Year in Review - Smithsonian Affiliations

Soaring to
New Heights
2015 Year in Review
Schoolchildren at Ohio History Connection pose with the Superman suit on loan from the
National Museum of American History.
208 Affiliates in 46
states, Puerto Rico and
Panama
Across the country and around the world,
Smithsonian Affiliations is now recognized
in the museum community as the gold
standard for sharing and collaboration.”
– Harold A. Closter, Director
Smithsonian Affiliations
Harold and Suzanne Hahn, Vice President, Archives and Library, look over documents related to the
founding of the Smithsonian and the building of the Castle at the Indiana Historical Society.
Photo credit: Indiana Historical Society.
Welcome Dr. David J. Skorton,
13th Secretary of the Smithsonian
In July 2015 we welcomed a new Secretary to the Smithsonian
Institution.
“We learn so much from what Affiliates do in your
communities, and we appreciate all the ways you have
strengthened the Smithsonian and our country.”
-David J. Skorton
Photo credit: Cornell University Photography
13 organizations joined the
Smithsonian Affiliate family:
Photo credit: Heritage Farm Museum and Village
Photo Credit: Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West
Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West
(Scottsdale, AZ)
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
(Kennedy Space Center, FL)
Indiana Historical Society (Indianapolis, IN)
Dubuque Museum of Art (Dubuque, IA)
Historic Annapolis (Annapolis, MD)
Framingham State University (Framingham, MA)
The Bakken Museum (Minneapolis, MN)
The Rockwell Museum (Corning, NY)
Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks and Minerals (Hillsboro, OR)
Rhode Island Historical Society (Providence, RI)
Upcountry History Museum-Furman University (Greenville, SC)
Photo credit: The Rockwell Museum
Coastal Discovery Museum (Hilton Head, SC)
Heritage Farm Museum and Village (Huntington, WV)
Photo credit: Coastal Discovery Museum
Out of storage,
into your
neighborhood
2,057 Smithsonian artifacts are currently
on view at Affiliates across the nation.
Here’s a look at a few new loans that
inspired Affiliate audiences:
Left to Right:
At the Long Island Museum (Stony Brook,
NY): Portrait of Beth Levine (Lady with Red
Bow), Philip Pearlstein, 1985, National
Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution / Gift
of Ellen Pearlstein. Photo credit: National
Portrait Gallery.
At the Museum of American Finance (New
York, NY): A gold training visor from Gemini
G4-C and a Voyager “Sounds of Earth” record,
National Air and Space Museum. Photo credit:
Smithsonian Affiliations.
At the Senator John Heinz History Center
(Pittsburgh, PA): Bantam Jeep prototype,
National Museum of American History. Photo
credit: Heinz History Center.
Out of storage,
into your
neighborhood
Left to Right:
At the U.S. Space and Rocket Center
(Huntsville, AL): Owen Garriot’s space
suit, National Air and Space Museum.
Photo credit: National Air and Space Museum.
At the Mennello Museum of American
Art (Orlando, FL): Books and Business,
2011, Dale Kennington, oil on canvas,
Smithsonian American Art Museum,
Gift of the artist. Photo credit: Smithsonian
American Art Museum.
Out of storage,
into your
neighborhood
Left to Right:
At the Denver Art Museum (Denver,
CO): Indian and Contemporary Chair,
Fritz Scholder (1937-2005), oil on linen,
1970, Smithsonian American Art
Museum, Gift of Judge and Mrs. Oliver
Seth, © 1983, Fritz Scholder. Photo credit:
Smithsonian American Art Museum.
At the South Dakota State Historical
Society (Pierre, SD): Hunkpapa Lakota
Dance Club, circa 1890, Joseph No-TwoHorns, National Museum of the
American Indian. Photo credit: Smithsonian
Affiliations.
Out of storage, into your
neighborhood
Top:
At the Heard Museum (Phoenix, AZ): Choctaw Hat
and Tail Ornament, National Museum of the
American Indian; George Catlin, Ball-play of the
Choctaw—Ball up, 1846–50, Choctaw, oil, 25 3/4 x
32 in., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of
Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr. Photo credit: Smithsonian
Affiliations.
