Alternatives to high heels (museum shoes)
Sometimes, you or a loved one may be tempted to wear heels to a museum. I spotted these intrepid museum-goers at the De Young on a Friday night. It was full of people dancing to live music, checking out art, watching films, and making art. Perhaps the high-heeled were wearing the shoes because it was [...]
We love museums…Do museums love us back? from the Pinky Show
Surprise is good for the brain: Irreverent Nordic craft art at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Yerba Buena’s Irreverent: Contemporary Nordic Craft exhibit is full of surprise, which is what the brain needs to stay elastic and resilient. Simply taking a new route to work or a different path in the park can help your brain remain elastic, so walking through an exhibit of Nordic crafts must be a serious stimulator.
The [...]
How to deal with family: Media & Juice
This holiday season, my microfamily (mother and brother) stayed with my boyfriend and me. Yikes. I moved in with him in December, and my family came to stay with us.
Movie watching saved us. We saw Me and You and Everyone We Know, Mongul, Slumdog Millionaire, MILK, and The Dark Knight. We had plenty to discuss [...]
Dreaming the Dead in San Juan Bautista
I felt a little ill after going through the mission at San Juan Bautista. What were those mission bells used for, did you say? It’s easy to see the beauty of a mission’s architecture and easy to overlook the exploitation that took place during the Spanish conquest. Paid my respects at the gravesite, where [...]
Smithsonian Summer
My buddies and I just got back from summer camp at the Smithsonian Latino Museum Studies Program. I never went to camp as a kid, but I got a taste of what it would have been like, sharing a dorm and staying up until 2:00 a.m. for nights on end. We had the opportunity [...]
In Praise of Good Energy in Museums
Catch up with Hari Jones for a learning experience at the African-American Civil War Museum in Washington, D.C. Mr. Jones uses a call and response format and tells uncommon stories including microhistories. He speaks with power and confidence, answering questions with skill and knowledge. Everyone feels comfortable asking questions, including very young children. Thanks for [...]
Café Crush
One of my best friends, filmmaker Sally Gutierrez Dewer, loves museum cafés. She insists that one should never get too tired of looking at a museum’s collection. The café provides a much needed space to relax, chat, and process.
I learned to appreciate museum cafés at the Fundació Joan Miró in Barcelona. You’ll need downtime in [...]
Frida Kahlo at SFMOMA
Get ready to honor Frida Kahlo on the anniversary of her death, July 13, 1954. The exhibit at the The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is a perfect way to dive into Kahlo’s life and art. There are 41 works that have not been displayed before and photographs of both Kahlo and Diego Rivera. [...]
A Space for Discussing Immigration Issues
The museums & libraries on the borderlands are poised to open up discussion on immigration issues. A 370 mile fence will be built along the U.S.-Mexico border. Recently the Border Patrol was recruiting in Memphis, Tennessee, and the group of potential recruits gasped when the recruiter told the group only 8 black women are employed [...]