PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Contact: Jeff Schultz, System Coordinator of Arts in Education
205-759-8395
TUSCALOOSA CITY SCHOOLS TO HOST 7th ANNUAL TUSCALOOSA CAN! EVENT IN MARCH
(TUSCALOOSA, Ala.) In a continued response to the persistent concern of food insecurity in the lives of citizens in West Alabama, the 2020 Tuscaloosa Can! event will feature over 20 school teams creating large sculptures made from canned food items. After the structures are built, the creations remain on display to the public as a giant art exhibition. At the end of the viewing, all food is donated to the West Alabama Food Bank.
This year’s structures will be on display March 3 – 6 at the Dinah Washington Cultural Arts Center and the Bama Theatre’s Greensboro Room. Gallery Hours in both spaces are weekdays 9-noon and 1-4 p.m. To access the Greensboro Room displays, enter through The Arts Council offices in the PARA Bldg. at 614 Greensboro Ave.
Awards will be presented to school teams at the First Friday Art Walk event held on Friday, March 6 at 5:30 p.m. at the Dinah Washington Cultural Arts Center. Doors open at 5:00 p.m., and the public is encouraged to attend the awards and complete the First Friday Art Walk after viewing the structures.
Since 2014, Tuscaloosa City students and schools have raised over 30 tons of food for the West Alabama Food Bank through similar projects. As part of our growing partnerships with The Arts Council of Tuscaloosa and the West Alabama Food Bank, we invite other public or private entities to join our cause as we grow this event beyond 2020.
The event fits with the vision of 21st Century curriculum goals by providing students opportunities for service-based, collaborative, hands-on learning targeting real world problems – in this case, regional hunger. Students integrate the skills of math and geometry, art and design, physics and engineering, as well as 3D rendering in creating their structures.
The Bama Theatre is located at 600 Greensboro Ave. and The Dinah Washington Cultural Arts Center at 620 Greensboro Ave. in downtown Tuscaloosa. For more information about The Arts Council or Bama Theatre, patrons should follow and like “The Arts Council – Bama Theatre – Cultural Arts Center” on Facebook and Twitter and also Instagram @tuscaloosaartscouncil. Call 205-758-5195 or visit tuscarts.org for further information.
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