Bottom, left to right:
At the Buffalo Bill Center of the West (Cody, WY):
Black Knife, an Apache Warrior, 1846, John Mix
Stanley (1814-1872), oil on canvas, Smithsonian
American Art Museum, Gift of the Misses Henry.
Photo credit: Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Also at the Center of the West, 50 firearms from
the National Museum of American History
including eight new loans. Photo credit: Buffalo Bill Center
of the West.
Smithsonian on
the road in your
hometown
Photo credit: City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department
In addition to artifacts, Affiliates welcomed an
impressive array of Smithsonian experts, scholars
and authors. More than 70 Smithsonian staff
traveled to Affiliates in 2015. Here are a few
highlights:
At the Asian American Resource Center, part of the City of
Austin Parks and Recreation Department (Austin, TX):
Konrad Ng, director of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific
American Center, welcomes guests to the opening of the
SITES exhibition, I Want the Wide American Earth: An
Asian Pacific American Story.
Photo credit: Smithsonian Affiliations
At the Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum (Miami, FL):
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Director
Melissa Chiu, gave a presentation as part of the Steven
and Dorothea Green Critics' Lecture Series.
At Riverside Metropolitan Museum (Riverside, CA): Ron
Bishop, senior research archaeologist at the National
Museum of Natural History, helped analyze the Tlatilco
collections at the Museum.
Photo credit: Frost Museum of Art
Photo credit: Riverside Metropolitan Museum
Inspiring future innovators and scientists
Affiliates across the country engaged children and families. Whether in-person or online, Affiliates and the Smithsonian shared educational resources with local
communities.
Clockwise from left:
Students at the Virginia Museum of Natural History
(Martinsville, VA) participate in an activity after watching a
webcast from the Smithsonian Science How series from
the National Museum of Natural History. Photo credit:
VMNH.
Pinhead Institute (Telluride, CO) partnered with Ouray
Middle School so local students could participate in a
Smithsonian Science How webcast from the National
Museum of Natural History. Photo credit: Pinhead Institute.
Children learn about entomology with a scientist from the
National Museum of Natural History during Xtreme Bugs,
an exhibit at Science City, part of Union Station Kansas
City, Inc. (Kansas City, MO) Photo credit: Science City.
The Children’s Museum of the Upstate (Greenville, SC)
hosted Innoskate, a partnership with the Lemelson Center
for the Study of Invention and Innovation at the National
Museum of American History. Photo credit: Lemelson
Center.
Affiliates hosted 33
Smithsonian
traveling exhibits
Visitors to Affiliates enjoyed everything the
Smithsonian has to offer– history, art, culture,
and science– through traveling exhibitions.
Clockwise from left:
At The Wolfsonian (Miami, FL): Women, Art, and Social
Change: The Newcomb Pottery Enterprise, organized for
travel by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling
Exhibition Service (SITES). Photo credit: Wolfsonian
At Anchorage Museum (Anchorage, AK): Visitors practice
engineering skills in Spark!Lab, from the Lemelson Center
for the Study of Invention and Innovation at the National
Museum of American History. Photo credit Tricia Edwards.
At the Burke Museum (Seattle, WA): Titanoboa: Monster
Snake, organized for travel by SITES. Photo credit: Burke
Museum
At UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures (San Antonio, TX):
Sikhs: Legacy of the Punjab, developed by the
Smithsonian and sponsored by the Sikh Heritage
Foundation. Photo credit: UTSA ITC.
.
Learning Together
(Top) Photo credit: Smithsonian Affiliations
(Bottom) Photo credit: Witte Museum
We were pleased to host eight Smithsonian
Affiliations Visiting Professionals in 2015. These
colleagues work side-by-side with Smithsonian
experts and scholars on topics that directly impact
projects in development at Affiliate organizations.
