Tag Archive for: national museum of american history

coming up in affiliateland in november 2012

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Fall in affiliateland…

TEXAS
The Ellen Noël Art Museum hosts curator Carolyn Russo from the National Air and Space Museum, who will be giving a series of lectures and a photography class in conjunction with the In Plane View exhibition, in Odessa, 11.1-2.

ARIZONA
Curator John Hasse from the National Museum of American History and Affiliations director Harold Closter will take part in the Musical Instrument Museum’s special jazz events in Phoenix, 11.10-11.

MASSACHUSETTS
Deputy director Richard Pickering and food historian Kathleen Wall from Plimoth Plantation will be performing historical theater and giving food talks about the Pilgrims and Thanksgiving at the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., 11.11.

NORTH CAROLINA
National Portrait Gallery’s Sid Hart will host a lecture about on the War of 1812 at the Greensboro Historical Museum in Greensboro, 11.13.

FLORIDA
The Frost Art Museum will host the Reflections Across Time: Seminole Portraits exhibition, which includes loans from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, and the National Museum of the American Indian, in Miami, 11.17.

WASHINGTON
The Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture will host the National Museum of American History’s Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Warriors: Photographs by Gertrude Käsebier, in Spokane, 11.17.

PENNSYLVANIA
The Heinz History Center opens the From Slavery to Freedom exhibition, featuring artifacts on loan from the National Museum of American History, in Pittsburgh, 11.30.

National Youth Summit: Dust Bowl

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The Smithsonian and the National Endowment for the Humanities examine the legacy of the Dust Bowl era through current issues of drought, agricultural sustainability and global food security during a live, interactive discussion with experts. The program will be webcast from the museum to Youth Town Halls at locations across the nation Oct. 17 at 1 p.m. EDT.

In the 1930s, severe drought and extensive farming caused widespread agricultural damage, crop failure and human misery across the Great Plains. Called the “Dust Bowl” because of the immense dust storms created as the dry soil blew away in large, dark clouds, it is considered one of the worst ecological disasters in American history. Millions of acres of farmland were damaged and hundreds of thousands of people were forced to leave their homes. Many migrated to California and other western states where the economic conditions during the Great Depression were often no better than those they had left.

The Oct. 17 discussion in Washington, D.C., taking place in the Warner Bros. Theater at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, will be joined by audiences at nine Smithsonian Affiliate museums and the National Steinbeck Center, which will also host regional Youth Town Halls. Participants at the regional Town Hall sites will prerecord questions on video to be played during the live National Youth Summit webcast. The Youth Town Halls will take place at:

The live webcast is available to educators and students through free registration at americanhistory.si.edu/nys. 

The National Youth Summit brings middle and high school students together with scholars, teachers, policy experts, witnesses to history and activists in a national conversation about important events in America’s past that have relevance to the nation’s present and future. The program is an ongoing collaboration between the National Museum of American History, the National Endowment for the Humanities, PBS and museums across the United States in the Smithsonian Affiliations network.

The summit will include segments from award-winning documentary filmmaker Ken Burns’ forthcoming film The Dust Bowl and a panel discussion, moderated by Huffington Post science editor Cara Santa Maria, and featuring: Ken Burns, Dust Bowl survivor Cal Crabill, U.S. Department of Agriculture ecologist Debra Peters, fifth-generation farmer Roy Bardole from Rippey, Iowa, and farmer and founder of Anson Mills, Glenn Roberts. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack will welcome the audience through a video statement. Panelists will take questions from students participating in the summit, and offer their own perspectives on what history can teach people about their relationship with the environment.

Programming for the National Youth Summit on the Dust Bowl is produced by the National Museum of American History and the National Endowment for the Humanities in partnership with Smithsonian Affiliations and PBS/WETA.

Smithsonian Affiliations collaborates with museums and educational organizations to share the Smithsonian with people in their own communities and create lasting experiences that broaden perspectives on science, history, world cultures and the arts. More information about Smithsonian Affiliations is available here.

The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency created in 1965.  It is one of the largest funders of humanities programs in the United States. NEH grants typically go to cultural institutions, such as museums, archives, libraries, colleges, universities, public television and radio stations, and to individual scholars. For more information on the NEH, visit https://www.neh.gov/.

The National Museum of American History collects, preserves and displays American heritage in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific and military history. To learn more about the museum, check americanhistory.si.edu. For Smithsonian information, the public may call (202) 633-1000.

coming up in affiliateland in october 2012

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OHIO
The Springfield Museum of Art will host an opening event for the Jack Earl: A Modern Master-A Retrospective exhibition featuring loans from the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Springfield, 10.3.

