Children's and Family Programs
Support for educational programs at the Michael C. Carlos Museum comes from the David R. Clare & Margaret C. Clare Foundation, an anonymous donor, the Marguerite Colville Ingram Fund, and the Christian and Frances Humann Foundation.
The Michael C. Carlos Museum celebrates twenty years of providing exceptional summer programs in which children and teenagers explore the human impulse to create works of art. Camp Carlos offers participants imaginative and innovative opportunities to explore the ways in which people throughout time and across cultures have created works of art. All sessions of camp include studio activities with some of Atlanta's best practicing visual artists, and visits to the Carlos Museum galleries, where campers learn from artists of the ancient world.
Click here to download the Camp Carlos registration form.
Griffons, Gorgons, and Sirens, Oh My!June 3-7 (7-9 year olds)-FULL-No longer accepting registrations for this session
June 10-14 (10-12 year olds)-FULL-No longer accepting registrations for this session
Create a menagerie of ancient monsters inspired by works in the Greek and Roman collections and depicted in the wildly popular Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Heroes of Olympus book series by Rick Riordan! Through drawing, painting, and sculpting, artist Cathy Amos will guide children as they make monsters and hear some of the original stories from the ancient Greeks and selections from Rick Riordan’s books.
The Classical Figure (two week session)June 17-21 and June 24-28 (13-17 years)-Spaces available
Drawing the human figure realistically has long been the benchmark of a master artist. For hundreds of years, artists looked to Greek and Roman sculpture to learn about proportion and musculature as they rendered the human form in drawings and paintings. Atlanta artist and teacher Devora Reiss will teach classical figure drawing in this two-week session. During the first week, teens will make small studies with a variety of traditional materials including charcoal, conte crayon, and oil paint as well as creating plaster casts of heads, hands, and feet. Using clothed models who will take the postures of selected works from Carlos Museum Greek and Roman collections, teens will focus on the whole figure during the second week.
To Weave for the SunJuly 8-12 (7-9 year olds)-FULL-No longer accepting registrations for this session
July 15-19 (10-12 year olds)-Spaces available
The Inka believed that the highest form of weaving was created for the sun, which they considered the greatest of the celestial powers. Woven works were made of hand-spun threads colored with natural dyes and sometimes embellished with stitching to form images of monkeys, birds, and other creatures from the natural world. Artist and weaver Paula Vester, one of the founding members of the Peachtree Handspinners Guild, will work with campers to create decorative textiles using the silky fibers of the llama and alpaca and natural dyes made from the cochineal bug, indigo, and other natural materials available in the ancient world. Campers will practice carding, drop spinning, and finger weaving, as well as knotting and loom techniques, to fashion their own woven pieces, which will be embellished with embroidery. Campers will also visit the Museum’s Parsons Conservation Lab to discover more about the sophisticated weaving techniques of the ancient Americas.
Puppet Maker: Animating and ArticulatingJuly 22-26 (7-9 year olds)-No longer accepting registrations for this session
July 29-August 2 (10-12 year olds)-Spaces available
For thousands of years people have animated objects, puppets, as a way to entertain others and as part of ceremonies and rituals. Africa has a long tradition of creating puppets to be used in performances for the community, poking fun and reminding people how to behave. Inspired by African puppets in the Carlos Museum collection from the secret Ekon society, children will use wood, raffia, paint, and their limitless imaginations to create and animate puppets with Atlanta artist Ana Vizurraga.
Click here to download the Camp Carlos registration form.
If you are interested in becoming a Carlos Museum member please visit the website at carlos.emory.edu/join or call 404.727.2623.
Camp hours are Monday through Friday, 9 am to 3 pm. Aftercare is available from 3 to 5 pm. Camp sessions are $185 per week for Carlos Museum members; $225 per week for non-members. Camp Carlos offers a 10% discount to families registering more than one child from the same family. Aftercare is available Monday through Friday from 3 to 5 pm for an additional $60. For more information please call 404.727.0519.
The Office of Educational Programs offers innovative and engaging workshops in which children and their families explore the collections and exhibitions at the Museum. Through in-gallery experiences and art projects, children learn about the arts and cultures of the world.
Sunday, March 17-FULL-No longer accepting registrations
2 pm, Tate Room
Olla Ceramic Decoration Children’s Workshop
In the American Southwest, Native Americans created unglazed pots known as ollas which were used for storing water and cooking. Contemporary Native American artists have continued this traditional form to make highly decorated ollas as works of art. Richly patterned ollas can be found in the Melion-Clum Collection of Modern Southwestern Pottery in the newly reinstalled Art of the Americas galleries. Ceramic artist Ana Vizurraga will teach children how to create highly decorated geometric patterns on their own ollas in this afternoon workshop.
For ages 10 and up. Fee: $12 for Carlos Museum members; $15 for non-members. Registration is required by calling 404.727.0519.
Sunday, March 24-FULL-No longer accepting registrations
2 pm, Tate Room
Tibetan Opera Mask Children’s Workshop
Tibetan folk musician Techung will tell the story of the masked guardians of the water who perform a traditional dance, Ngonpa Rigna, to purify and bless the stage before the beginning of a Tibetan opera. After the story, children will make a Tibetan guardian mask. This workshop is in conjunction with the performance of the Tibetan opera Sukyi Nyima (Radiant as the Sun) on April 6 at Cannon Chapel.
