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Oakland Museum of California Announces Events & Programs for March & April

(OAKLAND, CA) February 16, 2018— The Oakland Museum of California announces its events and special programs in March and April, largely inspired by the Museum’s major spring exhibition opening RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom. Inside OMCA’s Great Hall, the Museum will come alive with movement and sound in the Hip-Hop Dojo, a practice, performance, and event space connected to the exhibition. More than 80 participants will activate the Dojo with demonstrations, workshops, and cyphers throughout the run of the exhibition.

Experience the final Acoustic Space Series event on March 16, and don’t miss the 59th annual White Elephant Sale March 3–4. For more details, visit museumca.org

CALENDAR EDITOR PLEASE LIST:
FAMILY EVENTS; MUSIC EVENTS; COMMUNITY EVENTS; ART EVENTS; FOOD EVENTS

White Elephant Sale
Saturday, March 3 & Sunday, March 4, 2018
10 am–4 pm

Back for its 59th year, Northern California’s biggest and best rummage sale takes place over one grand weekend, with free admission for all. Held in a 96,000-square-foot warehouse at 333 Lancaster Street, near the Oakland Estuary, the sale offers something for everyone, with clothing, jewelry, books, tools, art, sports equipment, furniture, household items and more. Organized and presented by the Oakland Museum Women’s Board, all sale proceeds benefit the Oakland Museum of California. Free admission and free shuttle to and from the Fruitvale BART Station. 

First Sundays @ OMCA

Sunday, March 4, 2018
10 am–6 pm
Be sure to visit Take Root: Oakland Grows Food to unearth what motivates local urban farmers and gardeners, and experience all that our Galleries of California Art, History, and Sciences have to offer. 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. Spend a day with us and find out why TripAdvisor reviewers call OMCA “a hidden gem.” Suggested donation: $5 per person. Your contribution helps us provide access to other visitors in the community.

Presented in partnership with the Oakland Public Library, City of Oakland Parks and Recreation, and California Historical Society.

Tour | Architecture of the Museum

Sunday, March 4, 2018
Sunday, April 1, 2018

1­–2 pm
Experience OMCA’s remarkable mid-century modernist landmark building with the guidance of the Museum’s expert members of the Council on Architecture. This tour shares with you just a few of the highlights of the incredible building, from views of Lake Merritt and downtown Oakland from atop a three-tiered roof garden to the serene Koi Pond, and a truly Californian indoor/outdoor design that still delights and attracts visitors today. Designed in 1969 by Kevin Roche, with landscaping by Dan Kiley, the Museum recently completed a major renovation and expansion project overseen by San Francisco-based firm Mark Cavagnero Associates, which honors Roche and Kiley’s original vision of a vibrant urban park and public space. Free as a part of First Sundays @ OMCA. Meet in front of the Ticketing Desk on Level 2.

Friday Nights @ OMCA Winter Season
Every Friday, 5–9 pm
March 2, 9, & 16

Get cozy at OMCA with our Winter Season of Friday Nights @ OMCA, bringing you expanded DJ sets from the Bay Area’s finest and a new monthly Acoustic Space Series featuring performing arts experiences inside the OMCA galleries on March 16, followed by live music outdoors every Friday starting on March 23 with the launch of our Summer Season.


Enjoy half-price admission, hands-on activities for kids, and a lineup of live music and dance from local performers that changes weekly—all alongside your favorite food trucks from Off the Grid. Bring friends and family for a taste of local music, food, and culture at the Oakland Museum of California every Friday Night! museumca.org/friday-nights-omca

Acoustic Space Series: Destiny Muhammad Trio
Friday, March 16, 2018
6:30­–8 pm

OMCA’s new Acoustic Space Series features performing arts experiences each month inside the galleries now through mid-March. Live music outdoors will resume every Friday starting on March 23 with the launch of our Summer Season of Friday Nights @ OMCA.


