America Hits the Road: A Cultural History of the Road Trip
Exhibition May 10 through August 11, 2013
Make the Monmouth Museum your travel destination this summer and experience America Hits the Road: A Cultural History of the Road Trip. This exhibition will explore the cultural history of Americans on the road and focus on the artifacts, imagery and oral histories of touring in America, primarily by car, throughout the twentieth century. The Main Gallery of the Museum will become a map of the continental U.S., and visitors can travel the "road" around the country, visiting historic sites, scenic wonders, unique attractions and National Parks through large-scale images, film & video, travelogues, historic road maps, memorabilia and hands-on activities. Take a detour to visit a diner and record your road trip memories; view a natural wonder across the gallery through a telescope at a "scenic overlook"; play Travel Bingo; and take in a drive-in movie relaxing in your "car seats"!

Special events planned during our America Hits the Road exhibition include:

Monthly Road Show Movies
on Friday Nights at 7:00 and 9:00 pm
on the following dates: June 7, June 21, July 19 and August 2.

The Architecture & Cultural Lore of the Diner
Wednesday June 5, at 7 pm
Allenwood General Store, 3208 Allenwood Lake Road, Allenwood, NJ
Learn about Diner history and architecture with a special presentation by Doug Yorke. Enjoy desserts and coffee in this facinating roadside attraction environment which is loaded with antiques and Americana collectibles. $12 Museum members; $15 non-members. Reservations please call 732-747-2266 ext. 5.

The Great Outdoors Family Festival
Saturday, June 22 from 11 am - 4 pm Rain Date: Sunday June 23
The Great Outdoors Family Festival will take place on Brookdale Community College's great lawn, opposite the Museum entrance on Saturday, June 22 from 11 am - 4 pm. As a celebration of the great outdoors, the Festival will feature games and activities, live music, camping demos, nature crafts, artwork, story-telling, entertainment, antique cars, bumper cars, miniature golf, boardwalk treats, souvenirs and guided tours through our America Hits the Road exhibition. Along with opportunities to explore the woodlands and parks of the great outdoors, we will showcase outdoor Shore activities and destinations to boost tourism for the 2013 summer season. Visiting local populations will be encouraged to take a "staycation" this year to support the local economy and visitors from out of our area can discover something fun to do right here at the Jersey shore.

Girls' Night Out Benefit Event: A Thelma and Louise Adventure
Wednesday, July 24, 6 - 8 pm
Gather your girlfriends, mothers, daughters, sisters and friends (and the men who dare), and join us for a fun event to support the Museum. The 1991 film Thelma and Louise, starring Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis, will be the clue source for a fun-filled scavenger hunt through the America Hits the Road exhibition. Margaritas and munchies will provide the fuel for this exciting evening! For reservations and additional information, call 732-747-2266 ext. 5.

NJ EMERGING ARTISTS SERIES: Wendell Jeffrey - Collage drawings
April 26 - May 26, 2013
Opening Reception - Friday, April 26, 2013, 6 - 8 pm
Gallery Talk - Wednesday, May 15, 2013, 7 - 8 pm
Wendell Jeffrey will share insights on her work in a discussion at the Museum.
Opening Reception & Gallery Talk are free and open to the public.

Emerging Artist Series at Colonial American Bank
March through May, 2013
Opening Reception March 7, 5:00-7:00 pm at Colonial American Bank, 1405 Route 35 North
(in the Middletown Plaza), Middletown, NJ.

Friends of the Monmouth Museum – Spring Light Lunch & Lecture
“All My Worldly Goods: English Royal Weddings” with Curt DiCamillo.
Wednesday, June 19, 2013, 11 am – 2 pm, at the Spring Lake Bath and Tennis Club
Light Lunch & Lecture presented by the Friends of the Monmouth Museum
Special guest speaker Curt DiCamillo will discuss the history of English Royal Weddings. Enjoy a champagne welcome reception, gourmet lunch, dessert, gift auction and 50/50 raffle!
Tickets: $50 Museum members; $55 non-members. Please call 732-747-2266 ext. 5 for reservations.

New Jersey Emerging Artists Series
Pam Cooper - "Through the Window"
May 31 - June 30, 2013
Opening Reception Friday May 31, 6 – 8 pm
Artist’s Gallery Talk Wednesday June 12, 7 – 8 pm
(Opening Reception and Gallery Talk events are free and open to the public)
This exhibition features paper constructions in mixed media incorporating domestic items and Xerox transfers of the artist’s drawings. Photo credit: Pam Cooper, My Space II, Handmade abaca paper, pins, thread, Asian paper and Xerox transfers of drawings.

