In keeping with their Birth of Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Musée d’Orsay exhibition, the de Young is hosting a special evening program called “French Kiss: ArtPoint’s Bastille Day Celebration”.

The romance, the art, the joie de vivre! Please your palate with light, French-inspired fare and an array of specialty drinks from our open bar, including some deliciously unique absinthe cocktails. Expand your knowledge of European art and lose all inhibition on the dance floor with music from Bardot A Go Go. French Kiss takes inspiration from many eras throughout the history of France, calling for you to dress festively and prepare to immerse yourself in all things French.

“French Kiss” takes place on Wednesday, July 14 from 7pm until 11pm at the de Young (21 and over only). And thanks to the museum, I have 4 pairs of tickets to give away to RichmondSFBlog readers!

To enter, find the answer to the question below and then send it in using the contact us form:

Q: What is the formal, French name for Bastille Day?

I’ll draw the winners randomly from the correct entries, which are are due by noon on Tuesday, July 6.

The event is put on by ArtPoint, the young professionals’ organization dedicated to promoting an awareness of, interest in, and a long-term commitment to the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the de Young and Legion of Honor.

Bonne chance!

Sarah B.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know the fabulous “Birth of Impressionism” exhibition is currently at the de Young. The exhibition showcases over 100 paintings by Impressionist masters including Edgar Degas, Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, and Gustave Courbet. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see these masterpieces in your own backyard.

Recently, the de Young launched “Impressionism at Twilight” on Thursday nights through September 2. The special program features reduced admission and extended viewing hours for Birth of Impressionism until 8:45 pm, along with a French prix fixe menu in the café.

Our friends at the de Young have provided us with two special packages to give away to RichmondSFBlog readers. Answer the questions below and you’ll be entered to win two tickets to “Impressionism at Twilight” PLUS free dinner for two in the de Young’s café.

To enter, send in your answers using our contact us page by this Wednesday, June 23 at 12noon. I’ll then pick two winner from the correct entries. If you win, you can use your free tickets and dinner for any “Impressionism at Twilight” date (Thursday nights throug September 2).

1) The Birth of Impressionism exhibition includes the painting commonly known as “Whister’s Mother”. What is the real name of this famous work?

2) The Birth of Impressionism exhibition will be replaced in the fall by the second touring exhibition from the Musée d’Orsay. What will that exhibition be called?

Good luck!

Sarah B.

On Friday night, approximately 300 people participated in the California Academy of Science’s first “Penguins + Pajamas” event. Children age 6 to 18 and their chaperones were treated to evening access to the Academy, special programs and a chance to sleep overnight among the penguins and aquatic life.

The first thing that strikes you at Penguins + Pajamas is how empty the Academy is. As I walked around looking for photo ops and attendees to talk to, I felt like I was in a ghost town. It was a welcome change from the crowded frenzy of a typical visit to the Academy.

After checking in for the night under the T-Rex, families left their belongings in the center atrium. Both the Academy Cafe and The Moss Room were open for dinner, so many headed there to fuel up before taking in the many exhibits and programs the night had to offer.

There was plenty to see and do at Penguins + Pajamas. First off was a live snake demo where Academy staff member Clinton held a Darth Vader-esque snake on his lap and invited guests to stroke the reptile (tip: stroke a snake in one direction: from the head towards the tail).

The multi-level Rainforests of the World exhibit was open for the first couple of hours and the richly colored butterflies were on hand to welcome visitors. On the lower level, the tide pools were well staffed to help kids interact with the starfish, sea anenome, and other unusual sea creatures.

At 8pm everyone gathered in the African Hall to catch the penguin show. As the kids and parents piled up on the floor in front of the penguin exhibit, I’m sure the birds were just as intrigued with the evening’s events.

After learning about the penguin’s habits, kids embarked on a quick scavenger hunt. Academy staff spread out items related to the penguins on the floor of the African Hall. To collect their items, kids had to “walk like a penguin” with their knees touching at all times.

Penguins + Pajamas attendees had a choice of three locations to sleep for the night: amongst the penguins in African Hall, alongside Claude the albino alligator in the lower swamp, or with the fishes in the lower Aquarium. Most of the kids I talked to said they planned to sleep with the penguins while the parents seemed to favor the aquarium area (darker?). I’m guessing the kids won that debate…

The night also included an Alligator Program at the upper swamp. Clinton the Academy staffer was back to lead attendees on an imaginary boatride down a Louisiana swamp. There were also plans for telescopes up on the living roof, but the San Francisco fog quickly put an end to that.

Since I didn’t have a kid in tow, I left before everyone bedded down for the night. Still on the schedule was the “Fragile Planet” show in the Planetarium, snack and storytime, a late-night movie, and finally, lights out at 11pm.

Wake-up came early on Saturday morning at 6:30am. Breakfast was served in the Academy Cafe and attendees had to be out by 8am so the Academy could prepare for its regular Saturday opening time of 9:30am.

