Give art a hand and order creativity à la carte

Children and adults can get hands on with creativity Saturday morning when the Ellen Noël Art Museum opens its doors for an annual assortment of activities that'll have participants seeing colors and crafts.

"Art à la Carte" started in 2005 and is the museum's annual event framed around education and artistic excitement for the whole family.

And it coincides with Smithsonian Magazine's Museum Day - a time for museums and cultural institutions nationwide to celebrate culture, learning and knowledge. More than 100,000 people across the United States and Puerto Rico attended the event last year - in 651 participating museums, a news release from the magazine said.

At Odessa's "Art à la Carte," children can enter a sidewalk art contest and participate in artist demonstrations on the various techniques of watercolor pastels, origami, clay and watercolors.

Last year's attendees got the chance to work with world-renown sculptor Jesùs Moroles on a granite sculpture in the garden at Ellen Noël Art Museum.

This year, participants will collaborate with artist Lisa Brazile for another community art project: a mixed media collage following the event's theme of "The Best Day Ever."

>> The Ellen Noël Art Museum continues its brown bag lunch series at noon every Tuesday through December at the museum.
>> Tuesday and Oct. 7: "In search of Shakespeare."
>> Oct. 14: "Sister Wendy's Story of Painting: Modernism."
>> Oct. 21: "Kadinsky."
>> Oct. 28: "Cassat."
>> Nov. 4-11: "Craft in America."
>> Nov. 18: "Collecting America: Folk Art and the Shelburne Museum."
>> Dec. 2: Laurence Barker Presentation.
>> Dec. 9: "Queen Mary's Doll's House."
>> Dec. 16: Creating with Ceramics.
>> Admission is free and open to public. Bring a lunch.
>> Call 550-9696.