Savannah is fortunate to have the Telfair Museums. The Jepson Center is a favorite place to explore, especially with children. Telfair makes it easy by hosting Family Free Days throughout the year. To give you an example, I went to the Near East day this past weekend. The “Allure of the Near East” exhibit (which will be open through January 5, 2014) showcases over 70 objects from Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Iran, and other exotic locales. The metalwork items are exquisite, with such intricate designs on metal bowls, plates, and trays that you’ll wonder how long it must have taken to create such “everyday” items that no one would want to defile by putting food on them.
Another fascinating discovery was the amount of Christian iconography that is present in the metalwork and art from the center of the Islamic cultures represented in the displays. And, for the those interested in military history, there were Egyptian daggers, Turkish rifles and pistols, and my personal favorite, a late 19th century steel damascened shield and helmet with gold and silver inlay from Iran that looked similar to the armor worn on the set of “Kingdom of Heaven.”
The Museum makes it easy to engage children in the review and appreciate of the art objects. For this weekend’s display, they had prepared “Journey to the Near East: A Family Guide,” which was an activity filled booklet designed to have kids find objects, complete designs, and draw their own versions of items. There was also a lobby display of Karagoz puppets from Turkey. A table was set up for children to create their own puppets and Museum volunteers were on hand with scissors, glue, crayons, and other necessities to create these works of art. In addition, in the mid-afternoon, TURKU, Nomads of the Silk Road, played music that was a blend of traditional and modern music from the Middle East and Central Asia. Folk tales from Persia, Turkey, and the Middle East were done at story time for an added treat. Basically, a Family Free Day is an excuse to spend an entire afternoon with the Telfair folks.
Dates and activities for remaining 2013 Free Family Days include:
| Date | Theme | Activities |
| September 14 | Shiny Shapes & Detail | Looking through the Rizza Silver collection to explore ideas of shape and script in drawing and sculpture |
| October 19 | Family Sketch Crawl | Exploring with a sketchbook, with drawing activities around the Museum |
| November 23 | Spanish Family Day | Studio activities, flamenco performance and workshop |
| December 14 | Holiday Special | DIY cards, printmaking, & wrapping paper how-to’s |
The Free Family Days are MUST DO items, whether you have children or not. Put them on your calendar! You’ll have a great time. I know I did.
No comments:
Post a Comment