AMNH Advance Schedule Fall 2010 - Spring 2011
UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS
The Butterfly Conservatory: Tropical Butterflies Alive in Winter
October 16, 2010–May 30, 2011
This exhibition, an annual favorite, features up to 500 live, free-flying tropical butterflies from the Americas, Africa, and Asia. The butterflies are housed in a vivarium that approximates their natural habitat and includes live flowering plants that serve as nectar sources; features controlled artificial light, temperature, and humidity; and measures more than 60 feet long, 21 feet wide, and 10 feet high. Among the species included in the vivarium are iridescent blue morpho butterflies, striking scarlet swallowtails, and large owl butterflies. Text panels located immediately outside the vivarium offer information about the evolution and life cycle of butterflies, including sections on mimicry, diversity, and butterflies’ important role in conservation. Whitney Hall of Oceanic Birds, second floor
Brain: The Inside Story
November 20, 2010–August 14, 2011
This amazing and stimulating exhibition will give visitors a new perspective and insight into their own brains using imaginative art, vivid brain scan imaging, and thrilling interactive exhibits that will engage the whole family. Brain: The Inside Story features the latest cutting-edge research from the treating of diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s to the recent studies of more intangible elements like the mapping of our emotional responses.
In this exhibition, explore how the brain—a product of millions of years of evolution—produces thoughts, senses, and feelings; experience how the brain is continually changing at different stages of life; and discover how new understanding of the workings of the brain may help scientists repair and reverse declines in brain function.
Brain: The Inside Story begins with a walk-through installation by Spanish artist Daniel Canogar that evokes the tangled forest of 100 billion communicating brain cells in a breathtaking representation of firing neurons. Visitors continue on to explore their senses, emotions, thoughts, and memory through a series of videos, interactive installations, and exhibits. Visitors will learn how the nervous system processes information from the senses and how the brain creates perception, how brain imaging and advances in biochemistry are deepening the understanding of the emotional brain, and how the highly developed neocortex allows humans to make plans and predictions as well as engage in symbolic thought. Visitors will also learn how the brain’s plasticity allows changes at different stages of life and how 21st century science can repair and improve the brain.
Throughout the exhibition, challenge your brain with interactive puzzles and games that probe neural connections and pathways. Gallery 3, third floor
Brain: The Inside Story is organized by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (www.amnh.org), in collaboration with the Guangdong Science Center, Guangzhou, China; and Parque de las Ciencias, Granada, Spain.
Generous support for Brain: The Inside Story has been provided by the Eileen P. Bernard Exhibition Fund, Virginia Hearst Randt and Dana Randt, and Mary and David Solomon.
Body and Spirit: Tibetan Medical Paintings
January 25–July 17, 2011
Body and Spirit: Tibetan Medical Paintings will feature over 60 selections from a special set of Tibetan medical paintings from the Museum’s collection. These particular tangkas, or traditional scroll paintings, are believed to be among only a handful in existence that illustrate medical knowledge and procedures, providing a unique and rich history of medicine in Tibet. Subjects include causes, diagnostic techniques, and treatments of illness as well as human anatomy. The nearly 8,000 extraordinarily detailed images, painted in vegetable and mineral dyes on canvas, were painstakingly reproduced by hand in the 1990s by Romio Shrestha, a Nepalese tangka artist, and his students. The originals—whose fate is unknown—were commissioned by the Great Fifth Dalai Lama and created between 1687 and 1703.Audubon Gallery, fourth floor
The acquisition and conservation of this collection of Tibetan Medical Tangkas was made possible by the very generous support from the Estate of Marian O. Naumburg.
