May 2008
At the Museum
See also: Southwest Art Scene
History Lessons
Menu of this month's listings, stories and columns
Centennial Museum -- University at Wiggins, UTEP. Changing exhibits are on the second floor, Lea and Discovery Galleries. Hours: 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Admission is free. Information: 747-5565 or utep.edu/museum.
Showing through Aug. 16: “Building a Bosque: 10 Years of Habitat Restoration at Rio Bosque Wetlands Park.” The museum will be transformed into a ‘virtual Rio Bosque” featuring a path winding through examples of native plants and animals.
Continuing exhibits are on the third floor of the Centennial and include archaeology, ethnology and paleontology of the Southwest. Around the museum building, the Chihuahuan Desert Gardens exhibit the beauty and utility of Southwestern water-conserving native plants in landscaping. The gardens are open daily from daylight to dusk.
El Paso Holocaust Museum and Study Center -- The museum’s new location is at 715 Oregon. The museum, which recently suffered water damage, reopens May 4. Hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 1 to 5 p.m. Admission is free. Information: 351-0048 or elpasoholocaustmuseum.org.
Jenna Blum, author of “Those Who Save Us,” will be the guest speaker at EPHM’s Holocaust Remembrance Commemoration, Yom Hashoah, 3 p.m. Sunday May 4. Local Holocaust survivors will be honored with a special candlelighting ceremony. Blum will be available after the program to sign her book.
The program is free and open to public. Reservations requested: 351.0048 or email info@elpasoholocaustmuseum.org
The museum depicts Jewish life in Europe before World War II, Hitler’s rise to power, the expulsion of Jews into ghettoes, life in concentration camps, prisoner resistance to the Nazis and liberation of the camps. Docents available for guided tours. New to the museum is the local survivors’ exhibit.
El Paso Museum of Archaeology -- 4301 Transmountain Road in Northeast El Paso (west of U.S. 54). Hours are: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free. Information: 755-4332.
Showing through May 18: “Diné: People of the Navajo Nation,” featuring Navajo blankets, pottery, artifacts from the museum’s permanent collections, and photographs of historic and modern Navajo people. The Diné people are known for their production of handmade wool rugs and saddle blankets, along with prehistoric or historic traditions of pottery and basket manufacture, sand paintings, silver and turquoise jewelry, kachina dolls and fabric dolls.
The museum tells the 12,000-year-old story of prehistoric human habitation in the region, with five dioramas and exhibits of tools, pottery, rock art and other materials.
A nature trail takes visitors through 17 acres of Chihuahuan Desert with 200 varieties of desert plants. The trail also offers a local pithouse, pueblo ruin and an Apache brush hut. The park also has picnic tables and a gazebo.
A Holy Mole! Cinco de Mayo celebration is 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday, May 3, featuring enchiladas enmoladas (cheese enchiladas in mole sauce), a presentation on the Battle of Puebla (home of mole poblano) by museum director Marc Thompson at 2 p.m., “The History of Chocolate” by Manos Arriba Puppet Theater at 2:30 and 4 p.m., and music by Ceiba at 3 and 4:30 p.m. Enchilada plates with beans and rice): $10; $5 for children.
A basket making workshop, “How to Make Decorative Containers from Natural Fibers” for children and adults is 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday, May 17, with basket maker and weaver Melissa Urquidi-Bonham. Make decorative containers from natural fiber, and learn how to select, gather, prepare and weave natural fibers in the traditional ways of the ancients. Bring a spray bottle, old towel and scissors. Offered for beginner and advanced weavers. Pre-registration required. Cost: $30 (includes materials to complete two baskets).
Showings of the one-hour video “Seasons of a Navajo” are 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 18, in celebration of International Museum Day. This documentary captures traditional lifestyles of Chauncey and Dorothy Neboyia, grandparents to an extended family of two generations, and features photography of Arizona’s ancient Anasazi ruins and the Monument Valley.
El Paso Museum of Art -- One Arts Festival Plaza, downtown El Paso. For exhibit information, see “Southwest Art Scene.”
El Paso Museum of History -- The new 44,000 square-foot museum is at 510 N. Santa Fe. Regular hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Closed Mondays and city holidays. Admission to all events is free. Information: 351-3588.
Showing through June 1: “Bottled in the Past,” an exhibit of glass found in El Paso at archaeological sites, the Chamizal landfill site and the shelves of long ago businesses. Glass bottles are important finds at any archaeological site. A little bit of history is frozen in each piece: a shape used for a particular product, dateable changes in manufacturing techniques, and sometimes the embossed name of the business.
