What used to be admin offices on the 2^nd floor will now house TMA’s collection of Pre-Columbian art, Spanish Colonial & Post Colonial art, and Latin American folk art.

The collection will offer enhanced, bilingual didactic materials. Ms. Karen has a degree in Art History, so she’s more familiar with art objects like these. But I particularly appreciate the interpretive material that TMA coordinates with each piece so I can better understand the cultural significance and historical periods from which they were created. Moreover, when we visit a new TMA exhibit, we usually take advantage of the Musuem’s free tours guided by their knowledgeable docents. That way we get a great deal more out of each exhibit than we otherwise would.

Here are 3 examples.

From the Pre-Columbian Collection.

El Tajin Style Stela Fragment, from Orizaba Region of Veracruz, Mexico, Late Formative/Early Classic Era, 100 BCE-250 CE, Serpentine.

This thin Stela with low relief carving depicts a male figure in profile, holding a tasseled object, probably a spear or standard. The border beneath the figure includes a snub-nosed mask, and curvilinear step-fret designs. This motif most likely represents a ruler performing a ritual activity.

The style of the Stela is transitional from the aesthetic of Olmec iconography to the later Maya iconography that dominated the region. This artwork is characteristic of the aesthetic that characterizes El Tajin monuments. Similar low relief carvings depicting rulers and incorporating the diagnostic curvilinear step fret design are found in sites such as Cholula, Puebla, a testament to the extent of socio cultural power exerted by elites in the Gulf region during this time period.

From the Spanish Colonial/Post-Colonial Collection.

Virgin of the Immaculate Conception, ca.17th century, wood, paint, gilding, copper, and lace.

This statue depicts the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception, as indicated by the crescent moon upon which the Virgin is standing. Recently restored by a professional conservator, with funding provided by a special grant from Institute of Museums and Library Services, the sculpture is a highlight of TMA’s Spanish Colonial/Post-Colonial collection. Most likely of 17^th century origin, it has clearly been painted multiple times. The intention of the over painting seems to have been to change the message conveyed by the statue. Overtime, the elaborate gilt design on the Virgin’s robes was covered with simple blue paint, the complexion of the figure was changed, and, in general, the statue was made to appear less elaborate.

The Virgin of the Immaculate Conception statue provides an interesting insight into how the Catholic Church modified its iconographic message to be more palatable to Mestizo peoples in the New World by depicting the Virgin Mary less as a regal queen and more as a common woman.

From the Latin American Folk Art Collection.

Tree of Life, Aurelio Flores, 1960, ceramic.

This tree of life is a great example of the work in the Latin American Folk Art collection. This elaborate candelabrum, produced in Puebla, was created by Aurelio Flores, a well-known folk artist. The lively tree is bursting with polychrome birds and flowers in a style that is characteristic of the Flores family. This tree of life depicts the vibrancy of Mexican Folk Art and the degree to which individual creativity, tradition, and regional specialization in folk art production are comingled in the production of these vibrant objects.

Southern Arizona has many fine museums. You can find our favorites at SouthernArizonaGuide.com > Main Menu > Museums.

The new Warden Aquarium at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.

On a clear Sunday morning in early February, Neighbor Roy, Ms. Karen, & I arrived at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum for our 2nd Behind The Scenes tour, this time of the new Warden Aquarium. Lacey was our guide for our group of 8, including two little boys who looked to be about 4 and 6 years of age. Lacey, a young woman who clearly loves her job,  told us that she is an aquarist. An “aquarist” is a curator for aquariums, similar to a zookeeper, but for animals that breath water.

This young man watches in fascination as Lacey tosses crab meat into the seahorse tank.

The Aquarium has about a dozen fish tanks. Some are salt water representing the Sea of Cortez, an integral part of our Sonoran Desert south of the border. The other tanks have fresh water representing our now almost completely lost above-ground fresh water. Because human population has caused the loss of over 90% of Southern Arizona’s free-flowing rivers and streams, it’s not hard to understand that most of the creatures in the fresh water tanks are endangered. Many in the Sea of Cortez are also struggling to survive.

Rio Yaqui
The Yaqui is a river in Sonora Mexico and was the home of  our Southern Arizona Yaqui Indians before they were driven out by the Mexican army in the late 1800′s. That river has been badly degraded by farmers.  The Yaqui topminnows, Mexican stonerollers, beautiful shiners, and Yaqui chubs are all found in the San Bernardino Wildlife Refuge not far from Douglas, AZ. Many of these fish have been threatened by habitat loss, wildfires, and invasive species. The Desert Museum partners with Fish & Game to care for fish that were “rescued” from a wildfire so they can be return to the wild and repopulate their native waters.

