ncmuseums

An occasional list of exhibits, programs, and events at North Carolina museums. Sponsored by the North Carolina Museums Council.

Monday, February 27, 2012

NCMC Events From Around the State… February 27, 2012

*NCMC announces its 2012 conference to be held in Asheville, NC, on March 18 and 19. Registration is in process and can be done on-line or by mail. The conference theme is “Elevating Expectations.” Visit www.ncmuseums.org to register and for more information…

1). N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher Make a connection with lizards, gators, snakes and more at Scales and Tails. The wild weekend at the N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher, March 3 and 4, allows visitors to come face-to-face with reptiles and amphibians of all kinds in a safe and exciting learning environment. During the two-day event, regional exhibitors and Aquarium staff will show-off scaly and exotic creatures from their collections while debunking myths and sharing facts about these amazing animals.

2). N.C. Museum of History presents “First Friday Performance: Sojourner Truth and Her Children” on Friday, March 2nd, 7-9 p.m. $5 per person; ages 12 and under free. This new readers’ theater work by local performance group Voices in Concert dramatizes the family life of 19th-century abolitionist and women’s rights activist Sojourner Truth.

3). Marbles Kids Museum presents “Playdate with an Artist – Michelle Davis Petelinz” thru March 5th, Tuesday-Wednesday 9:30am-2:30pm; Saturday 9:30am-3:30pm; Sunday 1-5pm. Bringing out the artist in the child and the child in the artist. Get out of the cold and warm up your creative side with local mixed-media artist Michelle Davis Petelinz. Join Michelle as she creates unique pieces of art with you! Visit our website for workshops, activities and more. Funded in part by the City of Raleigh based on recommendation of the Raleigh Arts Commission.

4). N.C. Maritime Museum at Southport is privileged to present Dr.Ufuk Kocabas, Director of Istanbul University’s Dept. of Marine Archeology and the Yenikapi Shipwrecks Project, from 2-4 pm Sunday, March 4th. A Free Wine and Hors d'oeuvre Reception will follow. Dr. Kocabas will describe the 2004 discovery and subsequent excavation of the ancient portus Theodosiacsus the principle port of Byzantine Constantinople. The discovery was made during construction of the world’s deepest tunnel for a rail and metro network designed to run under the Bosphorus River, and link Europe and Asia. The vast archeological site covers the equivalent of ten city blocks in Turkey’s largest city, Istanbul.

5). Museum of the Albemarle Join the Museum of the Albemarle as they celebrate Dr. Seuss’ Birthday on Friday, March 2, from 10:00 am with “Seussical Time”. Participants must be between the ages of 3 to 5 years and must be accompanied by an adult. Pre-Schoolers will learn a few interesting facts about Dr. Seuss, read a book and participate in a hands-on activity. This program is free and open to the public.

6). N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences Neandertals are our closest extinct relatives. They diverged from a common ancestor with humans about 300,000 years ago. Mysteriously, they disappeared from the fossil record about 30,000 years ago. Join Dr. Richard Edward Green for a discussion of “Human Evolution as Revealed by a Neandertal,” at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences on Thursday, March 1 at 7pm. Come early (6pm) for a reception and to talk to anthropology and paleontology students from area universities about their research projects. Free.

7). HandsOn! The Rotary Club of Hendersonville invites you to come into Hands On!, the children’s museum in downtown Hendersonville, Friday March 2 to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Seuss by making a bookmark to hold your place in your favorite Dr. Seuss book! Craft is free with $5 admission and is free for museum members. Hands On! will also host the Children’s Choir of Hendersonville on Saturday, March 10 in a Dr. Seuss themed concert at 11:00 a.m. The concert is free with $5 admission and free for museum members.

8). SECCA presents “Opening and Talk @ SECCA: Woman on the Run by artist Tracey Snelling” on Thursday, March 1st, 7 p.m. Followed by light refreshments. Across corner stores and cinematic histories, Tracey Snelling’s cross-disciplinary installations mine the psychological tensions and hidden narratives of small town America. Marrying life-size rooms, videos, neon, and an array of “clues,” Woman on the Run provides a film-noir-like setting for an enigmatic crime story where both the narrative and the protagonist remain fugitive. Exhibition on view: March 1 – May 27, 2012.

