To make something realistic is just one way to give visual form to your world. Think like an artist as you experiment with a wide range of tools to try out marks, smudges, and textures that can become expressive works of art. Start realistic and discover how nontraditional materials and processes can fuel your creative imagination. Discover artists who think beyond pencils and paintbrushes to use the ideas of drawing and painting in innovative ways.
The last day to register for this camp is August 3, 2022
Learn more about Experimental Drawing and Painting.
Earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, and more—they’ve all changed life on our planet over and over again. Discover how people and ecosystems have responded to extreme events throughout geologic time. Construct model lava flows, asteroid impacts, and volcanoes. Build a model city and put it to the test with a mega-quake-tsunami challenge on Friday.
The last day to register for this camp is August 3, 2022.
Learn more about Extreme Events.
Push, pull, and squish clay into anything you can imagine—from functional vessels like bowls and cups you can actually use to sculpted figures of your pet, or an imaginative creature of your own design! Try out the potter’s wheel and learn hand-building techniques inspired by artworks in the museum collection. Use colorful underglazes to give your work a personal touch. Projects will be fired and available for pick-up three to four weeks after camp. A $25 materials fee is included in the price of this camp.
The last day to register for this camp is August 3, 2022.
Learn more about Fun With Clay.
Learn survival and orienteering techniques that will help you find your way around. Survey the sky for navigational signs and learn how to properly use a map and compass. Investigate the survival adaptations of animals and develop your own safety skills. Discover treasures in and around the museum using handheld GPS units on a geocaching adventure. Put your newfound skills to the test on an extended day trip to Powdermill Nature Reserve, the museum’s environmental research center.
Day trip to Powdermill Nature Reserve: museum pick up at 6:30 p.m. Late afternoon snack provided.
The last day to register for this camp is August 3, 2022.
Learn more about Get Lost.
It’s not trash, it’s art! Get inspired and inventive with recycled materials and everyday objects to create extraordinary art out of the ordinary. Explore the way artists reduce, reuse, recycle, and respond to environmental issues. Each day you will draw, sculpt, or collage with a new material. Collaborate with other campers to create an unconventional material art installation in your studio that will impress your friends.
The last day to register for this camp is August 3, 2022.
Learn more about Green Material Makers.
If aliens built a city, what would it look like? Use your imagination and your most far-out ideas to create an urban landscape from another planet. What do your alien friends need in their city? How is it different from or similar to the world you live in on earth? Use the collection at Carnegie Museum of Art to look for interesting shapes, colors, and materials to incorporate into your design.
The last day to register for this camp is August 3, 2022.
Learn more about Out-of-this-World Architecture.
Get an inside look at paleontology from the gigantic Diplodocus to the tiny Archaeopteryx. Cover land, sea, and sky while searching for unusual pterosaurs, ichthyosaurs, birds, and mammals. Peek into PaleoLab where museum scientists work on fossils every day. Go on a dinosaur dig. Make a mask of your favorite prehistoric beast, and move like a dinosaur in a special relay race.
The last day to register for this camp is August 3, 2022.
Learn more about Peculiar Paleontology.
From basic biology to high-tech sportswear, investigate how animals and people adapt to extreme environments. Find out how your own sensory systems and reflexes measure up to animal survival instincts. Improve your outdoor adventuring skills by learning about basic first aid, nutrition, and hydration needs for camping and hiking. Create a water purification system, and concoct the perfect trail mix for a day hike. Compare traditional fishing and hunting techniques across cultures, and hike the trails at Powdermill Nature Reserve.
Field trip to Powdermill Nature Reserve: museum pick up at 6:30 p.m. Late afternoon snack provided.
The last day to register for this camp is August 3, 2022.
Learn more about Youth Museum Institute: Survivor.
Post-Camp is for children ages 6+.
You must have a camp registration for the same week to enroll.
Learn more about Post-Camp Week 9 (August 8-12).
Pre-Camp is for children ages 6+.
You must have a camp registration for the same week to enroll.
Learn more about Pre-Camp Week 10 (August 15-19).
Examine fascinating natural patterns and use objects from nature to create your own designs. Dig into the science behind color and texture as you experiment with bright red beets, beautiful butterfly wings, gorgeous geodes, and spiral snail shells. Meet critters of all shapes and sizes as you explore the marvels and mysteries of the natural world.