For ages 8 to 12. Fee: $12 for Carlos Museum members; $15 for non-members. Registration is required by calling 404-727-0519.
Friday, March 29-FULL-No longer accepting reservations
6:30-8:30 pm ongoing, Tate Room
Tibetan Sand Painting Children’s Workshop
In this drop-in activity, children of all ages are invited to observe the Tibetan monks of Drepung Loseling Monastery at work on the sand mandala in the Reception Hall and then create
their own personal multi-colored sand paintings using traditional copper tools and brightly colored sand in the Tate Room. This program is free and open to the public.
Sunday, April 28
Session 1, 1:30-2:30 pm, Tate Room (5-7 years old)
Session 2, 3-5 pm, Tate Room (8-12 years old)
Flying Shaman Kite Children’s Workshop
A common sensation of a shaman in a trance state is one of flying. The Nasca of ancient Peru are renowned for their depictions of flying shamans on textiles and ceramic vessels. Children will explore these images in the new galleries and then create flying shaman kites inspired by the Nasca images. Session 1 is for ages 5 to 7; Session 2 is for ages 8 to 12. Fee: $12 for
Carlos Museum members; $15 for non-members. Registration is required by calling 404-727-0519.
Sunday, May 5-FULL-No longer accepting reservations for this workshop
2 pm, Tate Room
Pyro-Engraving Children’s Workshop
FULL-No longer accepting reservations for this workshop
With a tradition reaching back thousands of years in the Andes, pyro-engraved gourds are still made today in Peru. Birds, fish, and complex patterns are rendered on the surface using wood-burning tools. Artist Pam Beagle-Daresta explores animal imagery from ancient Peru in the new galleries, and then teaches kids and their adult companions to pyro-engrave the
surface of a gourd. For ages 8 to 12 with accompanying adult. Fee: $12 for Carlos Museum members; $15 for non-members. Registration is required by calling 404-727-0519.
When ancient art, great stories, and inquisitive children are brought together something exciting happens and young imaginations flourish! This program is for children three to five years old accompanied by a parent or other adult. Once a month on select Saturdays, children will be able to sit in the galleries surrounded by works of art and hear stories of ancient Greece, Egypt, Asia, and the Americas. After the story, children and their companions will move to the Tate Room to create works of art or participate in activities based on the story and the cultures represented in our collections.
For ages 3 to 5 years and accompanying adults. These programs are free but a reservation is required by calling 404.727.0519.
Saturday, March 16
10 am, Art of the Americas Galleries
Artful Stories
Coyote, the trickster, is the subject of traditional Native American stories across much of North America. Coyote: A Trickster Tale from the American Southwest, reveals what happens when Coyote decides
he wants to fly like the crows. After the story, explore the patterns of southwestern pottery in the Art of the Americas galleries and make a mobile of Coyote trying to fly with the crows. For ages 3–5 and accompanying adults. This program is free, but a reservation is required by calling 404-727-0519.
Saturday, April 20
10 am, Asian Galleries
Artful Stories
Sweet, lovable, and sometimes mischievous, the elephant-headed Ganesh is one of the most well known of the Hindu gods. Find out how Ganesh’s duty to his mother, Parvati, and her devotion to him ultimately ensures that love and compassion will restore the balance of the universe. Meet the Carlos Museum’s Ganesh, a recent acquisition, and enjoy a beautiful array of sweet treats to celebrate his arrival! For ages 3 to 5 years and accompanying adults. These programs are free, but a reservation is required by calling 404.727.0519.
Saturday, May 4
10 am, Art of the Americas Galleries
Artful Stories
The Quechua people of Peru say that during ancient times, before the coming of the god Viracocha, this world reached a point at which it was about to end. So begins Llama and the Great Flood, a story from the Andean people of ancient Peru, about a llama whose dream helps save the world. After looking at images of llamas in the Art of the Americas, participants will make sarsillu—tassels made from colorful yarn that decorate the ears of llamas in the Andes. For ages 3 to 5 years and accompanying adults. These programs are free, but a reservation is required by calling 404.727.0519.
This program is made possible in part by a grant from the Bloomingdale's Fund of the Macy's Foundation.
The Carlos Museum offers an exciting series of chamber music concerts for children and families performed by The Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta and special guest artists. Family concerts are a wonderful way to introduce children of all ages to chamber music in the intimate space of the Carlos Museum's Reception Hall. Concerts last for approximately one hour. For dates and times for specific concerts, please visit the Museum's online calendar of events.
Sunday, April 21, 4 pm
Reception Hall
“Atlanta’s Young Artists”- some of the area’s finest pre-college musicians perform on this exciting annual showcase of what talent and hard work combined can accomplish, even at a young age.
Family Concerts at the Carlos Museum are made possible through the generous financial support of the Christian Humann Foundation.
Thanks to the generosity of the Ceres Foundation and to the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation, the Carlos is pleased to offer family guides to our Greek and South Asian collections. Featuring die-cut images of objects in the collection, lively text, and quotes from ancient sources, these collectable guides make exploring the galleries fun for children as they search for the featured objects and discover more about them.The guides are available at no charge at the Reception Desk on Level One.