9). Hickory Museum of Art will host a gallery talk on Sunday, March 4 at 3 PM. The Museum welcomes special guest Robin Salmon, Vice President for Collections and Curator of Sculpture at Brookgreen Gardens as she shares her expertise on Anna Hyatt Huntington’s life and sculpture. The event is free and open to the public. Archer and Anna Hyatt Huntington founded Brookgreen Gardens in 1931 on Pawleys Island, SC to preserve the native flora and fauna and display the most significant collection of American sculpture in an outdoor setting. HMA is proud to own four sculptures by the world-renowned sculptor, which will be on exhibit during the gallery talk.

10). N.C. Transportation Museum presents "Night at the N.C. Transportation Museum"! Costumed interpreters will tell stories of the past during this one-night only event and brings the museum to life after hours! Friday, March 2nd. During this fourth annual event, those who lived and worked around the machines of the past will tell their stories, as costumed interpreters take center stage at different points throughout the museum. Tours take place at 5:30, 6:30 and 7:30 p.m. Tours are $10/person.

Monday, February 20, 2012

NCMC Events From Around the State… February 20, 2012

*NCMC announces its 2012 conference to be held in Asheville, NC, on March 18 and 19. Registration is in process and can be done on-line or by mail. The conference theme is “Elevating Expectations.” Visit www.ncmuseums.org to register and for more information…

1). Fort Dobbs State Historic Site (www.fortdobbs.org) will offer a glimpse of the harrowing days of the 18th century Cherokee War on Feb. 25-26. The 252nd anniversary program will feature living history interpreters who will portray provincial soldiers and Cherokee warriors, present musket and cannon firing demonstrations, and ongoing demonstrations of 18th century military and American Indian camp life. The free programs will run 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Sunday. A special evening firing will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday.

2). Cape Fear Museum (www.capefearmuseum.com) presents “Explore the Civil War” on Saturdays, March 3, 10, 17, 24, 31, 1-4pm. Free for members or with Museum admission. What was life like in the 1860’s? Investigate the contents of a Civil War soldier’s haversack and consider how the items compare to your own daily life needs. Learn how to create and crack secret codes. Try on reproduction Civil War clothing and play a Blockade Runner board game.

3). Preservation Society of Chapel Hill (www.chapelhillpreservation.com) presents a Black History Month Film Series, “Africans in America: America's Journey Through Slavery”. “Africans in America” examines the economic and intellectual foundations of slavery in America and the global economy that prospered from it. And it reveals how the presence of African people and their struggle for freedom transformed America. Episode Four, "Judgement Day: 1831-1865" on Wednesday, February 22nd at noon. Free admission but donations welcome.

4). Cameron Art Museum (www.cameronartmuseum.com) The Cameron Art Museum’s 7th Annual Civil War Living History Weekend will be held on Saturday, Feb. 25th from 9:00 am (grounds open) to 5:00 pm and Sunday, Feb. 26 9:00 am (grounds open) to 2:00 pm (museum remains open until 5:00 pm). This celebrated event is free and open to the public. Reenactors, Battle of Forks Road skirmish both days, sutlers, period music, 2nd Annual Ghost Walk with Halyburton Park and more. The weekend’s activities also include an opening ceremony on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 10:30 am.

5). Reynolda House Museum (www.reynoldahouse.org) will host a talk titled “The Olmstedian Influence on the Reynolda Landscape,” given by Camilla Wilcox, longtime curator of education at Reynolda Gardens of Wake Forest University. Co-sponsored by Reynolda Gardens, Wilcox’s talk will be held on Feb. 21 at 5:30 p.m. and will highlight the museum’s spring exhibition, “A Genius for Place: American Landscapes of the Country Place Era,” which is on view Feb.18 through Aug. 5, 2012.

6). Joel Lane Museum House (www.joellane.org) Elliot Engel will speak on ”Sir Walter Raleigh: Beyond the Muddy Cloak” on Friday, February 24, 2012, at 7 pm at the Visitors Center at Long View Center, 118 South Person Street, Raleigh, NC, 27601. General admission tickets will be $25 per person. Advanced purchase is strongly recommended. Originally from Indianapolis, Indiana, Dr. Engel now lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he has taught at the University of North Carolina, North Carolina State University, and Duke University. He earned his M.A. and Ph.D. as a Woodrow Wilson Fellow at UCLA. While at UCLA he won that university’s Outstanding Teacher Award.

