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Area museums serve up art, history
By LEE CLARK ZUMPE
| Article published on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009 |
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A variety of professional and community museums can be found around Pinellas County. Some concentrate on art while others host exhibitions focused on history, science and culture.
Following is a rundown of area museums and a summary of some current and upcoming exhibits.
Pinellas
• Armed Forces Military Museum, 2050 34th Way N., Largo
The museum officially opened its doors in August. Located off Ulmerton Road between Belcher and Starkey roads, the museum is dedicated to preserving America’s military history and educating current and future generations about the sacrifices made to ensure freedom. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Admission is $8 adults, $5 children ages 7 to 12 and free for children age 6 and younger and active and retired military with identification. Call 539-8371 or visit www.armedforcesmuseum.com.
• Dunedin Fine Arts Center, 1143 Michigan Blvd., Dunedin
The Cabinet of Natural Curiosities continues through Wednesday, Dec. 23. Showcasing the work of a group of contemporary international artists, the exhibition explores the theme of Albertus Seba’s 18th century natural history classic. Beginning Wednesday, Nov. 4, the center will introduce its holiday show, Bedazzled, featuring a collection of works from around the country. Featured artists will include Nigel and Cheyenne Rudolph, Carolina Cleere, Barbara Grazul Hubbard, Steve Pawloski, Brandon McLean, Meagan Chaney, Holly Bird, Gail Gamble, Cathy Morgan, Daniel Morgan, Dawn Estrin and George Wilson. Center hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. Call 298-3322 or visit www.dfac.org.
• Dunedin Historical Museum, 341 Main St., Dunedin
The museum contains approximately 2,000 artifacts, 2,500 photographs and a library containing 200 volumes of local and Florida History. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Cost is a suggested donation of $2 adults; free for children 11 and younger. Call 736-1176 or visit dunedinmuseum.org.
• Florida Holocaust Museum, 55 Fifth St. S., St. Petersburg
The museum recently concluded its showing of the traveling exhibition Courage and Compassion: The Legacy of the Bielski Brothers, a multi-media exhibition which includes original artifacts and photographs from the partisans and the Jewish communities of Novogrudek and Lida, as well as video testimonies of survivors. Visitors will find the museum’s premier permanent exhibit, History, Heritage and Hope, which offers a compelling history of individuals who confronted the extremes of hatred and persecution in their homes and communities. Hours are Monday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cost is $14 adults, $12 seniors, $10 college students, $8 students under 18 and free for members and children 6 and younger. Call 820-0100 or visit www.flhm2.org.
• Great Explorations, 1925 Fourth St. N., St. Petersburg
The stated goal of Great Explorations, the Children’s Museum, is to stimulate learning through creativity, play and exploration. The museum and its staff aspire to make better kids by making learning fun. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 4:30 p.m. Cost is $9 adults, $8 seniors and free to children age 11 months and younger and museum members. Call 821-8992 or visit www.greatexplorations.org.
• Gulf Beaches Historical Museum, 115 10th Ave., St. Pete Beach
Museum exhibits trace the rich history of Pinellas County’s barrier islands through photographs, news clippings and artifacts dating from the 1500s through modern times. From mid-September through mid-May, hours are Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. Admission is free but donations are accepted and encouraged. Call 552-1610 or visit www.pinellas
county.org/Heritage/gulf_beachmuseum.htm.
• Heritage Village, 11909 125th St. N., Largo
The county’s 21-acre living history museum is home to some of the area’s most historic buildings. More than 25 historic structures and features, some dating back to the 19th century, include a church, sponge warehouse, railroad depot and store. Hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. Admission is free but donations are accepted and encouraged. Call 582-2123 or visit www.pinellascounty.org/heritage.
• Indian Rocks Beach Historical Museum, 203 Fourth Ave., Indian Rocks Beach
Found in Chic-a-Si Park, the museum boasts an extensive collection of early native Indian artifacts, old photographs, maps, shells, documents and historic memorabilia. Hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is free but donations are accepted and encouraged. Call 593-3861 or visit www.indian-rocks-beach.com/historical_society/ historical_society.html.
• Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, 600 Klosterman Road, Tarpon Springs
Current exhibits include One World/One People, through Nov. 8, an exhibition of 53 portraits created over 60 years by photographer Arnold Newman; Epitaph/Roadside Memorials in America, through Nov. 8, an exhibition of 33 photographs taken by artist Angelo Mantas to document roadside memorials; and Prayers in Paint: The Icons of Sister Eliseea Papacióc, through Feb. 7. Hours are Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m. Cost is $5 adults, $4 seniors. Free to children, members and students with ID. Free on Sundays. Call 712-5762 or visit www.spjc.edu/central/museum.
• Museum of Fine Arts, 255 Beach Drive N.E., St. Petersburg
The featured exhibit, I Heard a Voice: The Art of Lesley Dill, illustrates how the artist has consistently explored the human form, sensory experience, language and their interactions. The exhibit runs through Dec. 27. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m. Cost is $14 adults, $12 seniors 65 and over, $8 college students with identification and children ages 7 to 18. Free for children 6 and under. Call 896-2667 or visit www.fine-arts.org.
• National Armed Services and Law Enforcement Memorial Museum, 500 Douglas Ave., Dunedin
The museum seeks to honor those who serve or have served in the U.S. Armed Forces or in law enforcement. Visitors will find hundreds of arms and artifacts on display, from flintlocks of the Revolutionary War to the electric Gatling gun. The museum hopes to educate young people about the sacrifices made to defend America from foreign aggression and to protect the country from internal corruption, crime and violence. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for students 15 and younger. Call 734-0700 or visit www.naslemm.com.