Monmouth Museum “Circle of Gold” Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration 2013
Celebrating 50 Years at the Monmouth Museum - 1963 – 2013
The Monmouth Museum will celebrate its 50th Anniversary in 2013 and has planned special exhibitions and events to reflect the “Circle of Gold” theme, including:
• An exhibition of fine and decorative arts from the Society of Gilders, September 15 - November 10, 2013.
• Join us at our 50th Anniversary Gala Party Saturday, October 19, 2013 at the Navesink Country Club, featuring a dinner dance with terrific food, entertainment and auction items. Guests are encouraged to include gold in their attire.
Ad Journal and Sponsorship opportunities are available (click here for our Sponsor and Advertising flyer). Please contact Mary Suszkowski at the Museum at 732-747-2266, ext. 5, or email msuszkowski@monmouthmuseum.org for reservations and additional information.

Ancients to Astronauts: How We Communicate
In the Becker Children's Wing through August 2014
This exciting new exhibition represents a new direction in educational programming at the Museum. The overall theme of communication will encompass several pocket exhibitions featuring hands-on, interactive displays and activities on different subjects. Explore Changing Climate: Changing Weather, be transported to Ancient Egypt in a time machine, blast off in a Friendship 7 capsule in our Space Exhibition, experience the StarLab Planetarium and discover new crafting experiences in our popular Green Arts Studio. Educators and group visitors can custom design their tours and explore a variety of diverse subjects of their choosing.
Becker Children's Wing group tours are scheduled on weekday mornings. Reservations are REQUIRED
and group rates are available. For reservations and information, please contact Catherine Esposito,
Museum Education Administrator at 732-747-2266, ext. 3

SPECIAL PROGRAMS Beckler Children's Wing
Twinkle Tots Planetarium Program Returns December 7, 2012
Fridays at 2 pm in the Becker Childrens Wing StarLab Planetarium. Children ages 4 - 6 years and their parents will enjoy a special program on stars with songs and stories. Cost: $1 per person with price of admission.

Download a promotional flyer here, a full teacher's activity guide is available. Becker Children's Wing group tours are scheduled on weekday mornings. Reservations are REQUIRED and group rates are available. For reservations and information, please contact Catherine Esposito, Museum Education Administrator at 732-747-2266, ext. 3.

DORN’S PHOTOGRAPHY COLLECTION
Ongoing in the Hall Gallery
This exhibition features a selection of photographs from the Dorn’s Classic Images Collection. For more than 15 years, Kathy Dorn Severini has been the curator of this collection that features nearly 5,000 vintage images (plus thousands of aerial photographs) of Monmouth County. Dorn’s Classic Images includes period photographs of every aspect of bygone times from intimate studies of people as well as panoramic views of towns, river and ocean fronts, sporting events, parades, fairs and antique transportation. Photographs are available for purchase either matted or framed.

The Dorothy V. Morehouse WonderWing - Permanent exhibition
Visit the Dorothy V. Morehouse WonderWing and discover exciting new features! This popular destination for children ages 2-6 is an educational space offering a permanent exhibition on the sea and the creatures that make it their home. Children can explore a pirate ship, perform in a Tiki theater, climb a tree house and slide through a whale. New features include a lighthouse with lovely undersea murals at the base, created by local artist Jim Fitzmaurice. Climb the steps inside and discover a lookout and periscope with views of the sea. Play hide-and-seek in a flashy kelp forest, and find sea creatures in a splashy new water table. Children will have a magical undersea learning experience with elements that are attractive and age appropriate, and draw young visitors to experiment, imagine, explore and discover! Schoool groups and private birthday parties may be booked in advance, so please call to confirm hours.

VISIT STELLA THE STEGOSAURUS!
Permanent exhibition
The Monmouth Museum recently installed a large Stegosaurus dinosaur sculpture on permanent display in the Museum’s patio garden. Artist Jim Gary (March 17, 1939 – January 14, 2006) was a self-taught metal sculptor best known for his large whimsical creations of dinosaurs assembled from discarded automobile parts. Welded by hand and painted in vivid colors, Gary's sculptures are almost life-size, and each is comprised of hundreds of car parts – he used as many as eight to ten automobiles to build a single dinosaur. A local artist, raised in Colts Neck, and a resident of Farmingdale, Gary established a gallery, Iron Butterfly, in Red Bank, featuring other artists he selected as well as his own work. Gary's art has been exhibited at museums throughout the country, including the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, the Boston Children's Museum and the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City. A traveling exhibition of his work, Jim Gary's Twentieth Century Dinosaurs has toured worldwide since the late 1970's. Pictured on the Museum's outdoor patio with our Stegosaurus sculpture is Tess Martin and her grandmother, Joann Kreger. Tess submitted the winning name of "Stella" in our dinosaur naming contest.