7). Port Discover
(www.portdiscover.org) Let’s explore the H2O Cycle! Learn how this important cycle makes a difference in our daily lives during “Water Works,” Port Discover’s Afterschool Science, Thursday, February 23, from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm. Port Discover educators will make models that demonstrate several types of water cycles. Afterschool Science is Port Discover’s free, interactive science program featuring a different and timely topic each month. Afterschool Science is made possible thanks to the City of Elizabeth City.

8). Bellamy Mansion (www.bellamymansion.org) presents “Monday's at the Mansion” series featuring “African American Troops in the Revolutionary Era” with Tom Massey, History Instructor of CFCC on Monday, February 27. 2012 -7:00 pm. "Give me liberty or give me death" is a cry of defiance that has been credited to Patrick Henry, a slave-owning American patriot from Virginia. It is a cry that affected many people during the Revolutionary Era. It greatly affected the American colonists as well as African Americans, those who were free as well as those who were slaves.

9). Weatherspoon Art Museum (http://weatherspoon.uncg.edu/) presents a new exhibition: "Telling Tales: Narratives from the 1930s", opening: Saturday, Feb 25th. Artists of all periods have used narrative imagery to teach, enlighten, and/or inspire viewers. Derived in the past from literature, Biblical scripture, mythology, or history, narrative art created during the 1930s continued to record these themes as well as the dramatic economic, social, and political changes that were taking place across the nation.

10). Hickory Museum of Art (http://www.HickoryArt.org) will host a gallery talk on Thursday, February 23 at 6:30 PM with Matthew Good on the art of making oil paint. Doors open at 6 PM for light refreshments and the opportunity to view some of the Museum’s Hudson River School era masterpieces. The event is free and open to the public. Good will demonstrate an approach the Hudson River School painters might have used more than 150 years ago to make oil paint. Attendees will have opportunity to mull fresh oil paint.

Monday, February 13, 2012

NCMC Events From Around the State… February 13, 2012

NCMC announces its 2012 conference to be held in Asheville, NC, on March 18 and 19. Registration is in process and can be done on-line or by mail; Early Bird deadline is February 17. The conference theme is “Elevating Expectations.” Visit www.ncmuseums.org to register and for more information...

1). High Point Museum presents “Leap into History…A Night at the Museum” on Thursday, February 16, 6:30 pm to 9 pm (February 23 make-up date). The High Point Historical Society is hosting its annual Winter Gala Fundraiser and includes entertainment, music and few surprises. Come spend the evening learning about local history and meeting a few characters from our past. Cost $25 per person and reservations are required.

2). Battleship NORTH CAROLINA presents “It’s All About the Guns” on February 18th, 9am – 5:30pm. Learn about and explore the Battleship's 16-inch and 5-inch guns from the gun houses to the ammunition loading compartments; the 40mm and 20mm guns, and the weapons that they replaced (1.10 and 50 caliber guns). Presenters will discuss the various types of fire control equipment (directors/optical range finders, radar, computers) and how main and secondary battery plotting rooms and the combat information center operated. Registration and payment are due by Thursday, February 16th.

3). N.C. Maritime Museum at Southport presents “Third Tuesday Evening Adult Program: Black History Month, African-American Soldiers of the Lower Cape Fear” on February 21, 7:00-9:00 p.m. Join the NC Maritime Museum at Southport and The Friends of the Museum as we present Master Sergeant Clyde Wilson, Civil War Re-enactor and researcher, who will speak on the role of African-American soldiers in campaigns of the Lower Cape Fear. Learn about the 27th US Colored Troops, who played a key role in accepting the surrender of Fort Fisher and was the first US unit to garrison Fort Johnston after Confederate abandonment, as well as, the African-American units deployed at the garrison of Fort Johnston during Reconstruction in the 1870's.

4). Blowing Rock Art & History Museum welcomes all Tar Heel fans and sports enthusiasts to join them Thursday, February 16 as Woody Durham shares his “Stories Along the Way,” accumulated over his 40-year tenure as the play-by-play radio announcer for the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. Admission to the event is $20, which includes refreshments and Durham’s talk. Raffle tickets for a UNC goody basket will be available. Seating is limited.