“Zip Tours” of the exhibit are offered noon Wednesdays.
Showing through May 18: “Rock ‘n’ Roll El Paso,” featuring photos, posters, clothing, musical equipment and general nostalgia items big or small from the 1950s and 1960s from the greater El Paso region.
A panel discussion with local music experts Dalton Powell, Rick Kern, Doug Neal, Rod Crosby, Eugene Anchando and Bobby Rosales is Saturday, May 3, moderated by George Reynoso.
Permanent exhibits include “El Paso: A to Z,” a nontraditional look at day-to-day life in El Paso, and ‘The Changing Pass,” a chronological history of the region from the Ice Age through the Camino Real, arrival of stagecoaches and more.
Friends of the Railroad and Transportation Museum -- More than 100 years of El Paso railroad history are on display at Union Depot Transit Terminal, 400 W. San Antonio, at Durango. Hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free. Information: 422-3420 or visitelpaso.com.
Home of El Paso’s Old No. 1 engine, the museum covers El Paso’s transportation history from the urban transit of the 1880s mule car through the electric street cars of the early 20th century, featuring informational exhibits, models and books on local and railroad history, as well as tourist information.
Insights El Paso Science Museum -- 505 N. Santa Fe. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission: $6 ($5 seniors; students and military, $4 children 4-11; 3 and under/members free. Information: 534-0000 or insightselpaso.org.
Extended through June 28: The Nature of Holograms. Produced by Holophile, Inc., the four-part exhibit features more than 75 holograms depicting a variety of natural and wildlife images to illustrate the unique characteristics of holography. Holograms are laser-produced, 3-dimensional images that are so lifelike viewers often try to touch them.
The exhibit includes:
-- The Natura Collection -- Embossed white light transmission holograms of flowers, birds, insects and other natural objects. The variety of holographic techniques produce different effects, such as multiple exposures, color shifts, black and white images, and movement.
-- The Wildlife Gallery -- Reflection holograms capture a variety of images from nature. Included are pulsed laser holograms of lion cubs, a black panther, vulture, kingfisher, royal python, tiger and more.
-- Holography: Making Faces -- More than 25 images of people, including the 1971 historical portrait of Dennis Gabor, who invented holography in 1947.
-- The History and Development of Holography -- Telling the story back to its discovery in 1947.
The exhibition also features a 20-minute video presentation “Memories in Light,” which explains how holograms are made.
International Museum of Art -- 1211 Montana. Information: 543-6747 See “Southwest Art Scene.”
LYNX Exhibits -- The private museum at 300 W. San Antonio (downtown just south of Convention Center) presents traveling exhibits. Exhibit hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. Last admission at 5 p.m. Admission: $12 ($10 ages 4-11, seniors 62 and older, military and student with current ID), sold at the door or online at lynxexhibits.com. Information: 533-4330.
Showing through Sept. 7: “Tut’s Treasures: Re-Creating the Tomb.” Enter through a “time machine” full-motion simulator to a collection of 126 reproductions of Egyptian treasures including his golden chariot, shrines, beds, thrones and jewelry. Tut ascended the throne in 1333 B.C. at the age 9 and reigned until his death about nine years later. The tomb was left virtually intact for more than 3,000 years until discovered by British archeologist Howard Carter in 1933.
Genuine artifacts are also featured, including jewelry and an ancient stone carving of the royal family.
National Border Patrol Museum and Memorial Library -- 4315 Transmountain Drive. The museum, in Northeast El Paso just west of U.S. 54, features the history of the Border Patrol with uniforms, equipment, photographs, guns, motor vehicles, airplanes, boats and other items. The Border Patrol was founded in 1924 in El Paso. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Closed Sunday, Monday and major holidays. Admission is free. Information: 759-6060 or borderpatrolmuseum.org.
U.S. Army Museum of the NCO -- Building 11331, Staff Sergeant Simms St., Biggs Army Airfield. Equipment and uniforms used by sergeants and other NCO’s through the years are displayed. Admission: free. Hours: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Information: 568-8646.
