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Oakland Museum of California Announces Events & Programs for January & February, 2016

(OAKLAND, CA)—The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) celebrates the New Year with events and programs throughout January and February, 2016. The season four launch of the wildly popular weekly program Friday Nights @ OMCA on January 8 marks the return of the Off the Grid gourmet food truck market, extended Museum hours and half-price Museum admission for adults, with free admission for ages 18 and under. The family-friendly, late-night event includes in-gallery programming, a cash bar, live music, dancing, free drop-in family activities, the Makers & Tasters Series featuring food demonstrations and hands-on workshops, and more. A pop-up talk and a series of special acoustic musical performances on Friday, February 19 celebrate the cultural contributions of African Americans to honor Black History Month.

Family offerings continue with Free First Sundays on January 3 and February 7. The legendary White Elephant Preview Sale returns on January 31, great for bargain shoppers and collectors alike. Admission to the 96,000 square-foot rummage sale is $15 in advance, $20 at the door, and kids under 12 are free. OMCA Family Sundays continue with a Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Black History-inspired music and art program on January 31. Visitors on February 14 will find themselves lucky in love at OMCA’s 15th annual Lunar New Year community celebration, featuring a day-long slate of performances, demonstrations, hands-on activities, and food trucks celebrating the diversity of Asian cultures, coinciding with Valentine’s Day. OMCA always offers great deals on admission for families, where children 8 and under always visit for free. museumca.org

CALENDAR EDITOR PLEASE LIST:

FAMILY EVENTS, COMMUNITY EVENTS; ART EVENTS; FOOD EVENTS

Free First Sunday | January 2016
Sunday, January 3, 2016, 11 am–5 pm
Welcome in the New Year at OMCA with the first Free Sunday of 2016! Visit special exhibitions UNEARTHED: Found + Made and Yo-Yos & Half Squares: Contemporary California Quilts in the Gallery of California Art and the kid-friendly Bees: Tiny Insect, Big Impact in the Gallery of California Natural Sciences. Don’t miss the final day of special exhibitions Pacific Worlds and Rituals + Remembrance. Pick up a treat to take home from the OMCA Store, check out a great selection of tours, and enjoy a delicious lunch in Blue Oak café.

Friday Nights @ OMCA 
Fridays in January beginning January 8, 2016, 5–9 pm
Oakland’s popular weekly night market is back for a fourth season of fun and festivities! Join OMCA and Off the Grid on 10th Street every Friday starting January 8 for a taste of local music, food, art, and culture! Savor California beer, wine, and non-alcoholic beverages around the Koi Pond at the Blue Oak beer garden. Enjoy half-price admission, live music, a pop-up art market in the Redwood Burl area, and extended OMCA Store hours. Groups can even reserve picnic tables to have their own gathering place. Families are sure to enjoy hands-on activities for kids—this month, try your hand at rock painting, inspired by special exhibition UNEARTHED: Found + Made.

On January 8, Makers & Tasters features a Quilting Bee 101 where visitors can learn what it’s like to be a part of making a quilt in a relaxed drop-in setting, with the help of experienced quilters. First and fourth Fridays feature a snack-sized tour, where a talented OMCA Docent leads a 15-minute whirlwind introduction to a surprise gallery. The last Friday of the month—January 29—includes story time with Oakland Public Library from 6 to 6:30 pm, and a Makers & Tasters series featuring a select vendor from Whole Foods Market. Bring the whole family to OMCA for a sampling of the best in Bay Area curbside cuisine.

White Elephant Preview Sale
 Sunday, January 31, 2016, 10 am–4 pm
Serious shoppers take note: the biggest and best rummage sale in Northern California is returning for its 57th year. The Preview Sale, a one-day event, offers an early chance to take home great finds, including clothing, jewelry, books, tools, art, sports equipment, furniture, household items, and more. Held in a 96,000-square-foot warehouse at 333 Lancaster Street, near the Oakland Estuary, the Preview Sale offers first dibs on great merchandise before the public sale on March 5 and 6. Organized and presented by the Oakland Museum Women’s Board, all sale proceeds benefit the Oakland Museum of California.