5). State Capitol The State Capitol and the Richard B. Harrison Library will host a session of the 2012 “National African-American Read-In” on February 18th. The Read-In will be held at the State Capitol from noon- 2 p.m. and is free and open to the public. The event is held in recognition of Black History Month, and the public is invited to share favorite passages from the writings of contemporary and historical black authors. Capitol staff, students of all ages, and community leaders will read aloud from selected works by various African American authors.

6). SciWorks presents “Batik workshop at SciWorks” on Saturday, February 18, 2012, 11:00-1:00. Cost for workshop and materials $15. Are you creative? Do you want to learn a new way to express your artistic side? Then please join us for a hands-on batik workshop for beginners. We will explore the art work of renowned batik artist, Mary Edna Fraser. Her beautiful and colorful exhibit "Our Expanding Oceans" is currently on display at SciWorks. You will learn batik techniques through demonstrations and exhibit interactions. Then you will have the opportunity to make your own batik. All materials are provided, but please dress for mess.
7). Reynolda House Museum of American Art Art is celebrating the publication of “Artist-Naturalists in the Early American South,” an essay co-authored by Reynolda House’s Director of Public Programs Phil Archer. The scholarly article published in the American Art Review’s February 2012 issue highlights the exhibition “Wonder and Enlightenment: Artist-Naturalists in the Early American South,” featuring works by John James Audubon, Charles Fraser, and David Johnson. Curated by Archer, the exhibition is on view through Feb. 20 in the Northeast Bedroom Gallery.

8). Museum of Anthropology is proud to present the American premiere of “Gazing at the Contemporary World: Japanese Photography from the 1970s to the Present,” which will be on exhibit through March 31, 2012. This traveling exhibition, which has toured the world since its inception in 2007, is co-sponsored by the Museum of Anthropology, Wake Forest University, the Japan Foundation, and the Consulate General of Japan in Atlanta.

9). Port Discover in partnership with Elizabeth City State University, offers “Weekend Science Lab Experience” on Saturday, February 18 at 9:00 am at Elizabeth City State University. The program will offer 9 to 12-year-olds the opportunity to work with a scientist in the labs at ECSU and conduct a hands-on scientific experiment. Dr. Margaret Young, associate professor of biology at Elizabeth City State University, will lead children, 9 to 12-year-olds, through “Cloning of a Potato.”

10). Kings Mountain Historical Museum and Girl Scouts Carolina Peaks to Piedmont are proud to present, "Something for the Girls": GSUSA - 100 Years. The exhibit, which celebrates the founding of the Girl Scouts in America 100 years ago, will feature artifacts from the central and western North Carolina regions. The exhibit will be on display February 7 - April 28, 2012, Tuesday - Saturday, 10AM - 4PM at the Kings Mountain Historical Museum. Various special events hosted by local long-time adult Girl Scout volunteers will take place on Saturdays throughout the exhibition.

Monday, February 06, 2012

NCMC Events From Around the State… February 6, 2012

NCMC announces its 2012 conference to be held in Asheville, NC, on March 18 and 19. Registration is in process and can be done on-line or by mail; Early Bird deadline is February 17. The conference theme is “Elevating Expectations.” Visit www.ncmuseums.org to register and for more information.

1). High Point Museum presents “Stenciling in the Historical Park” on Saturday, February 11, 10 am to 4 pm. Stenciling has long been a popular method of decorative painting. Come try your hand painting a keepsake box with stencils. All ages welcome. Cost: $1 per box. Free for members. Drop-in. Limit 2 per person.

2). Pres. James K. Polk State Historic Site presents “Historic Floor Cloth Workshop”. Learn about these decorative pieces on February 18 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Volunteer Erica Blake will teach you how to make floor cloths that you can take home with you. You’ll learn how to apply traditional floor cloth techniques to create your own bookmarks and mouse pads. Pre-registration is required and there is a $10 materials fee. Registration ends on February 8, 2012. The workshop is limited to 10 participants. We will provide light refreshments, and attendees are welcome to bring lunch.

