NEWS RELEASE
Oakland Museum of California
www.museumca.org

10TH & OAK STREETS
OAKLAND, CA  94607

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
7 January 2008

Exhibitions, Festivals & Events 2008

The Oakland Museum of California presents a variety of public celebrations and exhibitions this year. While its Art and History Galleries are under renovation, the museum store and café remain open and the annual festivals and programs take place as usual. First Fridays After Five continue with live music, dancing, films, talks, yoga, and authors every month. See www.museumca.org for complete details.

 ONGOING
Artists of Invention: A Century of CCA (through Mar 16, 2008)

Told From A Totem: Student Sculptures (through Mar 30, 2008)

The Art and History of Early California (through June 2009)

January
Sculpture Garden Carillon Through October, 2009 A sound installation by Joseph del Pesco and Helena Keeffe that marks the passage of time before the Art and History Galleries reopen. The artists chose 12 of the museum’s outdoor sculptures and recorded the sound of tapping each with a small padded mallet (one tap for one o’clock, 12 for noon/midnight). The installation, organized by Senior Curator of Art René de Guzman, offers a new way to think about and experience art, and adds a meditative element to the gardens.	Fletcher Benton, View of M  (1974), from museum courtyard. Photo Tina L. Cheung.
Trading Traditions: California’s New Cultures exhibition Jan 19–Apr 6, 2008 Based on the book Under the Dragon (Heyday Books), the exhibition explores the daily mix of California's new communities through photographs by Berkeley writer and radio journalist Lonny Shavelson, commentary by Oakland author and editor Fred Setterberg, and sound design by James LeBrecht, head of Berkeley Sound Artists. They present the Bay Area as a virtual street fair, with food, music, and culture in constant exchange. Check website for public programs.	Lonny Shavelson, from the book Under the Dragon (Heyday Books)
Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration: Faith in California Sun, Jan 20, 2008 12-5 p.m. Honoring the legacy of Dr. King, representatives of religious movements not traditionally followed by African Americans (black Buddhists, Hare Krishnas, and Muslims) discuss the mix of cultural and spiritual practices at 2 p.m. Enjoy the stirring melodies of South African freedom songs by Vukani Mawethu, a local choir. Visit the exciting exhibition Trading Traditions: California's New Cultures. Hands-on activities for the whole family. Free admission made possible by Target.	Hulton Archive/ Getty Images
White Elephant Preview Sale Sun, Jan 27, 2008 10–4 p.m. First crack at this year’s treasures! This is for serious bargain-hunters who can’t wait for the weekend sale (Mar 1–2). At the Oakland Museum Women’s Board White Elephant Warehouse, 333 Lancaster St. (at Glascock), near the Oakland Estuary. Free shuttle from the Fruitvale BART to the Sale. Tickets are $15 at the door, $12.50 in advance at the museum. Call 510/536-6800. For donation pick up call 510/839-5919.	White Elephant Sale
February
Family Explorations! Lunar New Year Celebration and Other Asian Traditions Sun, Feb 3, 2008 12–5 p.m. The Year of the Rat celebration opens with a spectacular lion dance and mochi pounding and tasting. The afternoon includes Dan Chan the Magic Man; readings by authors Oliver Chin, Carl Angel and Eddy Zheng; Somei Yoshino Taiko Ensemble with Vanessa Vo; Korean Youth Cultural Center drummers; Japanese tea ceremony, martial arts demonstrations, and traditional Asian New Year family activities. Presented with DEAF Media, Oakland Asian Cultural Center, and the museum’s Asian Pacific Advisory Council. Included with museum admission.	Year of the Rat
Family Explorations! African-American Rhythms On and Off the Canvas Sun, Feb 24, 2008 1–4:30 p.m. Join in a lively exploration of African American art, music, and spoken word in celebration of Black History Month. Families can participate in art projects while musicians from UpSurge Jazz perform pieces inspired by African American art, enjoy a storytelling performance with Children’s Cultural Connection, create art while listening to Tacuma King and his Bay Youth Arts students, and see a special presentation by Raymond Saunders in conjunction with the Artists of Invention: A Century of CCA exhibition. Included with museum admission.	Instructor Tacuma King teaching Children in Flight students West African Djol and Manjani dances. Photo courtesy Bay Area Youth Arts.
March
White Elephant Sale Sat & Sun, Mar 1 & 2, 2008 10 a.m.–4 p.m The world-famous sale of absolutely everything! Proceeds from the sale, sponsored by the ever-green Oakland Museum Women's Board, support many of the museum's exhibitions and educational programs. Free shuttle bus from Fruitvale BART to the White Elephant Sale Warehouse, 333 Lancaster St. (at Glascock), Oakland. Free admission. Shop ’til you drop!  510/536-6800 for details.	White Elephant Sale
