square-foot Clark Center designed by Tadao Ando Architect & Associates, expansion and renovation of the original Museum Building and the ongoing renovation of the Manton Research Center by Selldorf Architects, and a sweeping redesign of the grounds by Reed Hilderbrand Landscape Architecture. The first phase of the campus expansion project was completed in 2008 with the opening of the Lunder Center at Stone Hill, a striking conservation and exhibitions facility also designed by Tadao Ando.

The Clark is located at 225 South Street in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Galleries are open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm. Admission is free through December 31, 2014 and free year-round for Clark members, children 18 and younger, and students with valid ID. For more information, visit clarkart.edu or call 413 458 2303.

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