By Jeff Henebury and Rachel Kimpton
The Tool Shed is a large, interactive container of sorts which houses games, art supplies, building tools, books to read, stimulating activities, engaging questions, and plenty of space to get your imagination going – even on the hottest of days. The Shed is part of the Walker’s summer program, Open Field, and provided the weather allows, it’s open during regular Walker hours: 11a-5p Tuesday – Sunday, and open late until 9p on Target Free Thursday Nights.
Jeff Henebury and Rachel Kimpton, our two lovely Tool Shed Specialists, sat down to share and discuss their experiences with the Tool Shed.
Jeff
Give a brief bio of self.
My name is Jeff. I’m 23. I grew up in Boston but I don’t have an accent any more. I like books, particularly local books; I’ve interned at Graywolf Press, Coffee House Press, and a bunch of other Twin Cities publishing places. I’m bad at hula hooping, but I’m trying to get better. I have yet to get terribly sunburned this summer, which is really impressive for me, but SPF 50 is proving super strong. My shorts look like swim shorts sometimes, and people often ask if I’m going to the pool when I’m at work. And I really like being on the field!
What is your role at the Tool Shed?
I’m there to facilitate the use of the Tool Shed. If people have questions about it, need help using some of the supplies, if people just want to show their awesome creations to someone – I can be that person.
What does the Tool Shed represent for you?
I think of it as an interactive station for play and creation. There’s everything from sports equipment to chess boards to arts and crafts supplies to LEGOS; there’s really something for everyone.
What’s your favorite thing to do at the Shed?
I love making birthday cards using construction paper, markers, and letter stamps. I’ve become a much better friend since gaining constant access to art supplies.
What are your favorite things people have made using the Shed?
Godzilla day! We invited guests to create their own mini cities out of supplies in the Tool Shed – cardboard, building blocks, LEGOS, etc. – and then encouraged them to destroy them in proper Godzilla fashion. Definitely check out the video of it!
Rachel
Give a brief bio of self.
My name is Rachel. I was born in Texas and raised there for eighteen years, but I don’t have, nor have I ever had, a southern accent. Now I’m 21 years old and a fresh graduate of the University of Minnesota. I really like cats and pretending cats like me just as much. Unlike Jeff, I have gotten terribly sunburnt. I lived in India for three months earlier this spring. I don’t know the exact poundage of my bench pressing abilities, but if I were to guess, it’s probably not very much. My favourite color is purple, my spirit animal is Lumpy Space Princess, and Douglas Adams is definitely the man.
What is your role at the Tool Shed?
I’m the person who’s going to either make you really uncomfortable, or make you have the best day ever, when I approach and ask you to do something totally different and unusual.
What does the Tool Shed represent to you?
The Tool Shed is a place where you get to have an atypical museum experience. Usually when you go to an art museum, you aren’t invited to touch, create, or play, whereas with the Tool Shed it’s the direct opposite: you get to interact with its contents and with everyone around you.
What’s your favorite thing to do at the Shed?
I really like the Question of the Day! It’s great to see what people are willing to share. For example, in honor of the opening of the Art, Love & Politics in the 1980s, we asked, “Where were you in 1981?” The responses ranged from nonexistence to disco dancing to being quite heavily influenced by various drugs. Daily questions aside, my favorite objects in the Shed are, by far, the giant clothes pins.
What are your favorite things people have made using the Shed?
My first day running the Shed by myself, a fine group of twenty-something-year-old men created a kraken attack scene using balloons, aluminum foil, popsicle sticks, paper, and string, complete with a hot air balloon rescue team and swarming sharks. For those unfamiliar with the kraken, Wikipedia defines it “a colossal octopus,” a destructive sea creature in Norse mythology.
Jeff and Rachel can be found at the Tool Shed through the month of August, so stop by to discuss the question of the day, to inquire about the slew of tools on offer, to create a Tool Shed masterpiece, or to find out more about Open Field.
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