War Eagles Air Museum -- Doña Ana County Airport, Santa Teresa. Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission: $5; $4 senior citizens and military; free for children under 12. Information: (505) 589-2000 or war-eagles-air-museum.com
The warbirds of World War II and Korea, and other historic military aircraft, are displayed in a 54,000-square-foot building and surrounding area. The collection includes the P-51 Mustang, P-38 Lightning, A-26 Invader and the German Fieseler-Storch. Among later aircraft are the F-86 Sabre and MiG-15s.
To get there: Take the Artcraft exit
off Interstate 10, head west past the Rio Grande to Santa Teresa and follow signs to the airport and museum.
Las Cruces area
Las Cruces Museum of Natural History -- Mesilla Valley Mall, Las Cruces (take Lohman exit east from I-25). Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and Saturdays; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Fridays; 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays. Museum closed May 12-29 for exhibit change. All events are free unless otherwise noted. Information: (575) 522-3120 or las-cruces.org.
Showing through May 11: “Pattern Wizardry.” The exhibit encourages children’s inquiry into how patterns organize and enrich their lives. With playful open-ended activities focusing on sporal, branch, tessellation, and linear patterns, it incorporates a range of beautiful and evocative collections objects that underscore the links between the cultural and scientific context of patterns.
Showing May 30-Sept. 7: “Crime Lab Detective,” an interactive experience that will engage visitors to become investigators and forensic scientists as they try to solve a mystery. Visitors will explore the nature of science, engage in cooperative efforts, make real-life applications and experience an interdisciplinary approach to science. Opening reception is 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, May 30.
The monthly Saturday Science Class is 11 a.m. Saturday, May 3. May’s topic is “electricity.” Call for reservations.
The monthly Descubra el Desierto lecture series is Tuesday, May 20. Time and topic to be determined.
The monthly Sky Safari is 8:30 p.m. Saturday, May 10, at La Llorona Park.
The Science Cafe hosted by Sigma XI is 5:30 p.m. Thursday, May 29.
The monthly Animal Encounters meet-and-greet is 4 p.m. Saturday, May 31.
“Club Fetch,” a class based on the PBS program “Fetch with Ruff Ruffman,” is 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Saturdays and 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Sundays. Pre-registration required.
Registration is being taken for Summer Nature Camp 2008 for grades 1 through 8 is June 2-27. Camps run 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for grades 3-8 and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. for grades 1-2 with overnight trips for older students. Registration deadline is one week prior to each session. Cancellation refund deadline is May 19. Information: (575) 522-3120. Web: las-cruces.org/museums/natural-history.
-- June 4-6 -- Grades 6-8. Fee: $150.
-- June 9-12 and June 24-27 -- Fee: $125.
-- June 16-19 -- Grades 1-2. Fee: $100.
New Mexico Railroad and Transportation Museum -- The museum in Santa Fe Train Depot at Mesilla and Las Cruces avenues, west of the Downtown Mall (351 N. Mesilla). Hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. Admission is free. Information: (575) 647-4480 or museums.las-cruces.org//rrmuseum.shtm.
Lesley Poling-Kempes will give a lecture on the Harvey Girls and the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 3. She will share how the Santa Fe Railway and the Fred Harvey Company were responsible for the creation and promotion of the mythic southwest as a tourist destination. RSVP encouraged, space is limited.
NM Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum -- The largest agricultural museum in the country is at 4100 Dripping Springs (take University Avenue east of Las Cruces). Hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission: $5 for adults, $3 seniors, $2 for children 5-17; free for age 4 and under. Information: (505) 522-4100 or nmfarmandranchmuseum.org.
Currently showing: “Jewish Pioneers of New Mexico: 1821-1917,” highlighting the contributions to New Mexico’s cultural, civic, economic and creative life of Jewish merchants, bankers, miners, ranchers and even a governor of Acoma Pueblo.
Showing in the North Corridor is lithographs by popular pencil sketch artist Robert “Shoofly” Shufelt.
Actor Doug Mathis, one of the top rodeo announcers in the country, presents “Life of a Rodeo Announcer,” at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 1. Admission is free.
Author, editor and photographer Linda King presents the lecture “King of the Road” at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 8. King will take guests on a journey through the state’s back roads and small towns. Book signing will follow. Admission is free.
The traditional San Ysidro Day blessing of the field and processional is 10 to 11 a.m. Thursday, May 15.
Classes/workshops (pre-registration required):
-- Harvest Cooking Class -- 2 to 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 6. Learn the secrets of preparing shelling peas, rhubarb, and onions with chef Carol Koenig. Cost: $30
-- Cooking with Class Dinner -- 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 20. This ongoing class and luncheon meets the third Thursday of each month, even months for lunch and odd months for dinner, and features local chefs preparing gourmet recipes. Cost: $30 per class.