In Our Own Backyard: A Celebration of East Bay Regional Parks Mar 15-Oct 12, 2008 More than 40 photographs from the museum’s Bob Walker Archive. Take a virtual tour through the East Bay parks’ varied habitats, following the flow of creeks from snow-capped Mt. Diablo to the protected park lands along the San Francisco Bay shoreline. Included with museum admission.	Bob Walker (1952–1992)
April
4th Annual EarthDance Film Festival First Fridays After Five, Apr 4, 2008 An evening of humorous, entertaining, and powerful film shorts on the state of the earth and its residents. Includes reception.	Earth Dance Film Festival
50th Annual California Wildflower Show Sat & Sun, Apr 19–20, 2008 A dazzling display of fresh, fragrant wildflowers from across the state. Hands-on activities (microscopes, drawing) and slide shows both days. Included with museum admission.	White Globe Lily. Photo: Tony Morosco.
May
Birth of the Cool: California Art, Design, and Culture at Midcentury exhibition May 17–Aug 17, 2008 A look at the broad cultural zeitgeist of “cool” that influenced the visual, graphic, and decorative arts, furniture, architecture, music, and film produced in California in the 1950s and early 1960s. The exhibition, organized by the Orange County Museum of Art, includes a jazz lounge; a media bar with film, animation, and television programming; a period art gallery of hard-edge abstract paintings; and selections of art, architectural, and documentary photography. Birth of the Cool examines the dynamic community of artists in Southern California at mid-century—Chet Baker, Gerry Mulligan, Charles and Ray Eames, John Lautner, Richard Neutra, Helen Lundeberg, and others who developed high modernism.	Julius Shulman, photograph of Case Study House #21 (Pierre Koenig, architect, Los Angeles, 1958), 1958. © J. Paul Getty Trust.
Cool Remixed exhibition May 17–Aug 17, 2008 Presenting a contemporary spin to the Birth of the Cool exhibition, with graffiti, a scraper bike, DJ station for mixing, lounges, stage, fashion, skate board ramp, sculpture, and more. Curated by museum education staff and sponsored by Youth Radio, Youth Uprising, Visual Element of East Arts Alliance, and Oakland High School’s Visual Arts Academy.	Skateboarder doing a cliff hanger pivot to fakie. Courtesy Wikipedia.
Golden Gala 2008 Sat, May 17, 6:30 p.m. to midnight. Inspired by the opening of the Birth of the Cool exhibition, a tribute to California art and design at midcentury. Cool live jazz accompanies cocktails and hors d’oeuvres in the gardens. The occasion includes dinner in a tented garden pavilion designed by Robert Fountain and Flying Colors, menu by chef Paul Canales of Oliveto, and a dessert created for the Gala by Mary Canales of Ici. The evening continues with dancing and a live auction. Lawrence Ferlinghetti is honorary chair; Wachovia the presenting sponsor. Proceeds benefit the Oakland Museum of California’s renowned public school education programs.	Lawrence Ferlinghetti
Family Explorations! Celebrating California Families Sun, May 18, 2008 12–4 p.m. An afternoon of indoor and outdoor activities for all Bay Area kids and parents—adopted, mixed-race, and LGBT. Check museumca.org for details. Included with admission.	Oakland Museum of California
October
California Now exhibition Oct 4, 2008–Mar 15, 2009 A survey of work by 10 painters from Southern California—from the abstract through the “low-brow” school of graffiti. Curated by Chief Curator of Art Philip Linhares.	Don Suggs, Two Fridas (Matrimony Series), 2006. Courtesy LA Louver Venice CA.
15th Annual Días de los Muertos/Days of the Dead exhibition Oct 8–Dec 2, 2008 The museum’s popular tribute to the Mexican/Central American tradition of honoring the dead. Altars (ofrendas) and installations by local artists, schools, and community organizations. Hayward artist and educator Fernando Hernandez is guest curator.	Oakland Museum of California
Days of the Dead Community Celebration (Check museumca.org for date) The museum’s largest annual event! Opening procession, mariachi bands, crafts, a mercado, dancers, singers, and vendors in museum gardens. Free. (Admission to the Days of the Dead exhibition is half-price all day.)	Oakland Museum of California
December
Fungus Fair Sat & Sun, Dec 6–7, 2008 The return of the multi-tasking mushroom: from delicacy and dye to medicine and environmental ally. A weekend of displays, demonstrations, talks, chefs, vendors, and kids’ activities. Sponsored with the Mycological Society of San Francisco. Included with museum admission.	Gymnopilus spectabilis.. Photo: Michael Wood

For additional information:
Elizabeth Whipple
510/238-4740 M-F, MEDIA ONLY
PUBLIC CALLS: 510/238-2200
ewhipple@museumca.org