The World’s Largest Dinosaurs
April 16, 2011–January 2, 2012
The World’s Largest Dinosaurs will focus on sauropods, a group that includes the largest animals to have ever walked on Earth. Sauropod dinosaurs were extraordinarily successful, surviving for more than 100 million years. What was the secret of their success? The World’s Largest Dinosaurs will explore this question, examining the biology and behavior of sauropods, looking particularly at how these animals evolved to such tremendous sizes.The highlight of the exhibition will be a life-sized Mamenchisaurus, a sauropod dinosaur some 60 feet in total length. The dramatic model will be fully fleshed out on one side, while the other side will be a “visible dinosaur,” revealing bones, muscles and internal organs. The exhibition will also feature specimens from the Museum’s collections of sauropod teeth, vertebrae, skin impressions, and a variety of other ancient specimens. Hands-on, computer-based activities will investigate what allowed these animals to grow so big. Gallery 4, fourth floor
Frogs: A Chorus of Colors
May 28, 2011–January 8, 2012
Back by popular demand, this delightful exhibition introduces visitors to the colorful and richly diverse world of frogs. More than 200 live frogs, from the tiny golden mantella frog (which is less than an inch long) to the enormous African bullfrog (which can be as big as eight inches in diameter), are shown in their re-created habitats, complete with rock ledges, live plants, and waterfalls. Featuring approximately 25 species from such countries as Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, China, Colombia, Kenya, Madagascar, Mexico, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Russia, Suriname, the United States, Uruguay, Venezuela, and Vietnam, the exhibition explores the evolution and biology of these amphibians, their importance to ecosystems, and the threats they face in the world’s changing environments. Interactive stations throughout the exhibition invite visitors to activate recorded frog calls, view videos of frogs in action, and test their knowledge about these fascinating amphibians.Gallery 77, first floor
This exhibition is presented with appreciation to Clyde Peeling’s Reptiland.
UPCOMING PROGRAMS
10th Anniversary Celebration of the Frederick Phineas and Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space
October 10, 2010
On October 10, the Museum will host a celebration to mark the 10-year anniversary of the opening of the Rose Center for Earth and Space, part of a year-long series of events to commemorate this New York City icon. Since it opened in 2000, the Rose Center’s world-class team of astrophysicists has conducted groundbreaking research into astrophysics, and Earth and planetary science. That research informed the creation of four thrilling Space Shows bringing to the public, cutting-edge concepts in real science visualization of the evolution of galaxies and stars and the search for other planets. On 10/10/10, the Museum will have a full day of unique programming that will include live musical performances, conversations about the latest discoveries in astrophysics, Space Show screenings, and more.
Seventeenth Annual Family Party
Tuesday, October 19, 2010, 5–7:30 pm
The Family Party—one of the Museum’s best-loved traditions—features fascinating educational activities and spectacular entertainment for children of all ages. The Family Party is a very special opportunity for children and adults to experience the wonders and magic of the Museum. Children will have the opportunity to interact with live animals, measure skulls, look into a microscope to see the inside of an ivory tusk, walk with a giant tortoise, explore the Museum Science Center, and much more. Tickets to this special event are $85 for children and $175 for adults. For event and ticket information, please visit amnh.org/familyparty, call 212-313-7161, or email familyparty@amnh.org.
Generously supported by Tiffany & Co.
Halloween Celebration
Sunday, October 31, 2010
More than 30 of the Museum’s popular halls will be open from 2 to 5 pm for trick-or-treating, arts and crafts, fun with roaming cartoon characters, and live performances. Past performers and characters have included Curious George®, Winnie-the-Pooh, Strawberry Shortcake, Clifford the Big Red Dog®, Madeline, Maya & Miguel™, David Grover and the Big Bear Band, Louie & Subanda, performers from the Big Apple Circus, stilt walkers, and master pumpkin carver Hugh McMahon.
With special thanks to Colgate-Palmolive Company and Kraft Foods, Inc.
Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival
November 11–14, 2010
The Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival celebrates its 34th year at the American Museum of Natural History this November. The Festival screens an outstanding and varied selection of 38 titles culled from more than 1,000 submissions and is distinguished by extraordinary films that tackle diverse and challenging subjects, as well as by exciting discussions with filmmakers and special guest speakers.