Harold Closter will attend the Ohio Historical Society’s Affiliations Announcement in Columbus, 10.30.

LOUISIANA
The Ogden Museum of Southern Art will host an opening for Art for Art’s Sake exhibition featuring loans from the National Postal Museum. Linda Edquist, conservator, will attend the opening in New Orleans, 10.6.

PENNSYLVANIA
The Senator John Heinz History Center will host an opening for Gridiron Glory: Best of the Pro Football Hall of Fame exhibition featuring loans from the National Museum of American History in Pittsburgh, 10.6.

The Historic Bethlehem Partnership will host Richard Kurin, Smithsonian Under Secretary for History, Art, and Culture, for a lecture program and book signing in Bethlehem, 10.14.

ILLINOIS
The Lakeview Museum of Arts & Sciences will open their new facility, the Peoria Riverfront Museum. Harold Closter and Aaron Glavas from Smithsonian Affiliations will be in attendance in Peoria, 10.11.

NEW YORK
The Long Island Museum of American Art, History, and Carriages will host a public lecture on Elvis and 1950s culture by Amy Henderson from the National Portrait Gallery in Stony Brook, 10.15.

NATIONWIDE
9 Affiliates: Durham Museum, Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, Senator John Heinz History Center, History Colorado, Miami Science Museum, The National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium, Oklahoma Historical Society, Sonoma County Museum, and the South Dakota State Historical Society will host viewing parties and programs as part of the National Museum of American History’s National Youth Summit on the Dust Bowl, 10.17.

WASHINGTON
The Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture will host the National Museum of American History’s Buffalo Bills’ Wild West Warriors exhibition in Spokane, 10.17.

WISCONSIN
Smithsonian Affiliations National Outreach Manager Aaron Glavas will attend the Milwaukee County Historical Society’s Affiliations Announcement in Milwaukee, 10.18.

FLORIDA
The Museum of Arts & Sciences will host Richard Kurin, Smithsonian Undersecretary for History, Art, and Culture, for a book talk in Daytona Beach, 10.20.

The Polk Art Museum will be hosting the National Portrait Gallery’s exhibition In Vibrant Color: Vintage Celebrity Portraits from the Harry Warnecke Studio in Lakeland, 10.27.

ARIZONA
The Heard Museum will host SITES’ Native Words, Native Warriors in Phoenix, 10.27.

CALIFORNIA
Smithsonian Affiliations’ External Affairs Coordinator Elizabeth Bugbee will attend the Western Museum Association’s Conference in Palm Springs, 10.21-24.

GEORGIA
Curator Michelle Delaney from the National Museum of American History will serve on a panel presentation at the Booth Western Art Museum’s Annual Cowboy Festival in Cartersville, 10.26.   

 

New National Youth Summit

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Building on the success of the National Youth Summit: 50th Anniversary of the Freedom Rides program in 2011, Affiliates will again be invited to partner with the National Endowment for the Humanities, PBS, and National Museum of American History.  Scheduled for October 15th, the next Youth Summit coincides with the broadcast of Ken Burns’ documentary, “The Dust Bowl” and will include Affiliates as the locations for funded programming and interactive conversations about this historic event.  (Affiliate partners will be able to apply for $5000 grants to support programs!) 

Considered one of the worst man-made ecological disasters in American history, environmental issues are detailed in the new documentary and are relevant to us today in unexpected ways.  Smithsonian and Affiliate programming will focus on the question of individual freedom versus the common good, an ongoing tension in our democracy.  

In the coming weeks, watch for more information about applying for funds to host a “viewing party” and complementary programming for the webcast, originating at the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.  Ten Affiliates will be asked to pair with their local PBS station for help with technology.  The Affiliates will host middle school students, tape their questions, and make them available to a panel in Washington for discussion. Affiliates are also encouraged to conduct locally-specific programming of their own to explore how the topic relates to their communities.  For more information, please contact Aaron Glavas, national outreach manager, Smithsonian Affiliations: glavasc@si.edu

Coming together in Minneapolis!

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Are you going to the AAM Annual Meeting in Minneapolis this year?  So is Affiliations’ own National Outreach Manager for the midwest, Aaron Glavas.  Reach him at glavasc@si.edu or 202.633.5309 to let him know where you’ll be!

