Caliente @ El Museo del Barrio

Through the festive white and orange walls of El Museo del Barrio, an assortments of snacks, a mix of Latin American tunes, and a group of vibrant smiles greeted a batch of 10 new members into the summer season of Museum Teen Summit. 

As with all Museum Teen Summit meetings, new and senior members are introduced or reacquainted with a unique museum; on this first summer excursion, we explored the teen involvement of El Museo del Barrio. Manager of Youth and Opportunities, Mairelys Alberto, and School Programs Assistant, Meghan Lally, led our members into the museum's cultural history, and their successful teen events, such as their open mic night, and promising future filled with upcoming classes and opportunities available to the youth. 

Francisco Oller y Cestero
Platanos Amarillo
elmuseo.org

The team walked through El Museo's permanent collection on view, Voces Y Visiones: Gran Caribe, which portrays the vast diversity and complexity of the Caribbean basin. The exhibition marks a period in history when an influx of people, objects, ideas, and images throughout Latin America influenced artistic development occurring within the Caribbean.

Accompanied by the exhibit, new members also explored an unsettling question: Who is Museum Teen Summit?
Through ice breakers and collages, we found our purpose, our answer: we are collection of fellow youths who 

1. Spread the word! - Let teens know of the events and programs happening at museums
2. Share our ideas! - Let educators and coordinators know of what us, teens want in an event/program
3. Build the community! - Let teens have that special place where all of us can mingle and share our love for the arts

Spend this caliente summer inside the sanctions of a cool museum, like El Museo del Barrio; you never know what shot of inspiration or fellow teen you might come across.

- Ramona, new & excited MTS member