There are two more Penguins + Pajamas events this summer on July 16 and August 13 and there is space available. The cost is $119 per person for non-members, $99 per person for Academy members (discounts for groups of 10 or more). More info

The price includes overnight parking in the Music Concourse parking garage as well as next-day museum admission, breakfast, snacks, and a special commemorative gift. And don’t think this event is just for little kids; I saw just as many teenagers as I did small kids wandering around the Academy.

If you’re yearning to stroll quietly through the Rainforest, take in a planetarium show without stressing about showtimes, or just want a chance to spend more time with the fish in the Aquarium, then don’t miss out on Penguins + Pajamas. Kids will love the chance to roam around uninhibited in the science playground and parents who normally get shortchanged will love the extra time and space.

Sarah B.

The de Young is not the only local museum feeling Impressionist fever. This past weekend, the Legion of Honor opened their Impressionist Paris: City of Light exhibition which explores various aspects of life in and around the city in which the great Impressionist artists came of age.

Designed as an accompaniment to the Birth of Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Musée d’Orsay show at the de Young, the Legion exhibiton features 180 prints, drawings, photographs, paintings, and illustrated books dating from 1850 to the early 1900s from the outstanding permanent collection of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, as well as several distinguished private collections.

“It is conceived as a journey from the dark alleys of ‘Old Paris,’ at the dawn of the Impressionist era, to a world of color and light, culminating in a gallery of vibrant French posters from the turn of the 20th century,” according to Curator James Ganz.

Picturesque views of the narrow streets and stone bridges of old Paris by Charles Marville, Charles Meryon, and Johan Barthold Jongkind give way to colorful images of modern Parisian life, with Edgar Degas, Pierre Bonnard, Edouard Vuillard, and Georges Seurat offering public and private views of the bustling metropolis.

Impressionist Paris: City of Light runs at the Legion of Honor Museum until September 26, 2010.

Sarah B.

Last Sunday, I stopped by the Cliff House to check out the infamous “Giant Camera” that sits below it. I hadn’t been there in years and the last few times I’d tried to gain entry, it was closed due to poor weather conditions.

But this time, the doors were wide open and I was greeted by Robert who runs the small attraction. After paying my $3 ($2 for seniors), I was ushered into a black room that had a white, concave table in the middle. Robert made some noises and voila, a crystal clear view of Ocean Beach and Seal Rocks lay on the table in front of me.

The building is one giant camera obscura. Sitting atop it is a series of mirrors that rotate (or can be held still). The outside image hits the front facing mirror which then reflects down through a series of lenses. The image is ultimately reversed and projected down onto the viewing table inside the dark building.

Watching the image is mesmerizing. As the fixture atop the building rotates, so does the crystal-clear image, giving you a 360 degree view of the area including Ocean Beach, Seal Rocks, the Great Highway and the southern end of the Cliff House.

The giant camera was used by Leonardo da Vinco in the 15th century and was adopted by other artists who would project their image onto a canvas and paint over it to create their pieces.

Check out the video below which includes narration from Robert, who runs the giant camera. What kind of maintenance is required on a giant camera? Regular cleaning of the mirrors atop the building plus painting of the viewing table with a fresh coat of white paint twice a year.

The giant camera was built in 1946 as an extension attraction for the Playland-at-the-Beach amusement park. The Cliff House, Sutro Baths, and Playland were all owned by George Whitney at the time. Outsidelands.org has a great article on the history of the giant camera, which recently celebrated its 9th birthday as a National Landmark.

The giant camera is open to visitors year round from 11am to 5pm, but only on days when the weather is nice and clear. Visit giantcamera.com for more information. Don’t miss seeing the camera in person – it’s very cool!

Sarah B.

This Saturday marks the opening of Birth of Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Musée d’Orsay at the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park. The show is comprised of paintings from the Paris museum’s permanent collection, which has been lent out while it undergoes renovations for its 25th anniversary in 2011. The Musée d’Orsay is considered the foremost repository of 19th-century French art.

Birth of Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Musée d’Orsay showcases over 100 paintings by Impressionist masters including Edgar Degas, Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, and Gustave Courbet. The opening placard in the exhibit sets the stage:

Rivalries among artists, collectors, dealers, and critics animate the art world. This was never truer than in 19th-century Paris, then Europe’s artistic capital. Birth of Impressionism focuses on this contentious artistic community and its varying exhibition strategies. The tumultuous social and political events of the 1860s and 1870s shook the foundations of the state-run Salon, Paris’s preeminent art forum. And competition among individual artists and different stylistic schools, as well as between the art establishment and aspiring newcomers, spurred dynamic tensions in French cultural life. This tension intensified after the Impressionists launched a series of independent exhibitions in 1874.