Catfish
Yaqui Catfish are also found in the Rio Yaqui. It is the only catfish native to Arizona and their numbers have been reduced by the non-native catfish via hybridization and competition. While still found south of the border, most on the Arizona side have been extirpated and re-introduced in hopes of reviving their population. The one in the tank we saw was about 18 inches long.

Apache Trout
Apache trout are one of only two native trout species and is our  Official Arizona State Fish. They were one of the first species listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1969. Despite efforts, they are still threatened by mismanagement of land, competition and interbreeding with non-native trout that are stocked in their streams.

Colorado River
Pikeminnows are the largest minnow in America, historically growing to 6 feet long and weighing 100 pounds. At that size, one might wonder how they maintain their “minnow-ness”.

The razorback suckers can live more than 40 years and have a keel-like dorsal fin that allows them to stay along the bottom of fast flowing rivers. Both of these species have been greatly affected by dams built along their native rivers and by introduced non-native fishes.

The bony-tail and round tail chubs prefer flowing pools, rivers and lakes but their habitat is now divided by dams. A population of bony tail in Lake Mojave are 40 years old but aren’t reproducing. Once abundant, their numbers are dwindling and they are also listed as endangered.

Cabo Pulmo Reef
The Cabo Pulmo reef tank is a representation of the area off the tip of the Baja California peninsula.  People in that community have worked together to conserve this area as a National Marine Park since 1995. Even though the laws are difficult to enforce, the community has continued educating others and their hard work is paying off. The diversity of wildlife is returning.

Sea of Cortez
The Sea of Cortez is famous for its diversity of species, including a highly endangered porpoise, the vaquita (model of a mother and calf hanging above the Cabo reef tank). There are only a couple hundred of theses shy porpoises left and most are only seen dead in fishermen’s nets. The main threats to this area include overfishing, pollution from runoff, and trash such as plastics. Many commercial fishing practices are unregulated, and unsustainable. The trash poses many threats to the wildlife who may die from entanglement, ingestion, or even toxic exposure as these compound take many years to degrade but never fully disappear.

Touch Tank
One of the many benefits of this Behind The Scenes tour is you get to handle the creatures in the “touch tank”. If you have young children, this is a “must do”. They will be fascinated.  You have to wash your hands before putting them in this tank. But once your hands are clean, you can pick up  the arrow crab (or spider crab), dwarf red-tip hermit crab, chestnut cowrie, turbo snail, sand star, serpent star (or Brittle Star),  sea cucumber, and sea hare ( brown sea slug with “bunny ears”).

Lacey shows the boys how to handle the sea creatures in the touch tank and explains something interesting about each one. The touch tank is only available to those on the Behind The Scenes tour.

Price
The price for each of the Desert Museum’s Behind The Scenes tours is $35. But readers of our SouthernArizonaGuide.com can get a $5 discount by clicking on the Desert Museum’s advertisement in the Guide. Here too you can get a more detailed description of each of the BTS tours. These are private tours with the Museum’s professionals. Each offers a very rich, in-depth experience. If you’re looking for an amazing experience for your school-age children, these tours are highly recommended. Last November, we took the Walk On The Wild Side tour and it was great. Ms. Karen wants to do the Winged Wonders (hummingbird) tour next.

Tucson Museum of Art’s Holiday Artisans Market

Annual Holiday Artisans Market
The Annual Holiday Artisans Market will have more than 140 of the best Southwest artisans offering their unique creations for sale. I’m going because this annual event has proven most useful for acquiring original holiday gifts. Moreover, it saves me from having to go to a mall where I would certainly be assaulted with insipid Christmas music, long lines, and pushy crowds.

Current Exhibits
This event also interests me because it gives me an opportunity to see the Museum’s latest exhibits, Barbara Rogers: Imperative of Beauty, a fifty-five year retrospective; and Henri Matisse: The Pasiphae’ Series. There are also two other exhibits of which I know nothing. The Shape of Things: Four Decades of Paintings & Sculpture and Art + The Machine. I expect to be impressed & enlightened.

There will be food trucks, although I don’t yet know which ones, and a beer garden sponsored by 1702, Nimbus Brewing Company, & Dragoon Brewing Company. On my SouthernArizonaGuide.com website, I have reviewed all of the Southern Arizona breweries that I am aware of, except Bisbee Brewing Company. You can read my local brewery reviews by clicking HERE. I am particularly partial to Nimbus’ Old Monkeyshine.