This year’s films include Roscoe Holcomb—in which director John Cohen uses intimate footage as well as interviews with family and community members to trace the life of this seminal banjo player’s early years (world premiere); Nadav Harel’s The Electric Mind—an intimate portrait of an octogenarian widow, a middle-aged artist, and a pre-teen girl looking for relief from their brain disorders through cutting edge technologies and “awake” brain surgeries; and Nicola Bellucci’s Nel Giardino dei Suoni (In the Garden of Sounds)—the extraordinary story of Wolfgang Fasser, a blind musician and therapist who uses sound to initiate dialogues with severely handicapped children, helping them uncover ways to express themselves and find a place in a world not designed for them.Kaufmann and Linder Theaters, first floor
Origami Holiday Tree
November 22, 2010–January 2, 2011
An annual Museum tradition, the delightfully decorated Origami Holiday Tree has marked the start of the holiday season at the Museum for more than 30 years. The theme of this year’s 13-foot tree is Discovery, featuring a dinosaur dig, a section on the Museum’s exhibition Race to the End of the Earth, and a section for the 10th anniversary of the Rose Center for Earth and Space. Volunteers begin folding in July to complete the 500 creations that will be displayed on the tree. During the holiday season, volunteers will be on hand to teach visitors of all ages the art of origami folding. Past themes have included Folding the Museum, Fantastic Creatures: Mythic and Real; Origami in Flight; Under the Sea; Pocket Posy; and Origami Safari. Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall, first floor
Kwanzaa Celebration
Sunday, December 26, 2010
This cultural festival of African and African-American performing and visual arts commemorates the seven principles of Kwanzaa. A feast for the soul and senses, this family-friendly all-day event offers African dance, spoken word, live musical performances, and traditional crafts. A bustling Kwanzaa Marketplace, located on the mezzanine level of the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life, will feature vendors, visual artists, and craftspeople, as well as representatives from major cultural institutions. In addition, special Kwanzaa foods will be available in the Museum Food Court. Milstein Hall of Ocean Life, first floor
ONGOING EXHIBITIONS
Spider Silk (CLOSING SOON)
September 23, 2009–October 3, 2010
This extremely rare textile, woven from golden-colored silk threads from some one million spiders in Madagascar, measures 11 feet by 4 feet. Drawing on the legacy of a French Jesuit priest who worked with spiders in Madagascar in the 1880s and 1890s, this contemporary fabric took more than three years to make, using a painstaking process that involved 70 people who collected the spiders every day and a dozen more who extracted the silk with hand-powered machines. The silk for this intricately-patterned textile was derived from the spider Nephila madagascariensis, renowned for the lustrous golden hue of its silk fiber. Previously, the only known spider silk textile of note was exhibited at the Exposition Universelle in Paris in 1900, and it was subsequently lost. The spider silk is on loan from Simon Peers and Nicholas Godley. Grand Gallery, first floor
Race to the End of the Earth
May 29, 2010–January 2, 2011
Race to the End of the Earth recounts one of the most stirring tales of the Heroic Age of Antarctic exploration: the contest to be the first to reach the South Pole in 1911-1912. The exhibition focuses on the challenges that the two leaders—Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen and British Royal Navy Captain Robert Falcon Scott—faced as they undertook their 1,800-mile journeys from the shores of the Ross Sea to the Pole and back. Nutrition, human endurance, equipment, logistics, and Antarctica’s extreme weather conditions were among the many challenges that each team had to face, with outcomes that included both triumph and tragedy. The exhibition also spotlights modern scientific exploration in the Antarctic and the latest research on this unique continent.
Photographs, paintings, videos, and rare historical artifacts from this Heroic Age give visitors a feel for the remarkable story of Antarctic exploration and research during the past century. Hands-on activities let visitors of all ages experience what it would have been like to travel to the coldest place on Earth 100 years ago, as well as what it is to conduct research there today. The exhibition vividly re-creates, through dioramas and period detail, the high points of the race: how Amundsen and Scott prepared for their polar journeys; and how they met, or were defeated by, the numerous challenges they faced. Additional hands-on activities reveal what scientists are learning about Antarctica’s surprising landscape under the ice, possible effects of global warming on Antarctica’s wildlife, and how people manage to live year-round in this forbidding yet fascinating place. Gallery 4, fourth floor
Race to the End of the Earth is organized by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (www.amnh.org), in collaboration with Musée des Confluences, Lyon, France, and Royal BC Museum in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Generous support for Race to the End of the Earth has been provided by the Eileen P.
