Tag Archives: National Portait Gallery

“Explore! With the Portrait Gallery” in this New Activity Space for Children

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As my kids have gotten older, I’ve loved how the options for activities with them around the area have expanded profoundly. They understand more, engage more, do more, and generally enjoy more. Not only is it great for spending quality time with them, it also keeps this blog going. When people suggest that maybe my kids are outgrowing KFDC, I always want to respond (and sometimes actually do) with, “Whaaaat?!” Exploring new places and experiencing different adventures just keeps getting better. The kinds of things we do have changed, but the possibilities and activities themselves are so much greater.

But I digress. Because I do remember those days when Owen and Sasha were really little, when the selection of activities was more limited than it is now, especially for indoor play spaces, and even more so those with free admission.

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This is why the news of “Explore! With the Portrait Gallery” is so exciting. The exhibition opening at the National Portrait Gallery this Saturday, January 28, in partnership with Explore! Children’s Museum of Washington, DC, is the NPG’s first-ever space dedicated to children. Designed for ages 18 months to eight years old, the aim of the bilingual space is to expand kids’ experiences of portraiture by offering them related hands-on activities to answer questions such as “What is a portrait?” “How do I see myself?” and “How do others see me?”

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I got to get a sneak preview of the space and even see it in use as children from the Smithsonian Education Enrichment Center joined the event to “demo” the different play stations. The Explore! room isn’t huge, but the offerings within are pretty neat with several interactive activities that appeal to the intended age range. I saw this firsthand as the kids playing while I was there all seemed to be quite engaged and happy.

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The activities vary, highlighting portraiture in different ways. Visitors can trace each other’s silhouettes, as one person sits on stool in front of a light and another outlines their shadow.

Getting a tutorial in the strike a pose station

Getting a tutorial in the strike a pose station

Testing it out myself

Testing it out myself

Something kids on the older end of the range will like is the station that has them strike a pose for a projected video art piece. You sit in front of a video screen, press a button to snap a photo, then see it on the wall in a grid of many images.

Voila! There I am bottom right

Voila! There I am bottom right

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Little ones can experiment with expression and emotion by building faces out of illustrated blocks. There is also a felt board, where they can create faces and other designs with a variety of colorful stick-on pieces. And a cozy reading nook in the corner is a nice place to explore the books on hand.

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Both Kim Sajet, Director of the National Portrait Gallery, and Rhonda Buckley-Bishop, president and CEO for Explore! Children’s Museum, indicated that they were looking forward to seeing how the space would be received and enjoyed by guests as they launched. That would influence the direction of any new programs associated with the exhibition.

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A couple of painted portraits decorating the walls are a nice touch to maintain the museum feel. Of course, there are galleries full of art to see when you’re done playing in Explore! And a stop in the gorgeous Kogod Courtyard is always a must, too.

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Explore! with the Portrait Gallery” opens at the National Portrait Gallery on January 28, 2017. Hours will be Tuesday – Sunday, 11:30am – 6pm. Admission is free. I recommend checking out the tips and guidelines here before you go.


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Filed under Art, DC, Educational, Exhibit, Free, Gradeschoolers, Indoor Play, Museums, Preschoolers, Toddlers, Weekdays, Weekend

Where to Play on the Weekdays: November 14-18

The College Park Aviation Museum

 

Monday –  Children up to age 5 can become Young Portrait Explorers and discover the National Portrait Gallery through history and art. During this session they’ll learn about French artist Henri Matisse by viewing his portrait,  listening to a story about him, and participating in a related hands-on activity.  The free workshop starts at 10:30am.

Tuesday – Join Paige Hernandez at the Havana Hop, an interactive dance performance at the Atlas Performing Arts Center that follows the journey of a young girl to Cuba, where she learns to salsa. Recommended for children ages 2-5, the show is part of the Atlas’ new Theatre for the Very Young program. Showtime is 10:30am, tickets are $8.  (Note: the show opens on Monday and runs through Sunday, November 20.  See the schedule for showtimes.)

Wednesday – Learn about the early days of flight at the College Park Aviation Museum.  Check out historic and reproduction aircraft from some of the world’s first aeronautical adventures and enjoy all kind of interactive exhibits and hands-on activities related to flight. And keep an eye on the runway right outside the floor-to-ceiling windows — you might see planes take off and land at the College Park Airport, the oldest continuously operating airport in the world. Admission is $4/adults, $2/children, free for ages 2 and under.  Open 10am – 5pm.

Thursday – Take a tour of America’s Aquatic Treasures, DC’s very own National Aquarium.  While it doesn’t compare to its Baltimore counterpart — the entire facility is housed in the Department of Commerce building’s lower level — there’s still plenty of marine life to fascinate young visitors, including sharks, eels, colorful fish, and many more oceanic creatures.  Admission is $9.95/ages 11 and up, $4.95/ages 3-11, free for 2 and under.  Open 9am – 5pm.

Friday – It’s the opening day of ICE!, the National Harbor’s frozen holiday wonderland. Be among the first to experience this year’s interactive world of ice sculptures featuring DreamWorks Merry Madagascar.  Tickets on peak days (Friday – Sunday) are $35/ages 13 and up, $30/ages 4-12, free for children 3 and under ($25/adult, $20/kids on non-peak days). Timed entry is every half-hour, opening day hours are 10am -10pm.

 

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Filed under Art, DC, Educational, Free, Live Entertainment, Maryland, Museums, Preschoolers, Seasonal, Theatre, Toddlers, Weekdays

Root for the Nationals at the… Museum?

That Nats are playing at home against the Arizona Diamondbacks this weekend, but if you and the kids can’t make it to the game (or even if you can), you can get your baseball fix this Saturday, August 14, when the National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum present Nationals Baseball Family Day.  From 11:30am – 2pm, there will be storytelling, crafts, games, and more fun all centered around America’s favorite pastime.  And the best part:  some of the Nationals players will be there for a meet and greet and photo ops.  Kids (and adults, too) are encouraged to dress in their best Nationals gear for maximum fanfare.

This FREE event will take place in the National Portrait Gallery’s Kogod Courtyard.  The museum is located at Eighth and F Streets, NW.

And if all of this gets you psyched to see a game, you can still get tickets for the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday games here. Some inside scoop:  The first 10,000 fans to arrive at Sunday’s game will receive a Kids Back-to-School Supply Kit.  Plus, it’s a Family Fun Day.  Oh, and Strasburg is pitching.

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Filed under All ages, Annual, Art, DC, Live Entertainment, Museums, Outdoor, Seasonal, Sports, Weekend