Williamstown, MA—Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA) will host Spirit of Tibet Family Week, a week of special programming for families from Tuesday, April 22 through Friday, April 25. Events will run from 10 a.m.–12 p.m. and 1–3 p.m. During Family Week, families with children of all ages are invited to view Tibetan monks creating a sand mandala, to experiment with colored sand using funnels provided by the monks, to explore WCMA's exhibition of Tibetan art and culture, and to participate in a variety of hands-on art projects. Admission to the museum and all Family Week activities is free.

"The museum has become renowned for its annual Family Day, attracting families from near and far," says Director Linda Shearer. "This year we are expanding to Family Week, coinciding with the area schools' vacation week. I am delighted that we can provide families with a hands-on experience of the art and culture of Tibet, the subject of two of our special exhibitions for the spring."

Activities for Families

Spirit of Tibet Family Week will offer families many opportunities to experience the art and culture of Tibet. Ongoing hands-on activities will allow children and families to make their own prayer flags, to try their hands at writing in Tibetan script, and to design their own mandalas. A reading corner stocked with children's books about Tibet will provide a cozy counterpoint to the activities, and throughout the event family-oriented films about Tibet will be screened. For more information about Family Week, call the education department at 413.597.2038.

Tibetan Art, Monks in Residency

Spirit of Tibet Family Week highlights two Tibetan exhibitions at WCMA. Tibet: Mountains and Valleys, Castles and Tents (through August 3, 2003) presents selections from the Newark Museum's acclaimed collection of Tibetan art, including extraordinary examples of official regalia, noble jewelry, castle furnishings, horse gear, and weapons that reflect the legacy of the country's proud warrior elite. These objects are shown in conjunction with rare photographs taken by some of the earliest Western visitors to Tibet, documenting the country's rugged terrain and traditional lifestyles in the early twentieth century.

Two monks from the Namgyal Monastery, in residency during Sacred Art of Tibet: Making a Mandala (April 15-May 3, 2003), will painstakingly lay millions of grains of sand into place on a raised platform over a period of three weeks in WCMA's rotunda. Formed from traditional icons of geometric shapes and ancient spiritual symbols, the exquisite sand mandala is used as a tool for re-consecrating the earth and its inhabitants.

Publicity Photographs Available

An image of a monk from the Namgyal Monastery with a visitor to WCMA is available for use. Publicity images for this event and other exhibitions can be found at www.wcma.org/press.

The Williams College Museum of Art is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, from 1 to 5 p.m. Admission is free and the museum is wheelchair accessible.

Contact: Jonathan Cannon, Public Relations Coordinator
413.597.3178; WCMA@williams.edu