 

 

 

 

 

Support your colleagues and check out these sessions featuring Affiliate and Smithsonian staff!:

Bringin’ It All Back Home: Acknowledging Your Online Support Community
Presenter: Sebastian Chan, Director of Digital & Emerging Media, Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, New York, NY

Communities Create: Approaches to Native American and Other Community Exhibitions
Chaired by: Zahava Doering, Senior Social Scientist, Policy & Analysis, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC
Presenting: Carolyn Rapkievian, Assistant Director, Education & Museum Programs, National Museum of the American Indian, Washington, DC

CRAFTing a Community
Chaired by: Katie Crooks, Public Programs Assistant, American Art Museum Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Engagement Tools for Building Creative Communities, Placemaking, and Partnerships
Presenter: Ethelyn Abellanosa, Deputy Director for Operations, Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience, Seattle, WA

Measure What? Metrics to Engage Stakeholders and Achieve Strategic Goals
Chaired by: Amy Bartow-Melia, Director-Department of Public Programs, National Museum of American History Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC
Presenter: Janet Abrams, Senior Advisor for Organizational Excellence, Smithsonian Institution Office of The Secretary, Washington, DC

Trauma: Creating Shared Communities in Cultural/Natural Heritage Risk Management
Chaired by:  Richard Kurin, Undersecretary for History, Art & Culture, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Come Together:21st-Century Museum Leadership in China and the U.S.
Chaired by: Carole Neves, Director, Office of Policy & Analysis Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC; Daisy Wang, Project Manager for Chinese Art, Freer Gallery of Art & Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Linking Young People to Museums: Nothing but the Truth
Chaired by: John Franklin, Director of Partnerships and International Programs, National Museum of African American History and Culture, Washington, DC

Museums and Academic Parent Organizations: the Good and the Ugly
Chaired by: Ellen Rosenthal, President & CEO, Conner Prairie Museum, Inc., Fishers, IN
Presenters: Berkley Duck, Former Chairman of the Board, Conner Prairie Museum, Inc., Fishers, IN;
Cameron McGuire, Associate Director, National Museum of the American Indian, Washington, DC

75 Ideas in 75 Minutes: Worst, Best, Next
Chaired by: Charles Katzenmeyer, Senior Vice President for External Affairs, Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, Chicago, IL

Chinese and U.S. Perspectives on Exhibitions as Catalysts of Creativity
Chaired by: Daisy Wang, Project Manager for Chinese Art, Freer Gallery of Art & Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Communities of Conversation Around Exhibitions
Chaired by: Barbara Stauffer, Chief of Temporary Exhibitions, National Museum of Natural History Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Stop, Collaborate and Listen: Harnessing Technology to Build Creative Communities
Presenter: Amy Homma, Education Technician, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, DC

Talking Shop: Roundtable Discussion with Volunteer Managers and Docents
Presenter: Maretta Hemsley-Wood, Docent Program Manager, Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum , Washington, DC

Creative Practices in Education and Public Programs in China and the U.S.
Chaired by:  Nik Apostolides, Associate Director, National Portrait Gallery Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC
Presenters: Ryan Hill, ART LAB + Program Specialist, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC;  Carole Neves, Director, Office of Policy & Analysis Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Games: Creating Connections to Collections
Presenter: Georgina Bath Goodlander, Interpretive Programs Manager, Luce Foundation Center for American Art, American Art MuseumSmithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Keeping Safe: Discovering and Handling Hidden Collection Hazards
Presenter: Kathryn Makos, Industrial Hygienist, Smithsonian Institution’s Office of Safety, Health and Environmental Management, Washington, DC

Using Creative Problem-Solving to Cultivate Future Leaders
Presenters: Ryan Hill, ART LAB + Program Specialist, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC;  Megan Smith, Education Specialist, National Museum of American History, Washington, DC

Pacific Standard Time: The Ultimate Cultural Collaboration, California Style!
Presenters: Edwina Brandon, VP of External Affairs, Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach, CA; Gina Adams, Vice President of Development, Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach, CA

Solutions Lounge: Sustainable Operations Tool Kit
Chaired by: Jim Richerson, President & CEO, Lakeview Museum of Arts & Sciences, Peoria, IL

Collaboration and Education
Chaired by: Christina Schwartz, Head Registrar, Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service-SITES, Washington, DC

Connecting Global Communities: Striking Successes, Fabulous Flops, and Lessons Learned
Presenter: Laura Anderson, Assistant Archivist, Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Birmingham, AL

Show Me the Money: Straight Talk About Museum Business Models
Presenter: Ellen Rosenthal, President & CEO, Conner Prairie Museum, Inc., Fishers, IN

Transforming Museum Volunteering 101: Back to Basics
Chaired by: Robbin Davis, Director of Visitor Services, Oklahoma History Center, Oklahoma City, OK

Dangerous World: Our Role During Armed Conflicts and Other Disasters
Presenter: Richard Kurin, Undersecretary for History, Art & Culture, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