 

Tonight, join us in the Gallery of California Art to experience the “Sound Sculptress”

Destiny Muhammad and her ethereal trio in commemoration of Women’s History Month. Destiny Muhammad is a recording/performing artist, bandleader, composer, and producer. Her signature genre, Celtic to Coltrane, has a cool and eclectic sound with a feel of jazz and a touch of storytelling to round out the sonic experience. Led by harpist Destiny, the jazz trio is a sleek and soulful showcase of Muhammad’s soaring vocals and transporting string work. Whether interpreting jazz standards or playing her original tunes, Destiny turns every piece into a soulful adventure. Included with Museum admission (half-price after 5 pm, free for 18 and under).

Friday Nights @ OMCA Block Party & Summer Season Launch
Friday, March 23, 2018
5–10 pm

The Summer Season of Friday Nights @ OMCA is back! That means the gardens are open for picnics, live music outside is back, gallery hours are open until 10pm, and the Off the Grid food truck market expands onto Oak Street. Come celebrate the beginning of warmer weather with our first Friday Nights @ OMCA Block Party, taking place every first and third Fridays of the month now through July and on August 10. Get down to new themes each month featuring performances and activities in celebration of our special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom, opening Saturday, March 24. Highlights for the Block Party include:

 

Friday Nights @ Summer Season
Every Friday, 5–10 pm
March 23 & 30
April 13, 20 & 27

The Summer Season of Friday Nights @ OMCA is back! That means the gardens are open for picnics, live music outside is back, gallery hours are open until 10pm, and the Off the Grid food truck market expands onto Oak Street. Enjoy half-price admission, hands-on activities for kids, and a lineup of live music and dance from local performers that changes weekly—all alongside your favorite food trucks from Off the Grid. Bring friends and family for a taste of local music, food, and culture at the Oakland Museum of California every Friday Night!

First Sundays @ OMCA
Sunday, April 1, 2018
10 am–6 pm

Be sure to visit our new exhibition, RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom, to discover the unexpected story of how Hip-Hop changed the world. Don’t miss Take Root: Oakland Grows Food to unearth what motivates local urban farmers and gardeners, and experience all that our Galleries of California Art, History, and Sciences have to offer. 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. Spend a day with us and find out why TripAdvisor reviewers call OMCA “a hidden gem.” Suggested donation: $5 per person. Your contribution helps us provide access to other visitors in the community.

Presented in partnership with the Oakland Public Library, City of Oakland Parks and Recreation, and California Historical Society.

Friday Nights @ OMCA Block Party
Friday, April 6, 2018
5–10 pm

The Summer Season of Friday Nights @ OMCA means the gardens are open for picnics, live music outside is back, gallery hours are open until 10 pm, and the Off the Grid food truck market expands onto Oak Street. Come celebrate the summer with our Friday Nights @ OMCA Block Party, taking place every first and third Fridays of the month now through July and on August 10. Get down to new themes each month featuring performances and activities in celebration of our special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom, on view through August 12. Tonight’s theme is a youth showcase. Highlights for the Block Party include:


Kevin Powell: The Education of Us Tour
Friday, April 20, 2018
7–8:30 pm

Join us for an interactive community conversation with Kevin Powell, one of the most acclaimed political, cultural, literary and Hip-Hop voices in America in the 21st century. Powell is an activist, writer, public speaker, host of the podcast “One on One with Kevin Powell,” co-founder of BK Nation, author of 13 books, including his autobiography The Education of Kevin Powell: A Boy’s Journey into Manhood, and the author of an upcoming biography on Tupac Shakur.

This event at OMCA kick-offs his 100-city speaking tour, The Education of Us. Experience this powerful program in celebration of special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom, on view through August 12. The program will be followed by a book signing from 8:30–10 pm with Kevin in the California Room on Level One. Books available for purchase. Free admission. Registration details coming soon.


