museum

“Planet Word adds new free story vending machine – DC’s first”

By Prince Of Petworth


“On March 5, Planet Word installed D.C.’s first Short Édition Story Dispenser. Located in the museum’s entryway, it provides free access to hundreds of short stories or poems at the touch of a button. The dispenser prints the stories on eco-friendly paper so visitors can take their new reading material home as a keepsake of their visit. The Short Story Edition Dispenser is a gift of Joshua and Lisa Bernstein. Credit: Les Talusan.”

From an email: “Planet Word (13th and K Street, NW) just added a new Short Edition Story Dispenser. Already popular in 300 cities across Europe and the U.S., It’s DC’s first and allows visitors to print out a story or poem to take home with them. It was unveiled Saturday and is now available at the museum which is free and open to the public.”

Starting Friday Mask Mandate Ends at Smithsonian Museums including the Zoo and Starting Monday the Zoo and Natural History Museum will be open 7 days a week!

By Prince Of Petworth


photo by angela n.

From the Smithsonian:

“Beginning Friday, March 11, the Smithsonian will no longer require visitors to wear a mask to visit its museums and the National Zoo. Visitors may choose to wear a mask during their visit. This change reflects recent guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and local and national guidelines around masking indoors.

The Smithsonian will also begin a gradual transition to museums being open more days per week. Starting Monday, March 14, the National Museum of Natural History and the National Zoo will be open to the public seven days a week. (more…)

April 1 Opening Date for “One with Eternity: Yayoi Kusama in the Hirshhorn Collection”

By Prince Of Petworth


“Visitor experiencing Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirrored Room–My Heart Is Dancing into the Universe (2018), part of the 2022 exhibition One with Eternity: Yayoi Kusama in the Hirshhorn Collection at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Photo by Matailong Du. Wood and glass mirrored room with paper lanterns, 119 5/8 x 245 1/8 x 245 1/8 in. (304 x 622.4 x 622.4 cm). Courtesy Ota Fine Arts and Victoria Miro, London/Venice. © YAYOI KUSAMA. Purchased jointly by the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. (Joseph H. Hirshhorn Purchase Fund, 2020), and the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, with funds from the George B. and Jenny R. Mathews Fund, by exchange.”

From a press release:

“The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden will debut “One with Eternity: Yayoi Kusama in the Hirshhorn Collection,” a focused look at the celebrated artist’s nearly seven-decade long career, April 1-Nov. 27. Presented nearly five years after the Hirshhorn’s milestone exhibition “Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors,” this exhibition will showcase work by Kusama from the museum’s permanent collection, featuring two recently acquired Infinity Mirror Rooms.

After a 17-month closure of the museum’s building, “One with Eternity” joins the Hirshhorn’s dynamic spring exhibition schedule in inviting visitors to once again explore all the interior galleries and celebrate the art and ideas of today and the artists who paved the way. (more…)

U.S. Botanic Garden-Smithsonian Gardens orchid show opened in the Kogod Courtyard in the National Portrait Gallery

By Prince Of Petworth


courtesy United States Botanic Garden

From a press release:

“On Jan. 29, the Smithsonian Gardens and the U.S. Botanic Garden opened the 26th annual orchid exhibition. “Orchids: Hidden Stories of Groundbreaking Women” will be on display in the Robert and Arlene Kogod Courtyard of the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery through April 24 (currently open Thursday-Sunday 11:30 a.m.-7 p.m..) The exhibition unearths stories of women who have enriched the understanding and appreciation of orchids. (more…)

“Hirshhorn Wins Approval for Hiroshi Sugimoto’s Sculpture Garden Revitalization”

By Prince Of Petworth


Rendering of the central garden courtesy of the Hirshhorn

Ed. Note: I’m told they expect to break ground next fall and reopen in 2024-2025, the Hirshhorn’s 50th anniversary year.

From the Hirshhorn:

“The Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden has successfully completed the public consultation process for the revitalization of its Sculpture Garden. The National Capital Planning Commission voted to approve the final proposal, joining the Commission of Fine Arts, which voted on July 15 to approve the project. (more…)

Mark it!! “The National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden Ice Rink will reopen on November 19”

By Prince Of Petworth


photo by Pablo Raw

From a press release:

“The National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden Ice Rink will reopen on November 19, marking the return of a beloved winter activity after last year’s season was canceled. Located on the National Mall between 7th and 9th Streets along Constitution Avenue NW, the ice rink will remain open through March 6, weather permitting. (more…)

“World premiere performance of WAKE UP: Liberation Call at Dawn, tomorrow at 7:30am in the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden”

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by Tonje Thilesen

From an email:

“Set your alarm! Tomorrow, Friday, Oct. 15 at 7:30 am, American artist Abigail DeVille marks the arrival of her multimedia sculpture, Light of Freedom (2020) on the National Mall with the premiere of, WAKE UP: Liberation Call at Dawn (2021) in the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden. DeVille’s invocation of freedom in voice and percussion includes contributions from artist-scholar-sound healer Jadele McPherson; West African drumming from Farafina Kan, and go-go music from The JoGo Project. The free, outdoor performance begins at 7:30am and last approximately 45 minutes. Registration is appreciated.

WAKE UP is a one-time, site-specific artwork. DeVille created Light of Freedom as “a commemoration of the Black Lives Matter protests and movement and the Black lives here on this continent for 400 years.” Her mixed-media sculpture will be on display on the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden, Oct. 15-April 17, 2022.

DETAILS: (more…)

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo will “not host the Zoo’s traditional Halloween or ZooLights events” However, “Air & Scare” Returns to the National Air and Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center”

By Prince Of Petworth


photo by Idit Knaan

From the Smithsonian Office of Public Affairs:

“We made the decision to not host the Zoo’s traditional Halloween or ZooLights events because we didn’t feel we could do them well for multiple reasons and within our COVID safety parameters. Our number one priority remains the safety and wellbeing of our visitors, staff and animals. We all feel hopeful that 2022 will bring new opportunities.”

From an email:

“The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum will once again host its annual “Air & Scare” family day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 30, at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia. (more…)

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