Recommended for kids who have finished a year of full-day kindergarten or full-day child care. Pre-camp and post-camp care are not available for campers in the HiFives! program. Campers must be picked up by 4 p.m. See registration packet for details.
Please note: Pre-camp and post-camp care are not available for Hi Fives campers. Hi Fives campers must be picked up by 4 p.m.
The last day to register for this camp is August 10, 2022.
Learn more about HiFives: Natural Wonders.
Join us for an end-of-summer bonus week featuring fun and games in the art museum. Warm up by sketching inside and outside the museum. Stretch your art endurance as you try drawing, painting, and sculpting. Take your imagination and your skills to the next level as you participate in fun art challenges. These activities will be a relaxing cooldown after a summer full of art camp fun.
The last day to register for this camp is August 10, 2022.
Learn more about Art Camp Games Week.
Join us for an end-of-summer bonus week featuring fun and games in the art museum. Warm up by sketching inside and outside the museum. Stretch your art endurance as you try drawing, painting, and sculpture. Take your imagination and your skills to the next level as you participate in fun art challenges. These activities will be a relaxing cooldown after a summer full of art camp fun.
The last day to register for this camp is August 10, 2022.
Learn more about Art Camp Games Week.
Join us for an end-of-summer bonus week featuring fun and games in the art museum. Warm up by sketching inside and outside the museum. Stretch your art endurance as you try drawing, painting, and sculpture. Take your imagination and your skills to the next level as you participate in fun art challenges. These activities will be a relaxing cooldown after a summer full of art camp fun.
The last day to register for this camp is August 10, 2022.
Learn more about Art Camp Games Week.
Level up your knowledge of rocks as you examine gems, minerals, rocks, and fossils in the lab and throughout the museum. Learn the tools of the geologists’ trade on a rock walk in Schenley Park. Discover surprising ways we use rocks and minerals in everyday life. Experiment with the rock cycle and observe everyday items made from rocks and minerals, plus start your own collection to take home.
The last day to register for this camp is August 10, 2022.
Learn more about Geology Rocks.
Navigate the Nile to discover what life was like in ancient Egypt. Learn about the role of animals in Egyptian life and lore. Make a splash with hands-on activities as you investigate the importance of rivers. Watch the mysteries of mummification unfold through dehydration experiments with fruits and vegetables. Observe live insects and see how they measure up to the mystical ancient scarab. Bring mythology to life by designing costumes and acting out your favorite stories.
The last day to register for this camp is August 10, 2022.
Learn more about Life on the Nile.
See it! Smell it! Hear it! Touch it! Discover how your brain decodes the world. Learn how vision impacts taste buds by taking a blind taste test. Follow your nose to solve a smelly mystery. Sharpen your eyesight as you search for clues on a sensory scavenger hunt. Become a nocturnal naturalist by training your ears to identify owls, insects, and other nighttime critters.
The last day to register for this camp is August 10, 2022.
Learn more about Science of the Senses.
Plunge into experiments about the physics and chemistry of H2O as you develop your own mega-bubble solution, test for acids and bases, get cracking with ice, and more. Design your way through a boat building race, water balloon drops, and other friendly challenges. Hike through Schenley Park to investigate aquatic habitats in the Panther Hollow Watershed and take a dip in nearby Schenley swimming pool.
Day trip to Schenley Swimming Pool: museum pick-up at 4:00 p.m.
The last day to register for this camp is August 10, 2022.
Learn more about Wet and Wild.
Get ready for an adventure as you explore Pittsburgh by foot, bus, and subway! Navigate through Pittsburgh’s kaleidoscope of cultural traditions. Visit with leaders of local organizations, including BirdSafe Pittsburgh to learn what you can do to make city life better for all of Pittsburgh’s inhabitants. Lace up your sneakers—this is an active camp with daily hiking and public transit excursions.
Daily local trips: museum pick up at 3 p.m.
The last day to register for this camp is August 10, 2022.
Learn more about Youth Museum Institute: Go Pittsburgh.
Post-Camp is for children ages 6+.
You must have a camp registration for the same week to enroll.
Learn more about Post-Camp Week 10 (August 15-19).