Advance Preview Sale tickets available in-person at the OMCA Store, online at the OMCA Store website, or through mail-in order form, available at WhiteElephantSale.org. Preview Sale tickets are $15 in advance, or are available at the door for $20 on the day of the Sale. To learn more, visit WhiteElephantSale.org.

OMCA Family Drop-in: Musical Masterpieces
Sunday, January 31, 2016, 1–4 pm

What does a painting sound like? Can you hear colors? How will your own painting be inspired by the music you hear? Come to a special musical OMCA Family drop-in workshop to celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King and the start of Black History Month in February. Explore the Gallery of California Art with OMCA Docents to meet works by California African American artists. Then, watch a painting demonstration by artist Candi Farlice, and create your own musical masterpiece while listening to live jazz musicians led by Adam Lowdermilk. Paint as you listen for rhythms, patterns, and colors in the music. No reservations required. All ages welcome. Included with Museum admission.

Free First Sunday
Sunday, February 7, 2016, 11 am–5 pm
If a Superbowl watch party isn’t your thing, come enjoy a free day at OMCA! Visit the Galleries of California Art, History, and Natural Sciences. Check out special exhibition UNEARTHED: Found + Made and the final weeks for  Yo-Yos & Half Squares: Contemporary California Quilts. The whole family will love Bees: Tiny Insect, Big Impact in the Gallery of California Natural Sciences. Check out the Architecture Tour at 1 pm, and the California Art Tour at 2 pm. Pick up a treat for yourself or a loved one in the OMCA Store. Enjoy a lunch or snack in Blue Oak café.

Friday Nights @ OMCA 
Fridays in February, 2016, 5–9 pm
Join OMCA and Off the Grid in February for food, fun, and festivities! Enjoy DJs, live bands, dancing, gourmet food trucks, and more. Savor California beer, wine, and non-alcoholic beverages around the Koi Pond at the Blue Oak beer garden. Enjoy half-price admission, live music, a pop-up art market in the Redwood Burl area, and extended OMCA Store hours. Groups can even reserve picnic tables to have their own gathering place. Check out Makers & Tasters on February 5 featuring a bird-themed activity and educational opportunity, in honor of the new Bird Lab section of the Gallery of California Natural Sciences. First and fourth Fridays feature a snack-sized tour, where a talented OMCA Docent leads a 15-minute whirlwind introduction to a surprise gallery. Families are sure to enjoy hands-on activities for kids—this month, try your hand at lantern-making for Lunar New Year on February 5 and 12, and Black History Month button-making Februrary 19 and 26. The last Friday of the month—February 26—includes story time with Oakland Public Library from 6 to 6:30 pm, and a Makers & Tasters series featuring a select vendor from Whole Foods Market. Bring the whole family to OMCA for a sampling of the best in Bay Area curbside cuisine!

Lunar New Year Celebration and Other Asian Traditions: Year of the Monkey
Sunday, February 14, 2016, 12–4:30 pm
Join OMCA for the 15th annual Lunar New Year celebration, a fortune-filled family-friendly event to welcome in the Year of the Monkey and celebrate Valentine’s Day. Enjoy an array of Asian traditions in arts, crafts, food, demonstrations, live music, dance, martial arts, and so much more. Explore connections between the diverse Asian cultures represented in California, including Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Japanese, Mongolian and other Asian cultures.

Students from the Developing Virtue Secondary School will perform traditional lucky lion and dragon dances. Enjoy performances by the Red Panda Acrobats, a magic show by Dan Chan, stories from the Chinese zodiac with children’s book author Oliver Chin, and a chance to meet live farm animals with Little Explorers Petting Zoo. Monglian dancers from Ger Youth Center, Okinawan drumming by Ruy-Q Musasaki Daiko, Vietnamese folk dances and martial arts demonstrations by Vovinam America, and Korean drumming and K-pop dance by student groups from UC Berkeley will round out the performances.

Korean American artist Youngmin Lee will demonstrate traditional Korean patchwork design bojagi and ArtChef Jimmy Zhang will demonstrate world-class fruit and vegetable carving. Families can also enjoy demonstrations of calligraphy, face painting, henna hand art, participate in art workshops led by DEAF Media and the Oakland Asian Cultural Center, and more! Enjoy delicious Asian-influenced menus from Off the Grid food trucks. Included with Museum admission.

