Free Day at MASS MoCA
Saturday, February 11th, 2012

Along with the museum’s exhibits will be special events just for FREE Day, including an elevator music festival, mermaid parade, art making, tours, and a dance party!

Have you been wondering what’s inside the tall, 19th century industrial buildings at Mass MoCA in North Adams, MA?  Now’s your chance!  The museum’s annual FREE Day takes place on Saturday, February 11th from 11am-8pm.  Visitors will be able to view the museum in its entirety- no exhibits will be excluded!  Along with the museum’s exhibits will be special events just for FREE Day, including an elevator music festival, mermaid parade, art making, tours, and a dance party!

The elevator music festival takes place (where else!) inside an oversized elevator, where musicians will play short, intimate concerts for the elevator travelers, bringing new meaning and purpose to elevator music.

Inspired by James Grashow’s colorful sea creatures, Under the Sea is featured as the current KidSpace exhibit, where the mermaid parade will have visitors parading through the museum while decked out in mermaid garb and/or sporting cardboard fish created at the museum!  There will be prizes for creativity (BYO flippers, triton, and seaweed).  Along with the opportunity to create ocean-inspired art, there will be activities inspired by other exhibits, as well.

Kids can make bridges from toothpicks and clay, as inspired by the film work of Oded Hirsch (it’s a study in architecture and design!).  Another project asks visitors to create works in the style of Sol Lewitt, and another will create a community installation inspired by Mary Lum’s “Tinker Tailor Soldier Sailor.”

Tours of the museum will leave the lobby every 30 minutes.  There are many of activities, but there is ample time to fit in everything!  A visit to the museum this Saturday (or any day, really!) will teach kids about contemporary art and will allow kids to practice working with different mediums and learning to use artists’ work as inspiration.  Perhaps they’ll learn to see connections between artists, too!  For more information, call 800-662-2111 or visit www.massmoca.org.

[Photo credit: (ccl) Timothy Valentine]