Friday Nights @ OMCA Block Party
Friday, April 20, 2018
5–10 pm

The Summer Season of Friday Nights @ OMCA means the gardens are open for picnics, live music outside is back, gallery hours are open until 10 pm, and the Off the Grid food truck market expands onto Oak Street. Come celebrate the summer with our Friday Nights @ OMCA Block Party, taking place every first and third Fridays of the month now through July and on August 10. Get down to new themes each month featuring performances and activities in celebration of our special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom, on view through August 12. Tonight’s theme is civic/educational empowerment and social justice. Highlights for the Block Party include:


Hip-Hop Dojo Program Highlights

Part of special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom, the Hip-Hop Dojo is a practice, performance, and event space connected to the exhibition. More than 80 participants will activate the Dojo throughout the run of the exhibition.

Cypher Sunday
First and third Sundays of the month, April­–August, 2018
In April: April 1 & 15 
1–3:30 pm

In Hip-Hop, free styling is the art of lyrical improvisation and a cypher is a circle with no visible beginning or ending. Test out your freestyling skills–rapping, dancing, or beatboxing—and come watch and support others in this participatory event series taking place inside special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom.

Participants take turns offering thoughts off the top of their heads in the form of rhyme while a guest DJ spins, and guest hosts will facilitate the experience based on a specific topic each time. Come share your lyrics, ideas, and sounds every first and third Sunday through August 12.

Sign-up onsite to join the cypher. All ages, all skill-levels encouraged. Spectators are welcome (no sign-up needed). Included with Museum special exhibition admission, aside from First Sundays @ OMCA.


Plug ‘n’ Play
Every Friday from April 6–August 10, 2018
In April: April 6, 13, 20, & 27
6:30-8 pm

Every Friday during Friday Nights @ OMCA, a rotating list of guest DJs take over the Hip-Hop Dojo inside RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom to demonstrate live sets. This weekly event series created in collaboration with San Francisco’s The DJ Project features local DJs to give visitors a taste of the vast musical genre of Hip-Hop. Get down to Bay Area classics, international crossover hits, and underground unsung legends, among other topics. Inspired to try it out yourself? Build up your own skills inside the Sound Lab inside the exhibition space. Included with Museum special exhibition admission (half-price on Fridays after 5 pm, free for 18 and under).

Mic Check/Checkmate TBD
Second Wednesday of the month, April­–July, 2018
In April: April 11
2-5 pm

“Make your next move your best move.” Check out the strong ties between Hip-Hop and chess communities in this event series inside special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom. Refine your own skills of discipline, precision, and mastery by joining chess games open to all. Included with Museum special exhibition admission.

Hip-Hop Trivia
Select Fridays April–July, 2018
In April: April 20

6:30–8 pm
Think you know Hip-Hop? Test and expand your knowledge of the culture every third Friday in the Hip-Hop Dojo inside special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom during Friday Nights @ OMCA. Topics will include fashion, politics, history, and more. Bring a friend to round out your answers—and don’t forget to study up with the exhibition’s Reading Room on your next visit. Drop-ins welcome. Included with Museum special exhibition admission (half-price on Fridays after 5 pm, free for 18 and under).

Chop It Up
Last Saturday of the month April–July, 2018
In April: April 28
3–5 pm

In Hip-Hop culture, the barbershop is known as a community hub for news and debate. Inside special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom, gather around the Barbershop space inside the gallery to learn from guest speakers focusing on new topics each month. Explore unexpected aspects of Hip-Hop culture. This month’s theme is Hip-Hop & Entrepreneurship. Included with Museum special exhibition admission.

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 $7. Presented in partnership with Off the Grid: Lake Merritt @ OMCA. Friday Nights @ OMCA is made possible in part by generous support from the Koret Foundation, Bank of America, the Oakland Museum Women’s Board, and The William and Flora Hewlett 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. OMCA Festivals are made possible in part by generous support from the Oakland Museum Women’s Board and the Koret Foundation. 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. There is a $4 charge in addition to general admission pricing for special exhibitions. 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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