A Hope Student’s Experience with the Holland Area Arts Council

If you’re looking to enrich yourself through art, the Holland Area Arts Council, located in Downtown Holland, has exhibits and art classes for all ages. An exhibition space of three galleries provides the opportunity to showcase the best of local and regional artists. There are more than twelve exhibits per year, giving chances to countless artists in the area. The Arts Council also coordinates special community activities such as family festivals, and outdoor concerts. In addition, they have collaboration events with other community organizations, serving more than 50,000 individuals annually. The Holland Arts Council offers more than 150 classes each year in visual and performing arts, reaching more than 1,600 students annually ranging from preschool children to senior citizens.

One of the Exhibits currently up is the “Art for All Exhibition.” Art for All is a program for individuals with special needs that creates a vibrant and sensory-rich experience to strengthen students’ artistic abilities. For more than 36 years, Art for All has been dedicated to serving the special needs community. The program offers classes year-round that are taught once a week for an hour and a half. Art for All cultivates a welcoming and engaging environment, encouraging students to explore diverse art forms such as printmaking, weaving, clay sculpture, painting, wood construction, and dance.

Art for All is supported by volunteers from Hope College and the community. For example, many Hope education and psychology majors go to the Arts Council for their placement. One of those students, Lindsey Hall (’28) was interviewed about her experience with Art for All. When asked about the program and the different volunteer roles she stated, “Arts for all is a program where all ages, mostly adults, can do recreational art and meet new people. Oftentimes, once school ends there are fewer opportunities for adults with special needs to get the same amount of social interaction with their peers. Art for All helps all participants grow in their creativity and make friends along the way. The Hope volunteers work one-on-one with participants to complete weekly art crafts such as painting, crafting Halloween masks, and making slime.”

The program was created to be welcoming to all its participants. Hall claimed, “It’s a very welcoming place. The program director does a great job making sure that all participants can interact with their peers in a fun and safe manner.”

Not only is Art for All a special place for the participants, but the volunteers love being a part of the community as well. Hall explained how impactful this experience has been for her: “I would 100% do this program again. I always leave the placement feeling so fulfilled. I would recommend to anyone interested to check out the Holland Arts Council and all the different opportunities it has.” 

The three current exhibits at the Holland Arts Council are still open if you are looking to admire some local and regional art. The “Art for All Exhibition” is available until November 15th, the “Tatsuki Hakoyama Exhibition” is available until January 18th, and the “FOTOG: Holly Palmer Memorial Juried Regional Photographic Competition Exhibition” is available until December 21st. Make sure to check out the Holland Area Arts Council website for more information on future exhibitions, events, and classes. 

(Featured image source: Holland Arts Council Instagram page)



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