June 2008 Summer Programs for Kids (pre-registration required):
-- Cowboy 101 -- 9 a.m. to noon Tuesday, June 17, for grades K-3 and Thursday, June 19, for grades 4-6. Cost: $20.
-- Potter Camp is 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, June 24-26, for grades 2-5. Cost: $60.
The museum also features domestic animals on site, including various breeds of cattle, burros, churro sheep and goats. Milking demonstrations are at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. each day; calf feeding is at 3:45 p.m. Children’s storytimes are held one-half hour before each milking. Blacksmith shop open Tuesday through Sunday. Parade of Breeds is 10 a.m. Wednesdays. Sewing, weaving and quilting demonstrations are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesdays, and dowsing demonstrations are 1 to 4 p.m. Sundays.
A free trolley tour to livestock exhibits is offered at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, 10:30 a.m., 2 and 2:30 p.m. Saturday, and 2 and 2:30 p.m. Sunday.
Walking tours of the South 20 are 10:15 a.m. and 2:15 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
Gallery talks are 2 p.m. Wednesdays in the Main Gallery.
NMSU Art Gallery -- D.W. Williams Art Center (Williams Hall) on the NMSU campus, Las Cruces. Hours: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Information: (505) 646-2545 or nmsu.edu/~artgal.
Showing through May 9: “Apogee,” an MFA thesis exhibition of five NMSU artists: Zoe Zander Spiliotis, Svala Olafsdottir Ottesen, Jean Reece Wilkey, Nicholas Naughton and Cindy Wiseman.
NMSU Museum -- Kent Hall, University at Solano, Las Cruces. Hours are noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Admission is free. Information: (505) 646-3739 or (505) 646-5161 or (575) 646-3739.
Spring 2008 exhibits (showing through June 14):
-- In the West Gallery: “Waste Not, Want Not: Great Depression Living,” focusing on how families coped with the hard times of the 1930s. The exhibit includes repaired objects, recycled materials and other items that demonstrate the frugal lifestyle of that era.
-- In the East Gallery: “New Deal Crafts: Spanish Colonial Revival,” featuring furniture made by Mesilla Valley youths in the vocational school funded by the National Youth Administration.
-- In the lobby: “Spanish Pottery” featuring representative ceramics from Spain, including interpretive text which discusses connections between the pottery traditions of North Africa and
Spain.
The museum’s permanent exhibit is “Pottery from the Americas,” featuring nearly 600 pottery vessels representing Southwestern and Mesoamerican ceramics.
Free monthly activities for adults are offered the 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. the first Wednesday of the month.
Free family workshops are 2 to 3:30 p.m. Saturdays. Families can participate in an arts-and-crafts project and view current exhibits. No sign-up is necessary, but large groups are asked to call ahead. All supplies are provided.
White Sands Missile Range Museum and Missile Park -- Exhibits feature the history of the Trinity Site (site of the first atomic bomb test), the V-2 rocket, ranchers on the range and missile optics. An outdoor Missile Park displays rockets and missiles tested on the range. Hours: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Closed on federal holidays. Free admission.
To get there: take U.S. 54, and after the freeway ends, keep going north on Martin Luther King, which leads directly to the range. Or enter from the north off U.S. 70 east of Las Cruces. Visitors must provide a current license, car registration and proof of insurance. Information: (505) 678-8824 (local call) or wsmr-history.org.
Also
Deming Luna Mimbres Museum -- 301 S. Silver, Deming, N.M. An actual chuckwagon, gems and minerals, turn-of-the-century fashions, military mementos and Mimbres Indian art are among the exhibits at the museum. Other attractions in the former National Guard Armory include a doll room, transportation annex and quilt room. Hours: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 1:30 to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free. Information: (575) 546-2382.
Hubbard Museum of the American West -- 841 U.S. Hwy 70 West, next to Ruidoso Downs (N.M.) Race Track. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day. Admission: $6 ($5 for seniors, military; $2 children 6-16; free for children 5 and younger). Information: (575) 378-4142 or hubbardmuseum.org.
Showing through May 11: Henriette Wyeth Memorial High School Art Exhibit.
Showing May 16- Jan. 4: “Boomed, Busted & Bought Out Again: A History of Mining in New Mexico.”
