Tinkertown Museum launches hands-on art workshops for East Mountain sixth graders

SANDIA PARK, N.M. — Amid the glass-bottle walls and hand-carved dioramas of Tinkertown Museum, local sixth graders are trading smartphone screens for found-object art in a new hands-on creative workshop funded by community grants.

The program, spearheaded through a grant secured by museum president Tanya Ward Goodman and funded by the Hancock Family Foundation via the Albuquerque Community Foundation, welcomes 20 6th grade students each week from the local East Mountain school system. Facilitated by art instructor Michelle Korte, the weekly sessions guide students through identity-focused art projects.

Each workshop begins with a dose of classic Tinkertown whimsy: students receive a card from the museum’s iconic animatronic fortune teller.

“They think about what that fortune is telling them about themselves,” said Carla Ward of Tinkertown Museum. “Then they make an assemblage based on what they think their interior thoughts are, or what the world thinks of them, separate from what they think of themselves.”

Using an array of reclaimed and found materials, paint, and collage techniques, the students craft three-dimensional assemblages that translate personal reflection into tangible art.

For Ward, witnessing the children work without digital distractions has been the program’s most striking outcome.

“It’s astonishing to see these sixth graders just flourish,” Ward said. “How enthusiastic and how creative they are without having to use their phones or their screens. They’re just doing work in a really collaborative way.”

The program culminates on Oct. 28, after which the completed student artworks will go on public display at the school in coordination with campus leadership.

The youth initiative marks a milestone for the roadside folk-art landmark, which recently transitioned to nonprofit status under TinkertownMuseum.org. The grant was the first the museum had ever sought.

“We were thrilled because we’ve never applied for a grant before, and it was our first one,” Ward said. “Now we’re going for more.”

The success of the educational grant coincides with broader preservation and infrastructure efforts across the 1.5-acre property created by the late Ross Ward. Following severe rainstorms that damaged the museum’s circus room roof, a community appeal generated $3,000 within 48 hours to fund emergency roof replacements set to begin in the coming weeks.

Beyond immediate structural repairs, museum leaders are preparing a major electrical system overhaul and seeking additional grant funding and conservation bids to restore and preserve the museum’s delicate wooden carvings, western miniatures, and extensive mechanical exhibits for future generations.