Pop-up Talk: Judy Juanita on Virgin Soul and the Black Panther Party
Friday, February 19, 2016, 7–7:30 pm
Join OMCA for a Black History Month-inspired pop-up talk with guest speaker Judy Juanita, a novelist and playwright based in Oakland in the Gallery of California Art. Juanita is a former member of the Black Panther Party, one-time editor of the Black Panther Party newspaper, and was an instructor in the first Black Studies program in the nation at San Francisco State University. Juanita’s talk will draw upon her novel titled Virgin Soul which is set in Oakland and reflects upon Panther history.

Included with Museum admission. During Friday Nights @ OMCA, from 5 to 9 pm, admission is half-price for adults, free for ages 18 and under. Admission for Members is always free.

Acoustic Space
Friday, February 19, 2016, 5–9 pm
On this special night, Friday Nights @ OMCA’s live music performances expand beyond the amphitheater stage into the galleries. Enjoy a staged acoustic performance created in collaboration with artist Amy Lacour and a live quartet ensemble, taking inspiration from the poetry of the black renaissance and the work of Dorothea Lange. It’s a performance you don’t want to miss!

Included with Museum admission. On Friday after 5 pm, enjoy half-off Museum admission during Friday Nights @ OMCA, featuring Off the Grid food trucks, live music, family activities, and more.

ABOUT FRIDAY NIGHTS @ OMCA
The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) presents Friday Nights @ OMCA, a regular evening series every Friday from 5 to 9 pm, in partnership with Off the Grid: Lake Merritt @ OMCA—the first major food truck market in the East Bay. Friday Nights @ OMCA features extended Museum hours, in-gallery programming, a beer garden from Blue Oak café, live music, dancing, hands-on family activities, and more. Gallery admission is half-off for adults, free for ages 18 and under. Event parking in the Museum garage is $5. Presented in partnership with Off the Grid: Lake Merritt @ OMCA. Friday Nights @ OMCA is made possible in part by generous support from Bank of America, the Oakland Museum Women’s Board, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and the Koret Foundation. museumca.org/friday-nights-omca

ABOUT OMCA FAMILY
The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) is committed to being a welcoming and lively place for multi-generational Bay Area families to visit, learn, and engage through OMCA Family, with art activities, storytelling, and hands-on, drop-in projects throughout the Museum. OMCA’s other family-friendly offerings include free Family Guides to the Galleries available at ticketing desks, free activity Books & Blankets available for check-out anytime the Museum is open, and three large annual festivals: Lunar New Year in February, the Summer Reading Celebration in August with the Oakland Public Library, and the Days of the Dead Celebration in October. Free admission for children provided by the Bernard Osher Foundation.The Lunar New Year Community Celebration is made possible in part by generous support from Macy’s and the Oakland Museum Women’s Board. museumca.org/family

ABOUT THE OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA
The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) brings together collections of art, history and natural science under one roof to tell the extraordinary stories of California and its people. OMCA’s groundbreaking exhibits tell the many stories that comprise California with many voices, often drawing on first-person accounts by people who have shaped California’s cultural heritage. Visitors are invited to actively participate in the Museum as they learn about the natural, artistic and social forces that affect the state and investigate their own role in both its history and its future. With more than 1.9 million objects, OMCA is a leading cultural institution of the Bay Area and a resource for the research and understanding of California’s dynamic cultural and environmental heritage.

VISITOR INFORMATION
Museum admission is $15.95 general; $10.95 seniors and students with valid ID, $6.95 youth ages 9 to 17, and free for children 8 and under and Members. OMCA offers onsite underground parking, with validation for Museum visitors, and is conveniently located one block from the Lake Merritt BART station, on the corner of 10th Street and Oak Street. The accessibility ramp is located at the new 1000 Oak Street main entrance. Regular hours are 11 am to 5 pm, Wednesday through Sunday, 11 am to 9 pm Fridays. museumca.org

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