• North Pinellas Historical Museum, 2043 Curlew Road, Palm Harbor
The museum features a variety of exhibits on the history of Palm Harbor, Crystal Beach and the Ozona and Curlew communities, focusing on the period from when these areas of Pinellas County were first settled in the 1800s. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free but donations are accepted and encouraged. Call 724-3054 or visit www.pinellascounty.org/Heritage/north_historical_museum.htm.
• Panama Canal Museum, 7985 113th St., Suite 100, Seminole
The museum’s mission is to document, interpret and articulate the role played by the United States in the history of Panama with emphasis on the construction, operation, maintenance and defense of the Panama Canal and the contributions to its success by people of all nationalities. The current special exhibit, Flora and Fauna of Panama, showcases the magnificent variety of bird, mammal, reptile, fish and plant life found on this isthmus of Panama. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. or by appointment. Call 394-9338 or visit www.panamacanalmuseum.org.
• St. Petersburg Museum of History, 335 Second Ave. N.E., St. Petersburg
Current exhibits include Girl Scouts of West Central Florida and temporary exhibit of Florida Highwaymen paintings. Hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. Admission is $9 for adults, $7 for seniors age 60 and older, $5 for students with identification and children ages 7 to 17; and free for children 6 and younger. Call 894-1052 or visit www.spmoh.org.
• Safety Harbor Museum of Regional History, 329 Bayshore Blvd., Safety Harbor
Exhibits trace Florida’s history from the Paleolithic period through Pinellas County’s pioneer days. The museum is currently presenting an exhibit featuring the art of the Florida Highwaymen. Hours are Wednesday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. Admission is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors and children ages 7 to 18 and free for children 6 and younger. Call 726-1668 or visit www.safetyharbormuseum.org.
• Salvador Dalí Museum, 1000 Third St. S., St. Petersburg
The featured exhibit, Dalí: Freud and Surrealism, displays 70 works from the museum’s permanent collection centering on two important influences on Dali’s life: Sigmund Freud and the 20th century Avant-garde movement. The exhibit continues through Nov. 8. Opening Nov. 13 will be Dalí: Gems, which will showcase meticulously selected exquisite and rarely viewed pieces from the Dalí Museum vault, including jewelry, paintings, drawings, glassware and flatware designed by Dalí. Hours are Monday through Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 5:30 p.m. Cost is $17 adults; $14.50 seniors 65 and older, teachers, military and police; $12 students ages 10 and older (18 and over with identification); $4 children ages 5 to 9. Free for children ages 4 and younger. Call 823-3767 or visit www.salvadordalimuseum.org.
• Tampa Bay Automobile Museum, 3301 Gateway Centre Blvd., Pinellas Park
The museum features a unique collection of vintage cars and vehicles that demonstrate special creativity and imagination in their history and engineering. The collection includes pioneering front wheel drive and rear engine cars from the 1920s and 1930s. Each vehicle was chosen based on the engineering achievements that made it an important part of the evolution of the automobile. Hours are Monday and Wednesday through Saturday, noon to 4 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $5 for students. Children age 5 and younger are free.
Hillsborough
• Contemporary Art Museum at the University of South Florida, 4202 East Fowler Ave., University of South Florida, CAM101, Tampa
New Weather will run Nov. 6 through March 6 and will feature the monumental sculptures of Diana Al-Hadid, the turbulent paintings of Iva Gueorguieva, and the enigmatic drawings of Robyn O’Neil. Hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 1 to 4 p.m. Call 813-974-4133 or visit ira.usf.edu/CAM/cam_about.html.
• Florida Museum of Photographic Arts, 200 N. Tampa St., Tampa.
The featured exhibit, Burk Uzzle’s Woodstock and Other Americana, will be on display through Nov. 7. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cost is a suggested donation of $4. Call 813-221-2222 or visit www.fmopa.org.
• Henry B. Plant Museum, 401 West Kennedy Blvd., Tampa
The museum interprets the turn-of-the-century Tampa Bay Hotel and the lifestyles of America’s Gilded Age. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. Admission is a suggested donation of $5 for adults and $2 for children 11 and younger. Call 813-254-1891 or visit www.plantmuseum.com.
• Museum of Science and Industry, 401 East Fowler Ave., Tampa
MOSI is the largest science center in the south and home to Florida’s only IMAX Dome Theatre. Guests can ride a high wire bicycle 30 feet above the ground, check out one of the largest articulated dinosaurs ever discovered, experience the impact of 74 mph hurricane force winds or ride in the MaxFlight Simulator. Hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is $23.95 adults, $21.95 seniors and $19.95 children ages 2 to 12. Call 813-897-6000 or visit www.mosi.org.
Sarasota
• John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, 5401 Bay Shore Road, Sarasota
The featured exhibit, Venice in the Age of Canaletto, considers Canaletto in this Venetian context focusing upon the contrast between the artist’s paintings and the works of his contemporaries who were also active in the city. The exhibit will continue through Jan. 10. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily. Cost is $25 adults; $20 seniors; $10 students, children ages 6 to 17, Florida teachers with identification and active U.S. military. Free for museum members and children 5 and younger. Call 941-359-5700 or visit www.ringling.org.
Manatee
• South Florida Museum, 201 10th St. W., Bradenton
The museum interprets the region from the Pleistocene to the present with stunning life-size dioramas and dramatic exhibits based on its extensive collections of anthropological artifacts, paleontological specimens and objects of cultural interest. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Admission is $15.95 adults, $13.95 seniors ages 60 and older, $11.95 children ages 4 to 12 and free for children age 4 and younger with a paying adult. Call 941-746-4131 or visit www.southfloridamuseum.org.
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Article published on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009
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