Oakland Museum of California Reopens with Dramatic Displays of Collections

Written by Kathy Lipmann Saturday, 01 May 2010 20:08

OAKLAND, CA.- On May 1, 2010, the Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) welcomes back the public with a dramatically different presentation of its renowned collections of California art and history. Created in 1969 as a “museum for the people,” OMCA revives its founding vision by introducing innovative exhibitions and programming, setting a new paradigm for the way a museum engages the public. OMCA’s transformation is enhanced by a full renovation and expansion of its iconic building.

OMCA’s groundbreaking exhibits tell the many stories that comprise California with many voices, often drawing on first-person accounts by people who have shaped California’s cultural heritage. Visitors will be invited to actively participate in the Museum as they learn about the natural, artistic, and social forces that affect the state and investigate their own role in both its history and its future. The Museum celebrates the reopening with an Opening Celebration Weekend, featuring 31 hours of free programming—from Saturday, May 1 at 11 am through Sunday, May 2 at 6 pm—that honors the pioneering and creative spirit of the state and underscores the Museum’s unique multidisciplinary mission.

“We are thrilled to invite the public into a dynamic exchange of ideas relating to this wonderful, multidimensional state,” said Lori Fogarty, OMCA’s executive director. “We have created a more participatory museum that encourages visitors to contribute to special exhibits and provide feedback, with galleries that are designed to accommodate change and new perspectives. Just like California, the Museum will continue to evolve.”

When OMCA reopens, it will present for the first time a number of important recent acquisitions to the Art and History departments, including works that illustrate the growth of the contemporary art collection, particularly installation-based work; media; design; historic and contemporary photography; and objects that reflect California’s global connections.

Inside the Transformed Museum: Telling the Many Stories of California
The revitalization of the Oakland Museum of California builds on the founders’ original multidisciplinary and civic-minded vision by improving integration of OMCA’s collections and programs, strengthening its role as a public forum, and creating new opportunities for visitor participation. Highlights include:

• Art, history, and natural science exhibits that feature visitor-generated content with stories and themes that are developed with input from, and content provided by, Californians
• Installations that provide multiple perspectives on California art, history, and nature, complemented by first-person narrative labels and visitor voices in other interpretive media
• Flexible displays that will change and evolve over time, in response to visitor feedback and current events
•  Unconventional exhibition design that draws on the aesthetic of theater stage sets, using contemporary building materials such as plywood to create an overtly constructed environment in which the artifacts and the visitors are the main actors
• Exhibitions that reflect the experiences of different migrant groups, supported by multilingual wall text in English, Spanish, and Chinese, a reflection of Oakland and California’s demographics
• "Transparent" wall text that provides insight into research and choices by curators, conservators and other Museum staff

New Acquisitions and Site-Specific Commissions
Many new acquisitions will be on display throughout the redesigned galleries. In particular, new acquisitions in the Art Department will be featured in the Art “Open Space” galleries. As part of its transformation, OMCA identified key areas for collection growth in order to deepen and build upon existing strengths while expanding in new directions. The development of the contemporary art collection will continue to be an important focus in the future, with an emphasis on installation-based work and art that illustrates California’s global connections. Visit : http://museumca.org/

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