Bernard Exhibition Fund.
Additional support has been provided by the Government of the United Kingdom and the National Science Foundation under Grant No. ANT 0636639.
Highway of An Empire: The Great Inca Road
October 17, 2009–September 2011
The vast Inca Empire owed its reach and power to an extensive and intricate network of roads. Linking forts, religious sites, and administrative centers from the Pacific coast to the Amazonian rainforest, Inca roads allowed armies and imperial officials to conquer and then control the largest empire in the Americas. In this series of stunning photos, Highway of An Empire reveals the diversity of this road system—from broad paved highways to woven suspension bridges to beaten tracks through barren desert—and the diversity of landscape it crosses. IMAX Corridor, first floor
Courtesy of Consulate General of Peru in New York.
The presentation of Highway of an Empire at the American Museum of Natural History is made possible by the generosity of the Arthur Ross Foundation.
On Feathered Wings
June 21, 2008–May 1, 2011
On Feathered Wings is an exhibition of more than 40 full-colored photographs that portray dramatic images of birds in flight. These compelling and revealing shots from the collective lenses of four of the most acclaimed aviary photographers in the world represent nearly every continent and examine the kinetic and aerodynamic traits common to all birds in flight.On Feathered Wings is divided into four categories: Killers on the Wing (hunting birds of prey), Wings Along the Shore (shorebirds, gulls, and terns), Wings of the Wetlands (water fowl and wading birds), and Songbirds of the Wing (colorful, melodious birds).
Akeley Gallery, second floor
The presentation of On Feathered Wings at the American Museum of Natural History is made possible by the generosity of the Arthur Ross Foundation.
IMAX AND LARGE-FORMAT FILMS, LeFrak IMAX Theater, first floor
Hubble
Through December 2010
For nearly 20 years, the Hubble Space Telescope has dazzled us with unprecedented views of the cosmos, from the splendor of Earth’s celestial neighborhood to galaxies billions of light years away. Narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, this 43-minute film allows audiences to blast off alongside the Atlantis STS-125 crew, witness some of the most challenging spacewalks ever performed, and experience firsthand Hubble’s striking images from the heart of the Orion Nebula and our Milky Way to the edge of the observable universe. Recounting the amazing journey of the most important scientific instrument since Galileo’s original telescope, Hubble immerses audiences in the great wonders and astounding beauty of our universe.
Hubble is an IMAX and Warner Bros. Pictures production, in cooperation with National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
SPACE SHOW, Hayden Planetarium, Rose Center for Earth and Space
Journey to the Stars
Journey to the Stars, the spectacular Hayden Planetarium Space Show, launches visitors through time and space to experience the life and death of the stars in our night sky. Travel 13 billion years into the past, when the first stars were born, and witness brilliant supernovas that sent new kinds of matter coursing through the universe, into the atoms of our bodies, and into the air we breathe. Visit the heart of the fiery Sun and glimpse its distant future as it transforms into a massive red giant. Tour familiar stellar formations, explore new celestial mysteries, and discover the fascinating, unfolding story that connects us all to the stars.Hayden Planetarium, Rose Center for Earth and Space
Produced by the American Museum of Natural History, the Rose Center for Earth and Space, and the Hayden Planetarium.
Journey to the Stars was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (www.amnh.org) in collaboration with the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco; GOTO Inc., Tokyo, Japan; Papalote • Museo del Niño, Mexico City, Mexico; and Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Washington, D.C.
Journey to the Stars was created by the American Museum of Natural History, with the major support and partnership of NASA, Science Mission Directorate, Heliophysics Division.
Made possible through the generous sponsorship of Lockheed Martin Corporation.
And proudly sponsored by Accenture.
