EUGENE, Ore. — (Sept. 26, 2012) — The Museum of Natural and Cultural History and the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at the University of Oregon will open their doors free of charge — along with more than 1,400 other participating venues across the country — on Saturday, Sept. 29, for Smithsonian Magazine's eighth annual Museum Day Live!
Both museums will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Admission is free for visitors with a Museum Day Live! ticket, which can be downloaded from the Smithsonian's website. One ticket is permitted per household, per email address.
The Museum Day Live! program emulates the free admission policy of the Smithsonian Institution, which is based in Washington, D.C., and encourages learning and the spread of knowledge nationwide. More than 350,000 museum-goers took part in last year's event. For more information and a list of participating museums and cultural institutions, visit the Museum Day Live! 2012 website.
The Museum of Natural and Cultural History's current exhibits include: "Explore Oregon! in the Making," which allows visitors to interact with sample components and shape the final design of a new exhibit on geology and the natural history of Oregon; "Oregon — Where Past is Present"; "Out in Space, Back in Time: Images from the Hubble Space Telescope"; "Nick Sixkiller: The Man Behind the Mic"; and Rich Bergeman's "Tidewaters” in the Pacific Northwest Artists Series.
Visitors also can see some of the museum's newest acquisitions, including some of the coprolites studied by Dennis Jenkins for his research on the early peopling of the Americas that was recently featured in Science magazine. These items are featured in the Donna Wolley Case in the lobby.
The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art is featuring: "Poetic Visions" by Lesley Dill, an exhibit exploring the complexities of communication. According to Dill, the often secret, indecipherable, and bold meanings of words emerge not only from hearing their sounds but also by feeling them -- that language is a visceral, bodily experience. "Poetic Visions" challenges the viewer to confront linguistic relationships and the perceptions of language. Barbara Matilsky, curator of the Whatcom Museum in Bellingham, Wash., organized the exhibition, which is on display until Dec. 9.
Also on view: "Good Grief: A Selection of Original Art from 50 Years of Charles M. Schulz's PEANUTS," "History of Photography" and "The Female Figure Artistic Multiplicities."
The Museum of Natural and Cultural History is located at 1680 E. 15th Ave., across from historic Hayward Field. For more information call 541-346-3024. The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art is located at 1430 Johnson Lane, in the heart of campus. For more information, call 541-346-3027.
Media Contacts:
Judi Pruitt, Museum of Natural and Cultural History, judip@uoregon.edu, 541-346-1671
Debbie Williamson-Smith, Communications, debbiews@uoregon.edu, (541) 346-0942
Museum of Natural and Cultural History on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/oregonnaturalhistory
Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art on Facebook:
www.facebook.com/jordanschnitzermuseumofart