A Free STEAM Activity Center is Coming to the Meatpacking District

By Sabrina Sooknanan February 22, 2017

ARTech: Adventures in Art + Technology, a pop-up activity center for children, will open in March.

ARTech, a free, pop-up activity center featuring family-friendly workshops, installations, and interactive activities is coming to the Meatpacking District for two months starting in March. The purpose of the center is to inspire school age children to learn more about STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) and its impact in fun, interactive ways. The Meatpacking Business Improvement District is partnering with the Children’s Museum of the Arts and the New York Hall of Science to bring the 8,000-square-foot activity center to families.

Inside ARTech will be a variety of activities, from a GIF making station to a recreation of CMA’s infamous Ball Pond. Families will also be able to enjoy the Velocity Area, where children can make their own custom wheeled vehicles to race down ramps, as well as the Danny Rozin Installation, made up of giant pixelated painting mirrors that respond to movement. Children can learn about the night sky with a visit to Starlab and use the award-winning design kit, Rigamajig, to make creations with wooden planks, pulleys, bolts, and more.

Families will also get a chance to explore ecology, connected systems, sustainability, and climate change through art installations created by artist-and-scientist teams. Some works include A Tale of Dogs in a Changing World by Coche Gonzalez and Jack Tseng, which shares the 40-million-year journey of the dog family and 1,000 Fingers of Decision by Carrie Dashow and Matthew Liao, which showcases the importance of people’s decisions in addressing climate change.

“ARTech provides a platform to highlight the [Meatpacking] district as a neighborhood with a strong arts and technology footprint,” said Lauren Danziger, executive director of the Meatpacking BID, in a press release. “Additionally, we are providing a gratis experience and a place for children to experience STEAM, an industry that is meaningful to the future of not just the district, but the world.”

ARTech will be located at 459 West 14th St. in the Meatpacking District from March 1-April 29. The activity center will open to the public every Wednesday and Thursday from 3-7pm, and Saturday and Sunday from 10am-5pm. Hours may vary and an RSVP is required for a timed entry slot. For more information, visit artech.splashthat.com.

Main image: ARTech will recreate CMA's infamous Ball Pond, have a GIF making station, and more.
Courtesy Children’s Museum of the Arts/Junenoire Mitchell