Supercomputing resources provided by the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC) at The University of Texas at Austin, through the TeraGrid, a project of the National Science Foundation.
ROSE CENTER FOR EARTH AND SPACE PROGRAMS
One Step Beyond
The American Museum of Natural History’s popular One Step Beyond, an ongoing party series that features the biggest names in techno, electronica, and hip hop will continue this fall. Guests can get their groove on while cocktails keep the party going. Each ticket includes one pass to the Museum for future use.
Space Show Double Feature
Every Friday and Saturday at 7:30 and 8:30 pm
As part of the year-long celebration commemorating the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Frederick Phineas and Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space, the American Museum of Natural History is screening a double feature that includes the Museum’s first two Space Shows. The double feature includes Passport to the Universe (narrated by Tom Hanks), which launches visitors on a thrilling trip through space and time; and The Search for Life: Are We Alone? (narrated by Harrison Ford), which explores a question that has always captivated the human imagination: does life exist beyond Earth? Admission is $15 ($12 for Members). Hayden Planetarium Space Theater
HAYDEN PLANETARIUM PROGRAMS
Monthly Astronomy in the Dome (working title)
The last Tuesday of every month, 6:30 pm
This monthly program offers an interactive tour of the universe and a view of the constantly changing night sky. Learn about what is visible in our nighttime sky with the brilliant stars of the Zeiss Mark IX star projector or travel beyond the farthest reaches of the observable Universe with the world’s largest cosmic atlas, assembled at the Hayden Planetarium. Go toamnh.org for monthly descriptions. Hayden Planetarium Space Theater
These programs are supported, in part, by the Schaffner Family.
AMNH EXPEDITIONS
The Museum established AMNH Expeditions, the first museum educational travel program in the country, in 1953. For 57 years, AMNH Expeditions has presented educational travel programs that reflect the Museum’s past and current areas of interest and exploration and enable travelers to embark on their own explorations of the world in the company of scientists, curators, and educators. Participation helps to support the Museum’s mission to discover, interpret, and disseminate, through scientific research and education, knowledge about human cultures, the natural world, and the universe. Trip categories include Cruises, Expeditions, Family Programs, and Private Jets, Planes & Trains. More information on this and other educational travel opportunities available through AMNH Expeditions can be found at amnhexpeditions.org.
MUSEUM INFORMATION
Hours
The Museum is open daily, 10 am–5:45 pm
The Museum is closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Space Show Hours
Journey to the Stars is shown every half hour Sunday–Thursday and Saturday, 10:30 am–4:30 pm, and Friday, 10:30 am–7 pm.
Admission
Suggested general admission, which supports the Museum’s scientific and educational endeavors and includes 46 Museum halls and the Rose Center for Earth and Space, is $16 (adults) suggested, $12 (students/seniors) suggested, $9 (children) suggested. All prices are subject to change.
The Museum offers discounted combination ticket prices that include suggested general admission plus special exhibitions, IMAX films, and Space Shows.
o Museum plus special exhibition, IMAX film, or Space Show: $24 (adults), $18 (students/seniors), $14 (children)
o Museum Supersaver (includes all special exhibitions, IMAX film, and Space Show): $32 (adults), $24.50 (students/seniors), $20 (children)
Visitors who wish to pay less than the suggested Museum admission and also want to attend a special exhibition, IMAX film, or Space Show may do so only on-site at the Museum. To the amount they wish to pay for general admission, they should add $20 (adults), $16.50 (students/seniors), or $11 (children) for a Space Show, special exhibition, or IMAX film.
Public Information
For additional information, the public may call 212-769-5100 or visit the Museum’s website atamnh.org.
Now you can prepare for your Museum visit by downloading the new American Museum of Natural History Explorer App a groundbreaking enhanced navigation tool available for free from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.iTunes.com/appstore/. The Explorer pinpoints your location within the Museum and offers turn-by-turn directions through the 45 permanent exhibition halls, and features customized tours, a fossil treasure hunt, and social media links for posting to Facebook and Twitter.
Follow
twitter.com/AMNH to follow us on Twitter
