Share and Share Alike
This morning I had the pleasure of talking about the Affiliations program with staff from two Affiliates, the Heinz History Center and the B & O Railroad Museum. But we weren’t talking about the Smithsonian’s Affiliations program – we were talking about theirs. Both the Heinz History Center and the B & O Museum have created […]
The Georgia Aquarium
Whale Sharks, manta rays and 6 million gallons of water ( I have seen 8 million quoted – either way it is ALOT of water!)combined with a 100 year old giant squid on loan from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History were just a few highlights from the first half hour of our tour of […]
Smithsonian’s fireless locomotive moves to Baltimore
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History recently donated a vintage 1938 fireless steam locomotive to our Affiliate in Baltimore, the B & O Railroad Museum. On August 18, Affiliations and Museum staff were on hand to document this dramatic move. The move took two days to complete. One to rig the locomotive onto a […]
what can your toaster teach you?
Design is not my thing. It’s embarrassing to admit, but I’d sooner jump out of a plane than wander through a shop like Target or IKEA where rows and rows of modern gadgets remind me that I’m just not chic enough. I have a feeling I’m not the only one. So in my search […]
grab your compass
Affiliates Plimoth Plantation and the Senator John Heinz History Center extend their reach through Smithsonian’s History Explorer and Thinkfinity! Smithsonian’s History Explorer is a gateway to innovative, standards-based online resources for teaching and learning American history. History Explorer is designed and developed by the National Museum of American History, a partner in Verizon’s Thinkfinity.org consortium […]
climate change online conference
Ginkgo biloba The Smithsonian addresses the global challenge of climate change in a range of ways, including through exhibitions and scientific research. From September 29 through October 1, 2009, the Smithsonian will offer an education online conference on climate change to allow teachers and the general public to participate in the Institution’s investigations, meet and question […]
Show me the money
In these tough economic times, it’s nice to see some bright spots. Congratulations to all these Affiliates who’ve received grants and awards recently. Well done! Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art has been awarded a $25,800 grant from the Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC) to support ongoing education and exhibition programming. The American Civil War Center at […]
new Undersecretary for Science
Eva J. Pell, Senior Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate School at Pennsylvania State University, has been named Under Secretary for Science at the Smithsonian Institution. Pell has been Vice President and Dean since 2000 and was promoted to Senior Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate School at […]
behind the scenes with african animals
One of the favorite parts of my job is when an Affiliate director says, “do you think we could get a tour of that new exhibition?” It gets even better when the curator on the tour says, “and I have more objects like this in storage; let’s take a look.” Yeah! I was fortunate one […]
Deep in the heart of Texas
Submitted by Harold A. Closter, Smithsonian Affiliations Director Four days, six Affiliates and five hundred miles. We try to make the most of our visits to Smithsonian Affiliates and especially enjoy the vitality and diversity of our partners in the Dallas area. The catalyst for this trip, July 12 – 15, was the opening of Within […]
Who will be chosen? The decision is yours.
Thanks to Ilana Blumenthal, Public Relations Associate at the National Museum of American Jewish History, for this guest post. My first vote is going to the Marx Brothers. That’s an easy one. Their quick wits and dry humor have filled both my childhood and adulthood with laughter, and to me, humor is one […]
Let’s Eat
On Monday July 12, Smithsonian Networks launches the second season of its signature series, “Stories from the Vaults” with a look at the incredible, edible Smithsonian. It features Native cuisines and collections of the Pacific Northwest at the American Indian Museum (think: salmon!), and the origins of the American coffee break in the American History […]
Textile Revolution!
What do sheep and baseballs have in common? This is one of the many intriguing questions answered in the new permanent exhibition, Textile Revolution: An Exploration through Space and Time at the American Textile History Museum in Lowell, Massachusetts. On June 19, the Museum cut the ribbon on their own revolution. Having been closed for […]
Masterpiece on the Move
A masterpiece by one of America’s most renowned 19th-century landscape artists will soon make its way west from the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., to the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, the only Smithsonian Affiliate in Wyoming. Thomas Moran’s The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone (1893 – 1901) will be on loan from […]
“An Open Smithsonian, all around”
An interesting blog post by Gunter Waibel of RLG Programs, (a group which supports research institutions in collaboratively designing the future) commenting on the Smithsonian’s hot topic – how to “diffuse knowledge” in the 21st century with the creation of a web and new media strategic plan: As part of the process for arriving at the Smithsonian’s Web and New Media strategic […]
Affiliates at AAM
Affiliates provided alot of insight at the recent AAM meeting in Philadelphia. Cassie Chinn, Deputy Executive Director of the Wing Luke Asian Museum in Seattle, presented in a session titled Community-Curated Exhibit Programs. She described how the process of incorporating the community into every exhibition process is time-consuming and complicated, but that the Museum has made that […]
