ArtStart

Arts Education for All!

We believe that all children and adults deserve to have access to the arts. Arts learning develops students’ critical-thinking skills, creative confidence, hands-on skills, visual literacy, self-esteem, appreciation of other cultures, and so much more. For more than 30 years, ArtStart has created arts programming to give kids and adults an opportunity to explore new artforms, see the world in new ways, and grow as artists, global citizens, and stewards of our earth.

With an expanding community of supporters, in the last year, ArtStart has:

• Created new Studio A art classes for kids and adults to offer engaging learning experiences for all levels of experience, online and in person. We created new communities with adults and kids, coming together to create and share art. 
• Developed artist residencies for schools online, reaching children in communities underserved by the arts. Professional artists and educators saw students develop self-expression and make meaningful connections across the curriculum and we supported artists and educators with professional development workshops to expand their skillsets.
• Offered Passport to the Arts camps, exploring traditional and contemporary art of Australia and New Zealand. Children thrived as they were immersed in arts and cultures! We sold out our Australia and New Zealand camps in record time.
• Reached hundreds of kids and adults through free library workshops in Ramsey, Dakota, Scott, and Washington counties with after school, Saturday, and evening artful reuse and cultural workshops.
• Partnered with the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge to give scholarships to Latinx kids for our fall camp Dia de los Muertos, created a new COVID-safe experience for EcoArts Fest last year with interactive art and nature walks, and worked with community members on a stunning monarch tapestry project.
• Continued to develop unique, educational Creativity Kits for kids of all ages featuring a wide variety of topics including reuse, learning about artists, science and art, and nature. Featured in the Star Tribune, more than 100 different kits are now available! 
• Offered online shopping of art materials and in-store shopping at our ArtScraps ReUse Center. After gaining increased popularity during the pandemic, the store is thriving as a place to find reuse art supplies!
• And much more!

“You are truly remarkable!! This camp is a highlight of my children’s year. We are so grateful for how you support our son to participate. He is so proud of what he creates here. I love seeing how the kids learn about the world and its people through the arts.” – Summer Camp Parent

To continue creating transformative arts experiences for all, please donate in any amount you are able to give today. 

We’ve always believed in making art education accessible for all, and we’re building on this important work with your help. Your gift supports our work to offer educational programming for kids and adults, including scholarships and residencies for kids in underserved communities.

• $20 underwrites the cost of special art materials for a Creativity Kit.
• $50 supports a Creativity Kit and Class during the holidays for 1 participant, adult or child.
• $100 supports a two-hour community workshop with an organization that serves youth at risk.
• $250 supports a scholarship for a child to our summer camp, "Passport to Australia and New Zealand”.
• $500 supports a classroom of 30 students participating in a week-long cultural arts residency. 
• $1,000 supports a week-long residency with 2 classrooms of students working with a naturalist and artist.  

Thank you for supporting our commitment to teaching the arts as a way to learn, heal, wonder, and grow!