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For multidisciplinary artist Claudia Maysen, 91��Ʒ�s MAKE! For Educators program in June helped her �to explore and materialize ideas� for �Playthings� � a new solo exhibition on gun violence on view at Milwaukee�s 5 Points Art Gallery + Studios through October 27.

�During my time at MAKE,� says Maysen, �I was able to create the first pieces of a new body of work that was born as a response to my previous �Ammo Series,� which investigates gun violence through a multidisciplinary practice.�

According to the gallery�s press release, �Claudia Maysen is a North Texas-based artist whose work uniquely blends abstraction with representation, exploring social issues within our communities from a vantage point of, both, a Latina who immigrated from Mexico as an adult and an American citizen.

�Maysen investigates the � systems that enable gun violence in America through a captivating display of installations, paintings, videos and sculptures, a body of work that she began two years ago after the mass-shooting at Robb Elementary School, in Texas.�

�Working in a setting different than my studio at home, surrounded by fellow creatives, getting great critique sessions from 91��Ʒ�s professor and artist Kate Schaffer, and experiencing the gorgeous weather and views of this location really helped me explore and materialize some of the ideas I had for the new series,� says Maysen.

�Production-wise, it was great counting with 91��Ʒ�s tools and facilities, such as the laser-cutting equipment I used for some parts of my �I Make My Own Game� sculpture and the spray-painting booth where I worked on my �A Handful of Flowers Moving Forward� painting.�

Participants in 91��Ʒ�s summer MAKE! program select either MAKE! Fine Art or MAKE! Design as the focus of their experience. Fine Art participants enjoy a week of independent making in the studio and engaging discussions, or observe demonstrations and learn processes that provide access to work in the labs equipped with state-of-the-art equipment. They have access to nearly 70 types of equipment, software and tools in 91��Ʒ�s Printmaking Lab, Textiles Lab and Lubar Emerging Technology Center. Learn more about

Maysen�s exhibit at 5 Points Art Gallery + Studios, 3514 N. Port Washington Ave., is free and open to the public Monday � Thursday by appointment; Friday � Saturday from 12 to 5 p.m.; and Sunday from 12 to 4 p.m. , which is owned by mixed-media artist and development project manager Fatima Laster.

More information about Maysen is at or on .