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Learn
As an artist-centered institution, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum is guided by the belief that artists are innovative thinkers, who offer unique perspectives on our world. Learning at The Aldrich engages visitors of all ages with artworks and ideas from these artists, fostering a public space for critical discourse.
Our programs take place in person at the Museum when possible but currently most stream remotely through our website during the limitations of the COVID-19 pandemic.
These include:
- Public Programs—talks, tours, performances, workshops, community events, and more that invite new interpretations of the art on view, exchanging perspectives of our complex society and world
- Family Programs—intergenerational virtual tours, at-home activities, and birthday parties give children and families new ways to learn together through contemporary art
- Teen Programs—individual internships, group fellowships, and other opportunities to access the world of contemporary art by working directly with artists and Museum staff
- Educational Programs—virtual tours and learning opportunities that provide direct access to exhibitions through unique and unexpected experiences for schools, universities, clubs, homeschool groups, cultural institutions, learning pods, and more by bridging art with multidisciplinary subjects to meet various learning goals
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Public Programs
Participate in a broad range of programs designed to deepen understanding and engagement with the works of art on view, focused on interactive experiences around contemporary culture.
The Studio
The Studio is a dedicated space for learning and making for visitors of all ages to explore ideas, questions, and develop meaning around contemporary art and culture.
Children and Family Programs
The Aldrich offers a variety of virtual engagement opportunities for families, inviting peer-to-peer learning and intergenerational exchange.
Teen Programs
We are invested in the artists, leaders, and thinkers of tomorrow by providing opportunities for teens to engage with contemporary art and museum careers through Aldrich Teen Fellows and Internships.
School Programs
The Aldrich partners with preschools, elementary, middle, and high schools, universities, community groups, and home-schooled individuals to collaborate on virtual programs and offer digital resources.
Accessibility Programs
The Aldrich supports access to our exhibitions for individuals with a range of abilities through multiple partnerships with regional organizations, reciprocal Museum memberships, scholarship opportunities, and free admission for SNAP/EBT card holders and veterans.
Group Tours
If you are interested in our virtual guided visit options or if you are a teacher interested in virtual school tours please email us at aldrichedu@thealdrich.org.
Camp Aldrich
Join us at The Aldrich for a full-day, week-long arts experience with Museum Educators and practicing artists. Campers explore the Museum’s three-acre campus and incorporate the world around them into their art.
Each week, campers will be guided through art-making workshops and activities led by professional, practicing artists and our dedicated team of camp counselors. Weeks are themed and tailored to specific age groups for the ultimate creative learning environment, culminating into a celebration for family and friends on Friday evenings of the works that the campers have developed throughout the week.
Selected Upcoming Events
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April 15, 2023 |
Third Weekend, Children and Family Programs
AT CAPACITY - Story Time for Kids: The Curious Garden
Bring your budding artists to The Aldrich for Story Time, in collaboration with the Ridgefield Library! Together, we will explore themes of regrowth and resilience in nature and art by looking at Last Steps (2021-22) by David Shaw and reading The Curious Garden by Peter Brown. Then, we will move to the Museum’s Studio to create our own clay planters!
April 15, 2023 |
Third Weekend, Group Tours
All Ages Discovery Tour
Join us for this in-person gallery tour of The Aldrich’s current exhibitions guided by our Museum Educators!
April 19, 2023 |
Group Tours
Seniors-Only Tour
Join us for this in-person gallery tour of highlighted works from our current exhibitions, guided by our Museum Educators, reserved specifically for adults ages 60 and above!
April 22, 2023 |
Group Tours
Prima Materia Tour with Curator Richard Klein
Join us for a curator led tour of Prima Materia: The Periodic Table in Contemporary Art. Artist, writer, and curator Richard Klein will give an overview the exhibition, beginning with the “origins” of Earth and covering the transition of alchemy to chemistry, while featuring an in-depth look at the works of various artists.
May 5, 2023 |
Public Programs
Aldrich After Hours
Join us for Aldrich After Hours in the galleries and Sculpture Garden to celebrate artist Hangama Amiri and the release of her first museum publication on occasion of her exhibition, Hangama Amiri: An Homage to Home.