3). N.C. Transportation Museum For the first time in 25 years of operation, the NCTM is offering a look behind closed doors. Those taking advantage of the museum’s new “Behind the Scenes” tours will see automotive and rail cars not currently on display, stroll through the enormous Back Shop, view the Roundhouse Restoration bays, and enjoy a tour through the private rail car of James Duke. “Behind the Scenes” tours open new areas of the historic Spencer Shops, while providing a unique view of museum artifacts and restoration projects. “Behind the Scenes” tours are by reservation only and offered each Tuesday through Friday at 1, 2 and 3 p.m. Tours last about 90 minutes.

4). N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher presents “Aquarist Apprentice” on Saturdays, February 11th and 25th at 2:00 p.m. Join staff on a behind-the-scenes tour and learn about Aquarium animals, what they eat, how they live, and how to care for them. Then, assist aquarists with food preparation and help feed the animals. Participants also observe aquarists during daily care and maintenance tasks. This limited opportunity is only open to 10 participants. For ages 10 and older. Ages 14 and younger must be accompanied by an adult. Fee: $25 for ages 13 and older, $23 for ages 10 to 12. Aquarium admission included. Pre-registration required.

5). Eden Preservation Society will hold its 2012 Membership Drive and Social at the Meador-Kemp-Norman-Stevens House (circa 1862-1866) at on Sunday, February 12, 2012, from 2:00-4:00 p.m. Bring a friend and introduce them to this wonderful, historic home lovingly restored by present owners, Joseph and Jennifer Griffin. Melissa Whitten of the Society's Eden Historical Museum will present a program on the history of the home. Refreshments will be served.

6). Mint Museum will unveil “Surrealism and Beyond” on Feb. 11th: 3 shows, 4 artists, 1 journey. The Mint Museum will once again break new ground by bringing together three exhibitions comprising the largest and most significant examination of Surrealism and Surrealist-inspired art ever presented in the Southeast. “Surrealism and Beyond” opens to the public at Mint Museum Uptown on 11 February and runs through 13 May. There will be an abundance of exciting and surreal programs and events associated with this exhibition. Stay tuned!

7). Port Discover Boom! Gong! Ting! What makes sounds different? Through a series of hands-on programs, Dr. Chris Palestrant, Professor of Music at Elizabeth City State University, will guide children through the “Science of Sound,” at Port Discover’s Second Saturday Science program, on February 11 at 11:00 am. Second Saturday Science is free. The science center’s hours are Tuesday through Friday from 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm, and Saturday from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm. Programs can be arranged at other times for special groups.

8). Reynolda House Museum of American Art Have you ever wondered how a mansion like Reynolda House kept warm in the winter and cool in the summer way back in 1917? Reynolda House Museum of American Art invites the public to a behind-the-scenes tour of the historic house on Sunday, Feb. 5 or Sunday, Feb. 12 at 2:30 p.m. Centered around a winter theme, visitors will tour ten fireplaces, the original coal chute, furnace rooms, and other areas of the historic house normally closed to the general public, including kitchens, laundry and mechanical rooms, the squash court, and areas below the swimming pool. Admission is $10 for members and students, $15 for non-members.

9). Mount Airy Museum of Regional History in partnership with the Plaid Cloth Literary Society is sponsoring the 2nd annual African American Read-In on Wednesday February 8 from noon to 1pm in the Museum’s 2nd floor conference room. This event is free and open to the public. To participate, one needs only to select works written by an African American and be prepared to read a poem or an excerpt from a book. Listeners are also welcome. The goal of the Read-In is to make the celebration of African American literacy a traditional part of Black History Month activities.

10). N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences Why do oystercatchers have long, sharp bills? Why are chili peppers spicy? Why do servals (a kind of African wild cat) have such long legs? Come explore the answers to these questions and more at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences on Darwin Day, February 11. The free event runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and will span the first three floors of the Museum, as well as outside in the Bicentennial Plaza. Visitors will learn more about Charles Darwin and his research, as well as the legacy that he has left behind.

11). N.C. Museum of History In 1848, Mary Walker fled slavery and the plantation that is now Historic Stagville in Durham, leaving behind her son and daughter. She spent 17 years trying to recover her family. Dr. Syd Nathans, professor emeritus with Duke University, tells of her remarkable ordeal in the book “To Free A Family: The Journey of Mary Walker” at Historic Stagville on Sunday, Feb. 12, at 2 p.m., and at the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh, on Monday, Feb. 13, at 11 a.m. The programs are free.