•
Ben Allee, The Anchorage Museum
(Anchorage, Alaska)
•
Shenna Hayden, The Witte Museum (San
Antonio, Texas) (pictured, bottom right)
•
Julie Kemper, Kentucky Historical Society
(Frankfort, Kentucky) (pictured, top left)
•
Melissa Marinaro, Senator John Heinz History
Center (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) (pictured, top
right)
•
Amanda McDougal, Museum of History and
Industry (Seattle, Washington)
•
Deb Novak, New Mexico Museum of Natural
History & Science (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
(pictured, bottom left)
•
Laurie Rizzo, Hagley Museum and Library
(Wilmington, Delaware)
•
Shauna Tonkin, Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl
Harbor (Honolulu, Hawaii)
(Top) Photo credit: Kentucky Historical Society
(Bottom) Photo credit: Smithsonian National Museum of Natural
History
…and learning from
each other
Unique to Affiliates is customized access to the
Smithsonian. Here are a few examples of learning
happening on both sides of the street:
Clockwise from left:
Barbara Matilsky, Whatcom Museum (Bellingham,
WA) curator, researches gem and mineral
collections at the National Museum of Natural
History.
Puerto Rican scholars came together to discuss
issues of culture in the diaspora at the Universidad
del Turabo (Gurabo, Puerto Rico) in a symposium
co-sponsored by Smithsonian Affiliations and the
Smithsonian Latino Center, with federal support
from the Latino Initiatives Pool.
Twelve Smithsonian Affiliates hosted students for
the Smithsonian Latino Center’s Young
Ambassadors Program.
At the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center
(Carlisle, PA): A team of conservators from the
National Museum of the American Indian spent
three days consulting with the conservation staff.
Smithsonian Affiliations National Conference offered unique networking and learning opportunities
Our 2015 conference welcomed 114 colleagues from 75 Affiliates in 33 states plus Puerto Rico. Twelve (12) Affiliate panelists spoke about topics including distance learning, joint partnerships,
reaching underserved communities, engaging millennials, 3D technologies and digitization, brand marketing, best practices for membership renewal, and more.
All photos courtesy Smithsonian Affiliations
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More than 100
Affiliates participated in
Smithsonian magazine
Museum Day LIVE in
September 2015.
Affiliates were
promoted through
social media platforms
as well as featured in
Smithsonian.com.
Thank you to members of the Smithsonian Affiliations Advisory Council
Jennifer Brundage
National Outreach Manager
Laura Hansen
National Outreach Manager
Elizabeth Bugbee
Communications and
Professional Development
Manager
Harold A. Closter
Director
Staff
Angelica Docog, Executive Director
UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures
San Antonio, Texas
Devon Akmon, Executive Director
Arab American National Museum
Dearborn, Michigan
Carmen Ruiz Fischler, Director
Museo y Centro de Estudios Humanisticos,
Universidad del Turabo
Gurabo, Puerto Rico
David Baker, Director
Cummings Center for the History of Psychology
Akron, Ohio
Caroline Mah
National Outreach Manager
Deborah Barnhart, CEO and Executive Director
U.S. Space and Rocket Center
Huntsville, Alabama
Cinnamon Catlin-Legutko,
Chief Executive Officer
Abbe Museum
Bar Harbor, Maine
Christina DiMeglio Lopez
External Affairs Manager
Gertrude Ross
Financial Manager
Alma Douglas
National Outreach Manager
Aaron Glavas
National Outreach Manager
Patricia Wilson Aden, President and CEO
African American Museum of Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
David Cowen, President and CEO
Museum of American Finance
New York, New York
Natalie Wimberly
Management Support Specialist
Patricia Leach, Executive Director
Whatcom Museum
Bellingham, Washington
Beverly Perkins, Director of Museum Services
Division
Buffalo Bill Center of the West
Cody, Wyoming
Christy Coleman, President
The American Civil War Museum
Richmond, Virginia
Smithsonian Affiliations
Smithsonian Institution
PO Box 37012 MRC 942
Washington, DC 20013-7012
Greg Kimura, President and CEO
Japanese American National Museum
Los Angeles, California
Van Shields, Executive Director
Berkshire Museum
Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Ahmad Ward, Head of Education
Birmingham Civil Rights Institute
Birmingham, Alabama
(202) 633-5300 Telephone
(202) 633-5313 Fax
www.affiliations.si.edu
[email protected]