Zane Mead will give a copper painting demonstration Saturday, May 3.
The Spring 2008 “Echoes of the Past” lecture series concludes this month Lectures are 2 p.m. and are free with museum admission. Space is limited, reservations recommended:
-- Sunday, May 4: “Rafael Chacon” performed by Enrique Lamadrid. During the Civil War, Captain Chacon’s company fired both the first and last shots at the Texan invaders at the Battles of Valverde and Glorieta.
-- Saturday, May 10 - “Eve Ball: A Woman Among Men” presentation by Lynda Sanchez.
Museum of the Big Bend -- Located on the campus of Sul Ross State University (Entrance 3), Hwy 90 in Alpine, Texas. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday though Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. Guided tours available. Admission is free, donations accepted. Information: (432) 837-8143 or museum@sulross.edu .
Permanent exhibits include fossil exhibits “Conquistador to Cowboy” exhibit with artifacts that tell the story of the settlement of the Big Bend, a Native American exhibit focusing on the Jumanos and Apache tribes, and a children’s Discovery Center play area with a replica of Tall Rock Shelter.
New Mexico Museum of Space History -- The museum features the International Space Hall of Fame and the Tombaugh IMAX Dome Theater and Planetarium, and is located on the northeast side of Alamogordo off Indian Wells Blvd.
The Hall of Fame attractions include a simulated Mars room, the rocket sled used in early space program research, and various other space exhibits. Space center hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission: $6 ($5 for seniors and military, $4 ages 4-12, children 3 and younger free). Information: (877) 333-6589, (505) 437-2840 or nmspacemuseum.org.
Showing at the IMAX Dome Theater are the films “Dolphins,” “T-Rex” and “Blue Planet.” Showtimes are on the hour, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, plus 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday (with planetarium show). Tickets: $6 general admission; $5.50 for seniors and military; $4.50 ages 4-12. Ages 3 and under free for all shows. Evening planetarium show and film is $6.50.
Sacramento Mountains Historical Museum -- Cloudcroft, N.M. Operated by the Sacramento Mountains Historical Society, the museum features historical buildings from the turn of the century, antique farming and ranching tools, other business and home antiques, historical exhibits and other artifacts. It’s on U.S. 82 across from the Chamber of Commerce in Cloudcroft. Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Tuesday and Friday and Saturday; and 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday. Closed Wednesday and Thursday. Admission: $3 ($1 children). Information: (505) 682-2932.
Silver City Museum -- 312 W. Broadway, Silver City, N.M., in the historic H.B. Ailman House. Hours are 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The museum covers the settlement of southwest New Mexico, the two centuries of mining in the region and early commerce in Silver City. Group tours offered with advance notice. Information: (505) 538-5921 or info@silvercitymuseum.org.
Toy Train Depot -- Alameda Park, 1991 N. White Sands Blvd., Alamogordo. An actual train depot built in 1898, the building now houses a gift shop and model shop, with more than 1,200 feet of model railroad track and hundreds of model and toy trains on display. Hours are noon to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Admission is $2 adults, $1.50 children. Information: (505) 437-2855.
Tularosa Basin Historical Society Museum -- The museum, featuring collections, photos and archives relating to the history of Otero County and the Tularosa Basin, is next door to the Alamogordo Chamber of Commerce, 1301 White Sands Blvd. (U.S. 54/70). Open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Admission is free. Information: (505) 436-4438.
WNMU Museum -- 1000 West College Ave., Silver City, N.M. (575) 538-6386. The museum features pottery, rugs and other artifacts of Southwestern Cultures; historic photographs of the Silver City area, and traveling exhibits. Hours: 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday; 1 to 4:30 p.m. Wednesday; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Closed university holidays.
Overland Trail Museum -- Exhibits at the Fort Davis, Texas, museum include a replica of a barbershop that was once on the site, historic surveying equipment, early medical paraphernalia, a restored pioneer kitchen and early ranching tools. Hours are 1 to 6 p.m. Tuesday and Friday; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. Information: (915) 426-3161.
El Paso Scene MONTHLY
This month's listings, stories and columnsFeature story
Roundup
Music
Dance
Here's the Ticket
Program Notes
On Stage
Sports
Southwest Art Scene
At the Museum
History Lessons
Nature
Film Scene
Keep on Bookin'
Becoming Bicultural
Liner Notes
Stage Talk
Gallery Talk
Better ParentingCopyright 2008 by Cristo Rey Communications.