This weekend children visiting Chattanooga's Creative Discovery Museum can make their own coat of arms to show who they are or what they like to do.
From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday in the Discovery Museum's atrium, artist-in-residence Frances McDonald will help children design and create a vibrant and colorful medieval-style coat of arms.
"The idea for this activity is based on the occupational coat-of-arms on display in our Amazing Castle exhibit," said Liza Blair, Creative Discovery Museum arts manager.
The Amazing CastleTM exhibit, which continues at the Museum through May 13, invites children inside the stone walls of a fantasy castle for a look at daily life in a place where everyone works together to make a community.
"In medieval heraldry, everything you see on a coat-of-arms meant something about the person who wore it," said Ms. Blair. "Animals and colors were symbolic. A lion meant fierce courage, or a swan meant that the wearer was a musical person. Gold stood for generosity, and green stood for hope or loyalty in love."
"A medieval coat-of-arms was a symbol for the person who wore it, so I'll help the children create a picture that shows who they are. We'll start by talking about the jobs people did in the castle," said artist-in-residence Ms. McDonald. The Amazing Castle exhibit includes a tailor, a carpenter and a blacksmith.
"I'll ask the children questions to help them create their picture," said Ms. McDonald. "What job would you have done if you lived back then? What do you want to do when you grow up? A coat-of-arms would include an animal, maybe a lion or a dragon, so they might include their cat or dog."
Hours are Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Sunday, noon-5 p.m. Tickets are $8.95 for children and adults. The museum is located at 321 Chestnut Street in downtown Chattanooga. For more information, call (423) 756-2738, or visit www.cdmfun.org. Participation in the coat-of-arms art activity is included in the ticket price for the Museum.