May 17, 2023 |
Group Tours
Seniors-Only Tour
Join us for this in-person gallery tour of highlighted works from our current exhibitions, guided by Aldrich Educator Holly Lapine, reserved specifically for senior adults ages 60 and above!
May 20, 2023 |
Third Weekend, Children and Family Programs
Story Time for Kids: Where Butterflies Fill the Sky
Bring your budding artists to The Aldrich for Story Time, in collaboration with the Ridgefield Library! Together, we will explore themes of family and travel by looking at artwork by Hangama Amiri in our galleries and reading Where Butterflies Fill the Sky by Zahra Marwan.
May 20, 2023 |
Third Weekend, Group Tours
All Ages Discovery Tour
Join us for this in-person gallery tour of The Aldrich’s current exhibitions guided by an Aldrich Educator!
May 21, 2023 |
Public Programs, The Studio
What We Remember - and Why: A Writing Workshop
Why are some memories "frayed at the edges"? And what can we do to excavate memories we thought were long lost? These are questions we'll consider, inspired by the fabric collages in Amiri Hangami's exhibition A Homage to Home. Join Aldrich Educator Barb Jennes and fellow writers as we plumb the deep well of memory, returning with poetry and prose.
May 29, 2023 |
Public Programs, The Studio
Art-Making Workshop: The Inside View
Join Aldrich Educator Alanna Fagan as she leads a workshop on exploring interiors. Use paint and mixed-media to depict a favorite room, or rooms, in your life—from the place where you live now, a childhood home, or a place you enjoy visiting.
June 10, 2023 |
Public Programs, The Studio
Art-Making Workshop: Creating with Copper
Join Aldrich Educator Susie Buckley as she guides participants through engraving soft copper sheeting to create a landscape work. Inspired by the artist Matthew Barney's Bayhorse, a five-panel series of landscapes made on copper plating included in the current exhibition Prima Materia: The Periodic Table in Contemporary Art.
June 14, 2023 |
Group Tours
Seniors-Only Tour
Join us for this in-person gallery tour of highlighted works from our current exhibitions, guided by Aldrich Educator Holly Lapine, reserved specifically for senior adults ages 60 and above!
June 17, 2023 |
Third Weekend, Children and Family Programs
Story Time for Kids: Color the Sky
Bring your budding artists to The Aldrich for Story Time, in collaboration with the Ridgefield Library! Together, we will explore themes of color and birds! We will look at artwork called The Shape of Blue by Rachel Berwick and learn about the cobalt-colored indigo bunting. Then, we will move to the Museum’s Studio to create our own blue colored birds!
July 10 at 9:30 am to July 14, 2023 at 4:00 pm |
Camp Aldrich
Camp Aldrich: Week 1 (Grades 1-3)
Join us at The Aldrich for a full-day, week-long arts experience with Museum Educators and practicing artists. Campers explore the Museum’s three-acre campus and incorporate the world around them into their art.
July 17 at 9:30 am to July 21, 2023 at 4:00 pm |
Camp Aldrich
AT CAPACITY - Camp Aldrich: Week 2 (Grades 1-3)
Join us at The Aldrich for a full-day, week-long arts experience with Museum Educators and practicing artists. Campers explore the Museum’s three-acre campus and incorporate the world around them into their art.
July 24 at 9:30 am to July 28, 2023 at 4:00 pm |
Camp Aldrich
Camp Aldrich: Week 3 (Grades 4-6)
Join us at The Aldrich for a full-day, week-long arts experience with Museum Educators and practicing artists. Campers explore the Museum’s three-acre campus and incorporate the world around them into their art.
July 29, 2023 |
Artist Program, Public Programs
Prima Materia Panel Conversation with Artists
Join us for a panel conversation on Prima Materia: The Periodic Table in Contemporary Art with exhibiting artists Rachel Berwick, Myra Mimlitsch-Gray, and Winston Roeth, moderated by the exhibition’s curator Richard Klein.