Admission to the Holiday Artisans Market is FREE, as is admission to the Museum on these days.

El Nacimiento at Tucson Museum of Art

El Nacimiento
In addition, the Museum also celebrates the opening of El Nacimiento on Saturday, November 17th at 1:30 PM. This is Tucson’s most impressive nativity, the creation of Maria Luisa Tena who in this way has honored her mother for over 30 years. El Nacimeinto contains about 800 figurines depicting various Bible stories.

J. Knox Corbett House

Corbett House
The following Friday & Saturday, November 23rd & 24th, the Museum’s historic Corbett House will be decorated in its holiday finest and open to the public. There will be two daily tours on Friday & Saturday at noon & 1 PM. Only one tour at 1 PM on Sunday, November 25th.

At the turn of the last century, the home of J. Knox Corbett was among the prominent mansions along what was then referred to as Snob Hollow. Southern Arizona Guide has a short video of the interior, sans holiday trimmings. Click HERE to watch it.

Admission to this mission-revival treasure is included with Museum admission.

Great Horned Owl In Free Flight At Our Desert Museum

One of my most memorable experiences since moving to the Sonoran Desert was to hear the difference in sound between a Harris’ Hawk and a Great Horned Owl passing just above my head.

When the hawk flew past and just a few feet above me, I could hear air passing over and between its feathers. When the owl did the same … silence. If I had been blindfolded, I would never have known the Owl had passed overhead at no more than arms-length.

What made the difference? The docent narrating this extraordinary exhibition explained that the owl’s feathers are much finer than hawks’, and thus don’t disturb the air nearly as much.

Silent Killers
Owls are like stealth fighter jets. The enemy, or prey in the case of owls, can’t detect their presence until it’s too late. If you’re a pack rat scrounging for food on a dark night, this winged predator has two unfair advantages over you. With its huge eyes, the owl can see you, but you can’t see it. Nor can you hear it approach with its powerful talons outstretched for a quick capture and certain kill.

Beginning Saturday, October 20^th and continuing through April 14, 2012, you can experience the same sense of awe I felt, and a lot more. The Desert Museum’s very popular Raptor Free Flight Program begins again.

Ferruginous Hawk in the Raptor Free Flight Exhibition

Aerial Wolf Packs
As in the past, there will be two shows daily, mid-morning and mid-afternoon. You’ll be up close and personal as the family of Harris’s Hawks hunts like a cooperative aerial wolf pack. You’ll see Ferruginous, Red-Tailed, and Gray Hawks, Prairie Falcons, Chihuahuan Ravens, and the fastest of all, Peregrine Falcons … all flying untethered in their own habitat and free to leave if they chose. Which makes me wonder how many birds the Free-Flight trainers have lost to the wild over the years. If you go, see if you can find out.

Each show is somewhat different because not all the birds are featured in each one. There’s a rotation, so if you experience more than one show, you will see and learn something new each time. Moreover, the birds are (a) unpredictable, and (b) some behaviors change with the seasons. We have gone many times and the Raptor Free Flight Program is fresh every time.

If you go, bring your camera and/or binoculars. This is an unsurpassed birding opportunity.

Dining At The Desert Museum
The Desert Museum has two good, but different places to dine. One is the cafeteria-style Ironwood Terraces that prepares everything from burgers & pizza to salads & wraps. For a fine-dining experience, it’s hard to beat the Ocotillo Cafe’, which made our 2012 List of Best Restaurants in Southern Arizona.

The Price of Admission
The Raptor Free Flight exhibitions are included with general admission. But don’t just buy a general admission ticket. Buy an annual membership. With its many perks & discounts, a Desert Museum membership is one of the best bargains anywhere in Southern Arizona. They offer several types of memberships, so you can pick the one that best suits you and your family. We’ve been Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum members since our first week as newly-minted Tucsonans.

Watch The Videos
Finally, on a related note, last year I created 4 short videos in which Desert Museum docents share their considerable knowledge of our Sonoran Desert, including an inside look at the giant Saguaro Cactus, plus an up close look at the features and behaviors of the Kestrel, Harris’ Hawk, and King Snake.  To view, click HERE.

I know the ASDM is working on a new riparian (river) exhibit area that will be open later this year. One of its purposes is to show what our Sonoran Desert was like before all the ranchers, towns, and cities sucked up most of the water. We used to have surface water and running streams and rivers year ‘round. Hard to imagine, isn’t it?