How to Pitch Technology to Your Board: Strategy to Implementation
Presenter: Michael Edson, Director of Web and New Media Strategy, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Washington, DC

Social Media Metrics 101
Chaired by: Sarah Banks, Audience Engagement Specialist, National Museum of Natural History Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC
Presenter: Victoria Portway, Chair, Web & New Media, National Air & Space Museum Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Transforming Museum Volunteering 201: Beyond the Basics
Presenters: Maria Christus, Volunteer Program Manager, Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum, Chicago, IL; Carly Ofsthun Shaw, Volunteer Coordinator, Musical Instrument Museum, Phoenix, AZ

U.S. and African Exhibits: Creating and Linking Communities
Chaired by: Kinshasha Holman Conwill, Deputy Director, National Museum of African American History and Culture, Washington, DC
Presenters: Marsha MacDowell, Curator, Michigan State University Museum, East Lansing, MI

Idea Lounge: The Future of Museum Education
Presenter: Timothy Rhue, Explainers Program Coordinator, National Air & Space Museum Smithsonian Institution, Fairfax, VA

Dine and Dialogue: What’s Going On with Little Ones in Museums?
Chaired by: Betsy Bowers, Deputy Director of Museum Education, Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center, Washington, DC

Building a Healthy Future: Museums and Communities Tackle Issues of Wellness
Presenter: Lisa Falk, Director of Education, Arizona State Museum University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ

Citizen Science and Museums: Models of Partnership and Engagement
Chaired by: Karen Carney, Associate VP for Visitor Experience and Learning, Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, Chicago, IL
Presenters: Jason Reed, Online Engagement and Motivation Researcher, Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, Chicago, IL; Arfon Smith, Director of Citizen Science, Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, Chicago, IL

Linking Data Across Libraries, Archives and Museums
Presenter: Martin Kalfatovic, Assistant Director, Digital Services Division, Smithsonian Institition Libraries Acquisitions, Washington, DC

Wikipedia and the Museum: Lessons from Wikipedians in Residence
Presenter: Sarah Stierch, Wikipedian in Residence, Smithsonian Institution , Washington, DC

Young, Informed, Engaged: Innovation in Creating Sustainable Global Youth Communities
Presenters: Priscilla Hancock Cooper, VP, Institutional Programs, Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Birmingham, AL

Decoding Diversity and Inclusion Strategy: A Sustainability Necessity
Presenter: William Harris, Senior Vice President of Development and Marketing, California Science Center Foundation, Los Angeles, CA

Future Engagement: The Latest From Brands, Games, and Entertainment
Chaired by: Judy Gradwohl, Associate Director for Education and Public Programs, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Remembering America’s Real War of Independence

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Most of us know little about the War of 1812.  What were its causes, when did it start, who were its heroes and how did it end?  If we remember anything at all, it may be the burning of Washington, D.C., the bombardment of Baltimore’s Fort McHenry – the event that inspired Francis Scott Key to pen our national anthem – and perhaps Andrew Jackson’s victory at the Battle of New Orleans (fought two weeks after the signing of the treaty that ended the war).  For most of us the rest is a long-forgotten chapter in dusty old textbooks.  An upcoming exhibition at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery will assemble a remarkable number of paintings and artifacts from the War of 1812 in an effort to remind us that it was this war that completed the unfinished business of the American Revolution and secured our true independence from the British, once and for all. 

The Star Spangled Banner at the National Museum of American History. Photo courtesy National Museum of American History.

As the 200th Anniversary of the War of 1812 approaches, two artifacts stand out as enduring symbols of this era:  the original Star Spangled Banner, on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, and the USS Constitution, the victorious naval vessel, still commissioned and now docked at the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston. 

The USS Constitution near the USS Constitution Museum in Boston. Photo by Smithsonian Affiliations.

On October 20, I had the honor of announcing our new Affiliation with the USS Constitution Museum, thus symbolically joining these two great artifacts into one family.  Both tell us much about the sacrifices of prior generations and the many hardships endured along the road to freedom. Both are also amazing examples of the combined efforts of generations of concerned citizens, public officials, historians and museum professionals to preserve these precious legacies  of our nation’s early and fragile years. 

We hope that the upcoming Bicentennial of the War of 1812 will draw further attention to the work that museums are doing to preserve our nation’s past and draw lessons for our future.  Are there any War of 1812 stories, artifacts, or historic landmarks in your communities?  Let us hear from you so that we can work together to present the fullest picture of this critical part of our history. 

Harold A. Closter
See more photos from Harold’s visit to the museum here.

Smithsonian Affiliations Director, Harold Closter, with USS Constitution commanding officers. Photo by Smithsonian Affiliations.