As my summer graduate internship draws to a close here at Artpace, I have been thinking of Chalk It Up educational activities that link to the work of Artpace’s upcoming Fall 2013 Artists-in-Residents: Micol Assaël (Rome, Italy), Erin Shirreff (New York, New York), and Ivor Shearer (Houston, Texas).

Micol Assaël’s interest in electricity particularly stood out for me. While pondering the relationship between art and science, I came across a fun utensil called the Drawdio. I was lucky enough to be able to order one and build it with the help of Mark Barnett of the San Antonio Makerspace. Soldering and assembling this tool was very interesting, but the finished product is the best–it’s a music synthesizer that uses the conductive properties of graphite in a pencil to create music! It is the coolest. Hopefully, it will be available for you to explore in the Kidzone at this year’s Chalk It Up on Saturday, October 12, 2013 from 10am-4pm on downtown Houston Street.

-Jenna Wright, U of Artpace Graduate Intern