In the meantime, the Southern Arizona Watercolor Guild (SAWG) is holding its 16^th Annual Juried Exhibition in the Ironwood Gallery September 15^th through October 28^th.

Members of the Guild have submitted their works and juror, Kim Johnson, has selected the ones that will be exhibited. In other words, the best of the best in Southern Arizona. Should be a great show!

The exhibit’s opening reception, entitled Fiesta Sonora, will be held on September 15th from 2:00-4:00 PM. Gallery hours for the exhibition are 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM daily. As watercolor is Ms. Karen’s favorite medium, I know we will be going.

Did you know?
ASDM offers over 60 art classes and a certificate program in nature illustration. The classes cover a variety of media including watercolor, oil, sketching and photography. For class schedule, click here.

Bonus Video
Southern Arizona Guide specializes in recommending Dining, Lodging, & Things To See & Do in our unique corner of the Grand Canyon State. That said, sometimes I happen across something unrelated, but so special that I have to share it.

Neighbor Mike sent me this video along with this brief caption.

{2006} Stacy Westfall rides a horse that she has trained for only THREE weeks. The song she chose is dedicate to her recently deceased father.   

The horse she is riding is not even hers. She rides without a saddle or halter & bit, employing the method used by American Indians.

 

This pricing is particularly timely as the Museum is now exhibiting the large B&W photographs of Scott T. Baxter entitled 100 Years 100 Ranchers. I’ve seen several of these fine prints last year at Sky Harbor and they are exquisite. This exhibit will continue until September 23rd.

If you are not a member, college students pay $5; seniors $8; and all other adults $10. Memberships start at $40.

“We wanted to help make art as accessible as possible for everyone in Tucson; especially the younger population,” says Robert Knight, CEO of the Museum. “With an increasing number of fiscal cut backs, high school students are not offered many art electives in school.  So, TMA would like to grant them free admission to our museum. Inspiring young people to not only appreciate but also learn from the art in our exhibitions, this new admission policy will go into effect July 1, 2012.”

Museum Hours:
Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Thursday 10:00 am – 8:00 pm
Sunday 12:00 noon – 5:00 pm
Closed Monday, Tuesday, and Major Holidays

Tomorrow evening, Thursday June 21st, I will be attending the first of three garden concerts at Tucson Botanical Gardens. It will be a pleasant way to spend a summer evening.

Come join us from 5-8 PM.

 

A hummingbird at the Desert Museum Rests On A Person's Arm

Last week, we had friends visiting from Virginia. As we always do with friends and family here for the first time, we recommended they go to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. It’s such a great place get an orientation to the geology, plants, and critters of our Sonoran Desert.

When they returned, they said that they had spent quite a bit of time in the hummingbird enclosure. To our delight, they took this video with their mobile device.

The Coatimundi of Bonita Canyon

Yesterday, Ms. Karen took this photo of a coatimundi at Bonita Canyon in the Chiricahua National Monument. Please share this photo with other coati lovers.

The Monument is magnificent. Will bring back more pictures.

On Friday, we visited the Slaughter Ranch in San Bernardino Valley 600 feet from the International border and almost in New Mexico. A beautifully restored ranch house now a museum and a fantastic place for a picnic aside the lake.

Also visited the old Gadsden Hotel in Douglas. Once magnificent, now shamefully shabby.

Last night we stayed at the historic Simpson Hotel B&B in Duncan. Deborah, the owner/innkeeper has lovingly restored this old hotel. She’s a terrific host. Great place to stay. Will report more on this historic area manana.

This morning we are off to explore Clifton, AZ, then will stop at Roper Lake State Park on the way back to Tucson this PM.

Owl Swoops Over Delighted Spectators At The Arizona Sonora Desert Museum

The raptor free flight program at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum will end for the season Sunday April 15th. We have family visiting from Virginia next week and will definitely take them all to see this delightful and educational program.

You will find 5 short Desert Museum videos at my Southern Arizona Guide website. One has a docent with a male Harris’s Hawk explaining the unique characteristics of this very successful predator.

This video and photo was taken by Neighbor Mike last week.

So far, I have shared videos about the first four. You can view them all at my Southern Arizona Guide website.

1. Titan II Missile Museum
2. The Mini-Time Machine: Tucson’s Museum of Miniatures
3. Franklin Automobile Museum
4. Colossal Cave Mountain Park: La Posta Quemada Ranch and Stables.

Today, I want to share two videos I created about two little known museum gems: Fort Lowell and the Downtown Tucson Museum. Both are treasures of the Arizona Historical Society. Let me know if I’ve missed your favorite Least Known Attraction.