April 2, 1999

CELEBRATE KU MUSEUMS ON MUSEUM DAY

LAWRENCE -- Visitors to University of Kansas museums will encounter games, special exhibits, demonstrations and other special activities for all ages during the 19th annual Museum Day, from 1 to 3 p.m. on Sunday, April 11.

Museum Day is an annual celebration of the museums' contributions to the community and is sponsored by the Spencer Museum of Art, Natural History Museum, Museum of Anthropology and Wilcox Classical Museum.

At the Spencer Museum of Art, visitors will get creative with a special gallery activity based on two current exhibits, "Portraits: The Artist in Print" and "Cindy Sherman: The Complete Untitled Film Stills," with selections from the Eli Broad Family Foundation Collection. Participants will explore the art of self-portraiture by drawing their own image based on an instant photo.

Visitors to the Natural History Museum in Dyche Hall will find a celebration of the end of an era -- the Mesozoic Era. The museum will formally open its newest permanent exhibit, a 60-foot mosasaur in the Dyche Hall lobby. (Mosasaurs were giant swimming lizards that lived during the Mesozoic in what is now Kansas.) There will be special end-of-an-era activities in the Panorama Gallery -- and a wandering dinosaur minstrel will sing laments to the extinct giants of the Mesozoic.

April 4 to 10 is Kansas Archaeology Week, and visitors to the Museum of Anthropology in Spooner Hall will be able to learn about archaeology, go on a treasure hunt in the museum galleries and make a bracelet from recycled materials. The museum also will feature its two current shows, "The Talking Pot," an exhibit of ancient pottery from Costa Rica, and "Recent Excavations at Ft. Leavenworth," an exhibit of material recently unearthed.

At the Wilcox Classical Museum in Lippincott Hall, there will be classical fun with a game, readings of ancient myths on tape and a video on the ancient Olympics.

For more information about Museum Day activities call the Natural History Museum, (785) 864-4450; the Spencer Museum of Art, (785) 864-4710; the Museum of Anthropology, (785) 864-4245; or the Wilcox Classical Museum, (785) 864-3170.

The Natural History Museum will offer a special sneak preview of its Museum Day activities to its members from noon to 1 p.m. on April 11.

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