Yesterday, the de Young held its press event where my cub reporter was on hand to preview the exhibition. Unfortunately Mayor Gavin Newsom was nearly an hour late(!), so the schedule lagged. My reporter had to leave before she could enjoy a curator-led tour of the show, but she came away with plenty of details on the exhibition I can share with you.

Birth of Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Musée d’Orsay includes works by the famous masters who called France their home during the mid to late 19th century and from whose midst arose one of the most original and recognizable of all artistic styles, Impressionism. Known for its groundbreaking style of recognizable brush strokes, emphasis on light and its changing qualities, as well as its depiction of everyday subject matter, Impressionism sparked a dramatic turn toward more naturalistic art. The name of the movement is derived from the title of a Claude Monet work, Impression, Sunrise (Source: Wikipedia).

The Birth of Impressionism exhibition is full of legendary paintings from artists that have come to define the Impressionist movement. Edgar Degas’ paintings of race horses and ballet dancers demonstrate his masterful depiction of movement, while Monet’s inclusions demonstrate his brilliant exploration of the ever changing quality of light and color. Other Impressionist heavyweights like Pierre Auguste Renoir, Alred Sisley, Édouard Manet and Gustave Courbet are also featured in the show.

Aside from hosting the magnificent exhibition, the de Young had other exciting news to announce yesterday. The museum recently acquired Absinthe Drinkers (Les buveurs d’absinthe), 1881, by the French painter Jean-François Raffaëlli who is also featured in the show (view). Regarded as one of Raffaëlli’s most important paintings, it will temporarily grace the entrance of the Birth of Impressionism exhibition before settling into its permanent home at the Legion of Honor.

If you’ve only ever seen these magnificent artists in books or online, don’t miss this chance to see their work up close. Guy Cogeval, the President of Musée d’Orsay, was on hand for yesterday’s press event. He remarked that the lighting at the de Young galleries brought out features in the paintings that were not easily seen at the Musée, an old Paris railway station that reopened as a fine art museum in 1986.

Birth of Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Musée d’Orsay opens Saturday, May 22 and runs through September 6, 2010. Tickets are required to see the exhibition but museum members are entitled to up to 8 free tickets during the exhibition period. However members must reserve advanced tickets online. If you’re not a member yet, this might be a great time to join (you also get free entry to the Legion of Honor with your membership).

Edgar Degas | The Dancing Lesson (1873-1876) Courtesy of edgar-degas.org

Birth of Impressionism will be followed in the fall by the second touring exhibition from the great museum, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cezanne, and Beyond: Post–Impressionist Masterpieces from the Musée d’Orsay. It will run from September 25, 2010 through January 18, 2011. One or the other exhibitions will also make stops in Nashville, Tennessee and Madrid, Spain. However the de Young is the only museum in the world to host both exhibitions.

Are you excited for this exhibition? I am and I have already secured my free member tickets for next weekend. I’ll be taking my art history teacher from high school with me; sort of my own personal audio tour.

If you make it out to the exhibition, please leave your thoughts in the comments. Enjoy the show!

Sarah B.

Photos by RCinSF using the Hipstamatic iPhone app.

Saturday kicks off the week-long “Young at Art” program at the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park. The museum has teamed up with the San Francisco Unified School District for an eight-day celebration of student creativity in visual, literary, media and performing arts.

Formerly known as the San Francisco Youth Arts Festival, “Young at Art” is a jam packed week of events and exhibitions that runs from May 8 – 16. Over 60 student and community groups are scheduled to perform at the de Young including choral groups, orchestras, dance ensembles, theatre groups and jazz bands.

Plus check out the artwork, photos, and videos that have been submitted by San Francisco students. The schedule also features hands-on activities for visitors in the music concourse in front of the de Young museum.

Some highlights from this year’s schedule:

2010 Performance Project, Cultural Connections Through Dance
Saturday, May 8 | 12:30pm – 1:30pm
The SF Ballet Center for Dance Education (CDE) proudly presents 100 student dancers from the San Francisco Unified School District. Teaching artists from the CDE have been working with select groups of students for 16 weeks on a performance composition with genres ranging from Country Western to West African Dance. Attendance is free.

Media Arts Exhibition
Tuesday, May 11 | 10am – 2pm
The exhibition features film and video screenings of student works curated by the Education Department of the San Francisco Film Society led by Joanne Parsont and Keith Zwolfer.

Shadow Puppets
Friday, May 14 | 10:40am – 11am
Students from the Everett Middle School present a shadow puppet performance.

For a full schedule of events, visit the youngatartsf.com events section.

Congratulations to all the students who are participating in this year’s program!

Sarah B.

Some works from the 2009 exhibition:

Elizabeth Englehaupt (Grade 1), Skater Girl. Chinatown YMCA Young Arist Program

Guh Pinto-Cresci (Grade 12), Nothing Can Be Compared to a Mother’s Love.
Columbia Park Boys and Girls Club

Rooftop Elementary School