Calendar of Exhibitions and Events: August 2018
July 17, 2018
Featured Events:
“Cooking Up History: Julia Child's Legacy" with Chef Lynne Just of Sur La Table
August 17; 1 p.m.
Wallace H. Coulter Performance Plaza, Demonstration Kitchen
First Floor, West
Guest chef Lynne Just of Sur La Table and Smithsonian food historian Ashley Rose Young will celebrate Julia Child's August 15 birthday by cooking up selections from her television programs that feature and explore regional foodways in America. Chef Just and Young will talk about the power of place in shaping American regions and regional identity through food—a topic that Julia was intensely interested in both in the United States and in France. For more information, please visit: https://americanhistory.si.edu/
Performances:
"Sounds of Faith: Korean Dance"
August 10; 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
Wallace H. Coulter Performance Plaza
First Floor, West
Artist Sue Yeon Park and her troupe will perform dances based on Korean Buddhism. Park learned the music and dance of Korean shamanism in South Korea and has been teaching Korean traditional arts since 1982. She was named a National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellow in 2008.
"Sounds of Faith" programming is a component of the museum’s Religion in America initiative. Park’s performance is a co-presentation of the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage with the Center for Traditional Music and Dance of New York and the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center. For more information, please visit: https://americanhistory.si.edu/
Daily Programs:
"Spark!Lab"
Open daily, 10 a.m.–4 p.m.; closed Tuesdays
First Floor, West
Spark!Lab reveals the real story behind inventors’ work through hands-on activities that help kids ages 6-12 explore the history and process of invention. Infused with historical content, Spark!Lab’s interdisciplinary activities appeal to varied learning styles and abilities and combine traditional STEM with art and creativity. Hosted by the museum’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, the activities change quarterly. Beginning August 22, the new activities theme "CONNECT" will invite children and families to invent ways to connect people, places and things while they explore the history and process of invention. For details about CONNECT and current Spark!Lab activities, please visit http://invention.si.edu/current-sparklab-activities
"Wegmans Wonderplace"
Open daily, 10 a.m.–4 p.m., closed Tuesdays
First Floor, West
The museum’s early learning gallery combines age-appropriate activities for children 0–6 with museum collections and touchable objects.
"The Nation We Build Together" theater performance
Wallace H. Coulter Unity Square
Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday; 12:30 and 2:30 p.m.
Second Floor, West
On Feb. 1, 1960, four African American college students sat down at a “whites only” lunch counter at the Woolworth’s store in Greensboro, N.C., and politely asked for service. Their request was refused, and when asked to leave, the students remained in their seats in protest. Participate in a 30 minute interactive play around the Greensboro Lunch Counter, a section of the historic eatery, which transports audiences back to the civil rights movement.
"Justice Must be Done" theater performance
Tuesdays and Thursdays; 12:30 and 2:30 p.m.
"Within These Walls" exhibition
Second Floor, West
Visitors to the Ipswich, Mass., home of the Caldwell family may join Lucy Caldwell in an 1830s anti-slavery society meeting.
"Votes for Women"
Fridays and Saturdays; Noon, 1 and 2 p.m.
Gateway (near "American Democracy" exhibition)
Second Floor, West
Meet suffragist Rebecca Gibson-McMurray and explore the fight for the 19th Amendment which granted most women the right to vote.
Flag Folding
Tuesdays–Thursdays; times vary
Flag Hall
Second Floor, Center
Take part in folding a true-to-size replica of the Star-Spangled Banner while exploring the history of the flag that inspired the national anthem.
Hands-On Activities
Daily; times vary
Wallace H Coulter Performance Plaza
First Floor, West
- The Business of Chocolate: Explore chocolate’s impact on American history through hands-on colonial chocolate-making demonstrations.
- Game On: Board Games on the Plaza: Play classic games and explore the surprising stories behind these everyday innovations.
- Harvest for the Table: How have food and farming changed over the years? Explore how wheat was made into flour over 100 years ago.
- Preservation for the Table: Explore how foods were harvested and preserved all year long and why these methods changed over time.
Films:
"We the People: Making a More Perfect Union, One Generation at a Time"
Daily; 10:30 a.m.*
Warner Bros. Theater
First Floor, Center
Free, no tickets required
The museum’s signature film “We the People” is a 20-minute celebration of the national ideals of democracy, opportunity and freedom. Stunning footage and a soaring soundtrack take viewers on a journey from past to present, honoring the visionary ideas, significant sacrifices and remarkable fortitude of the people who built our country, one generation at a time. Produced by Smithsonian Channel. For more information, please visit https://www.si.edu/theaters/warnerbrostheater
*Subject to change
About the Museum:
Through incomparable collections, rigorous research and dynamic public outreach, the National Museum of American History explores the infinite richness and complexity of American history. It helps people understand the past in order to make sense of the present and shape a more humane future. The museum is located on Constitution Avenue N.W., between 12th and 14th streets, and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (closed Dec. 25). Admission is free. For more information, visit https://americanhistory.si.edu. For Smithsonian information, the public may call (202) 633-1000.
