Jayhawk Boulevard to close Sunday in the name of creative pursuits

Second annual KU Day of Creativity will have cross-disciplinary activities for all ages

photo by: John Young

Kianna Jones, right, and Tessa Bright, both of Lincoln, Neb., use paint, magnets and gravity to create a spiral painting during a day

Last year Kansas University’s first Day of Creativity took place at the Spencer Museum of Art, one of the final events before the museum closed for renovations.

This year the event is moving up the hill and taking over the Natural History Museum, the Commons at Spooner Hall — and Jayhawk Boulevard in between.

The all-ages, free Day of Creativity is set for noon to 3 p.m. Sunday, with a pep band performance with Baby Jay planned for 2 p.m.

Jayhawk Boulevard will be closed from the Kansas Union to 14th Street.

The whole idea is to get people to get creative, and open their minds to what that means, said Amanda Martin-Hamon, associate director of community engagement for the Spencer.

photo by: John Young

Five-year-old Rebecca and nine-year-old Perrin Goulter, both of Lawrence, create colorful designs by using sticks to swirl colored dyes around a pan filled with shaving cream Sunday, April 12, 2015, at the Spencer Museum of Art, 1301 Mississippi St. Once their designs were complete, they were transferred to sheets of paper that the children could take home. The museum hosted a day of creativity, inviting the community to take part in a variety of activities to promote and celebrate creativity, before it closes on Monday until mid-2016 for renovations.

“Often creativity gets sort of narrowly defined, and because of that people don’t realize that they’re probably really quite creative,” Martin-Hamon said. “It’s always been there, they just didn’t recognize it.”

The idea is that creativity isn’t limited to, say, being able to paint.

“We will be asking visitors to ask new questions, explore connections between seemingly unrelated ideas, solve problems and create things,” said Kitty Steffens, the Natural History Museum’s visitor services and events coordinator. “This is a unique opportunity to explore and play in the intersections of art, science and the humanities.” 

Steffens highlighted some of the planned events, being hosted with help from community partners:

• Creating a character with Theatre Lawrence

• A demonstration of timber milling with KU associate professor of visual art Matt Burke

• Learning about science through rubber chickens with the Natural History Museum

• An excursion through the smells of Lawrence past and present with the Watkins Museum of History

• Creating music with the Adaptive Use Musical Instrument with KU AUMI InterArts

• Sketching objects from the museum brought out from behind the glass

• Exploring storytelling by constructing a story jar with the Lawrence Public Library

Martin-Hamon said, while educational and cross-disciplinary, the event is supposed to be a good time.

“Of course we want people to have a good time,” Martin-Hamon said. “People can learn while they’re having fun.”