Make a day of it at the Detroit Institute of Arts April 30 Live music by Gaylelynn McKinney, talk about 19th-century African American artist Robert Duncanson’s still lifes, movies and a puppet show provide something for everyone
Updated Apr 10, 2017
April 10, 2017 (Detroit)—There’s something fun and interesting going on every day at the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA). On Sunday, April 30, in addition to drop-in art making, drawing in the galleries and family tours, visitors can enjoy live music—Detroit-style—a talk about a pioneering 19th-century African American artist, movies and a puppet show. Activities are free with museum admission unless otherwise noted.
At 1 and 3 p.m., Detroit drummer Gaylelynn McKinney, a founding member of the Grammy-nominated female jazz group Straight Ahead, performs music that meshes jazz, funk, neo-soul and Latin. The concerts take place in the museum’s elegant Kresge Court, where visitors can enjoy snacks, lunch, and a variety of beverages, including coffee, tea, beer and wine.
At 2 p.m., visitors can attend the talk “Cultivating Fruit and Equality: The Still-Life Paintings of Robert Duncanson.” While African American artist Robert Duncanson was widely known for his masterpiece landscapes, between 1842 and 1849, he created at least seven still-life paintings of fruit. He depicted oranges, lemons and pineapples—fruits that were neither indigenous to the United States nor easily grown in Ohio, where he did much of his painting. How did Duncanson gain access to so many exotic fruits, and why did he focus so intensely on them in the 1840s? Shana Klein, Global Trans-Regional Studies Post-Doctoral Fellow from Georgetown University, aims to answer these questions by studying Duncanson’s ties to art patrons who were both horticulturists and abolitionists.
Other activities include two Detroit Film Theatre movies. “A Quiet Passion” about the life of American poet Emily Dickinson starring Cynthia Nixon shows at 1 p.m. “The Stuff of Dreams” at 4:30 p.m. tells the story of a boat carrying a small acting company—and some ferocious gangsters—that crashes on a Mediterranean island where a real-life comedy develops. This movie is part of the Italian Film Festival USA and is in Italian with English subtitles. Tickets for each movie are $9.50 for general admission and $7.50 for members, seniors and students.
Families will love the puppet show “Cardboard Explosion” at 2 p.m. With help from the audience, puppeteer Brad Shur transforms simple cardboard shapes into elaborate puppet characters, then brings them to life. Get ready to outsmart dragons, choose-your-own superpower and train adorable animal sidekicks in this energetic, participatory show.
April 10, 2017 (Detroit)—There’s something fun and interesting going on every day at the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA). On Sunday, April 30, in addition to drop-in art making, drawing in the galleries and family tours, visitors can enjoy live music—Detroit-style—a talk about a pioneering 19th-century African American artist, movies and a puppet show. Activities are free with museum admission unless otherwise noted.
At 1 and 3 p.m., Detroit drummer Gaylelynn McKinney, a founding member of the Grammy-nominated female jazz group Straight Ahead, performs music that meshes jazz, funk, neo-soul and Latin. The concerts take place in the museum’s elegant Kresge Court, where visitors can enjoy snacks, lunch, and a variety of beverages, including coffee, tea, beer and wine.
At 2 p.m., visitors can attend the talk “Cultivating Fruit and Equality: The Still-Life Paintings of Robert Duncanson.” While African American artist Robert Duncanson was widely known for his masterpiece landscapes, between 1842 and 1849, he created at least seven still-life paintings of fruit. He depicted oranges, lemons and pineapples—fruits that were neither indigenous to the United States nor easily grown in Ohio, where he did much of his painting. How did Duncanson gain access to so many exotic fruits, and why did he focus so intensely on them in the 1840s? Shana Klein, Global Trans-Regional Studies Post-Doctoral Fellow from Georgetown University, aims to answer these questions by studying Duncanson’s ties to art patrons who were both horticulturists and abolitionists.
Other activities include two Detroit Film Theatre movies. “A Quiet Passion” about the life of American poet Emily Dickinson starring Cynthia Nixon shows at 1 p.m. “The Stuff of Dreams” at 4:30 p.m. tells the story of a boat carrying a small acting company—and some ferocious gangsters—that crashes on a Mediterranean island where a real-life comedy develops. This movie is part of the Italian Film Festival USA and is in Italian with English subtitles. Tickets for each movie are $9.50 for general admission and $7.50 for members, seniors and students.
Families will love the puppet show “Cardboard Explosion” at 2 p.m. With help from the audience, puppeteer Brad Shur transforms simple cardboard shapes into elaborate puppet characters, then brings them to life. Get ready to outsmart dragons, choose-your-own superpower and train adorable animal sidekicks in this energetic, participatory show.