Kids of All Ages Invited to Explore Light, Color In 'Spectrum'

A White Hall School District student explores the “Rainbow Shadows” station in the Spectrum of Creativity exhibition, on March 15, 2022, in the International Paper Gallery at The Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas in Pine Bluff.

Hands-On STEAM Exhibition ‘Spectrum of Creativity’ Open Through May 7

By Shannon Frazeur

Kids of all ages are invited to explore light and color in a new interactive exhibition Spectrum of Creativity, now open at the Arts & Science Center.

Visitors can learn about the spectrum of light, how colors are created, how circuits work, and more at several activity stations. 

At the “Movie Magic” station, guests can learn how a “green screen” is used to create special effects and transport themselves to exotic locations such as the Great Wall of China, New York City, and the Amazon rainforest. They can also make their own short animations by drawing film strips and viewing them through a zoetrope (a spinning drum-like device that creates the illusion of motion).

White Hall School District students experiment with color, light and chemistry at the chromatography station in the “Spectrum of Creativity” exhibition, on March 15, 2022.

The “Rainbow Shadows” station produces a crazy, colorful effect by turning shadows into rainbows using individual spectrums of light.

At the “Disappearing Drawings” station, kids can write a secret message that glows under a black light, or create a drawing that disappears under red light. 

By pedaling a bike, users can use their own power to generate electricity. An LED tower lights up as the bike is pedaled. The faster the pedaling, the farther up the pole the light travels.

At the art-based activity stations, guests can create light-up flowers they can take home. They can also explore color combinations and experiment with chromatography by using colored markers and coffee filters. For little ones, a light table allows them a space for sensory play.

ASC’s curatorial and public programs staff collaborated to create Spectrum of Creativity.

A White Hall School District student checks out a zoetrope during a visit to the “Spectrum of Creativity” exhibition, on March 15, 2022. Visitors are encouraged to draw sequential scenes onto film-strip-like pieces of paper, and then the finished strips are loaded into and viewed through the zoetrope, which is a spinning drum-like device that gives the illusion of motion when the strips are viewed through the slits.

“I want to expand the way kids look at the world around them and inspire them to create something new, and exposure to art and science can do just that,” ASC Curator Jessica Lenehan said. “With this exhibition, we’ve created interactives for a variety of ages and abilities that combine art and science in fun, memorable ways.”

Offering hands-on STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics) activities is part of ASC’s mission — engaging, educating, and entertaining through the arts and sciences. 

“I think this interactive STEAM exhibit will speak to our longtime members,” said Education Programs Manager Shakeelah Rahmaan. “And color and light are such cool subjects that I think will really interest, intrigue, and motivate STEAM-based learning even at home,” Rahmaan said.

“Spectrum of Creativity” is supported by the Arkansas Arts Council and the Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas Endowment Fund. Admission is free to all of ASC’s exhibitions. 

The exhibition is on display in the International Paper Gallery through May 7, 2022.

For more information about the exhibition, contact Jessica Lenehan at jlenehan@asc701.org. To schedule a class tour of the exhibition, contact Shakeelah Rahmaan at srahmaan@asc701.org. 

A White Hall School District student transports himself to Mount Kilimanjaro via the “Movie Magic” station of the Spectrum of Creativity exhibition, on March 15, 2022.