Mullin Automotive Museum to Reopen to the Public on Friday, April 9th

The Mullin Automotive Museum will reopen to the public on Friday, April 9, 2021, establishing a new schedule of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Friday through Sunday. Fans of the museum and new visitors will see Concours “Best of Show” winners such as the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, 1938 Hispano-Suiza Dubonnet H6B “Xenia,” and the 1937 Talbot-Lago T150-C-SS Goutte d’Eau; as well as crowd favorites such as the 1994 Bugatti EB 110 Supersport “Le Mans” and the world’s most extensive collection of Bugatti artwork, sculpture, and furniture.

The museum will follow health and safety guidelines set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), State of California, and County of Ventura to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. Staff members, docents, and visitors will have their temperature taken prior to entry and must always wear protective face coverings. No personal items such as purses, bags or backpacks will be allowed in the museum. Additionally, the museum will enforce social distancing guidelines of at least six feet between unrelated groups. The museum will also increase the frequency of routine cleaning and provide hand sanitizer stations throughout the facility.

Visitors must purchase tickets in advance on the museum website. For more information about the Mullin Automotive Museum and its exhibits, visit MullinAutomotiveMuseum.com.

The museum is located at 1421 Emerson Avenue in Oxnard.

KidSTREAM Children's Museum in Ventura County Anticipated to Open in 2021

KidSTREAM is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization formed with a goal of opening a children’s museum in the former Camarillo Public Library building located at 3100 Ponderosa Drive, Camarillo.

The name of the proposed museum is KidSTREAM Children’s Museum in Ventura County. STREAM stands for: Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Arts and Math.

The site will contain over 30,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor play space, including 16, 570 square fee of the reused library and 19,000 square feet of outdoor exhibit areas.

Design and feasibility studies took place in 2016-2017 and fundraising for this museum is in the works. Learn more and donate at www.kidstream.org.

Skateboarding Hall of Fame and Museum Opening at Simi Valley Town Center

The Skateboarding Hall of Fame and Museum is opening its doors at the Simi Valley Town Center on Saturday, December 15, 2018. It is located directly across from the Vans store in the mall in a space of over 10,000 square feet. The address is 1555 Simi Town Center Way, #230.

The International Skateboarding Hall of Fame is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded by Todd Huber. It was created to honor the passion, dedication and contributions to skateboarding history and culture by skateboarders and cultural icons through the decades.

The Museum displays hundreds of skateboards and other skating artifacts going back decades. There are some fascinating home-made specimens of boards on display. There will also be an skating art gallery, gift shop, theater/library (over 600 skating videos as well as skating magazines) and skate shop. They will also be able to build skateboards at the facility.

The Museum also has a mini skating ramp with a fun wall ride available to local youth for a fee.

Admission to the museum will be free, but donations are welcomed.

Visit www.facebook.com/SkateboardingHallofFame to learn more and to support the cause.

Old school. REALLY old school.

Nearly complete mini ramp at Skateboarding Hall of Fame and Museum.

California Museum of Art Thousand Oaks to Relocate to The Oaks in November

To accommodate its continued growth as one of Conejo Valley’s premier art museums, the California Museum of Art Thousand Oaks (CMATO) has entered into a strategic partnership with The Oaks – a Macerich property. The museum will vacate its current location on Thousand Oaks Blvd. and move into a new 5,500 square-foot facility at The Oaks, located at 350 West Hillcrest Drive. The new location will feature expanded exhibit space, new resources for educational programming and special event space. The museum will be located on the second floor between Nordstrom and Macy’s, across from JCPenney, and will be easily accessible from the parking structure.

The grand opening of the museum will coincide with the exhibition of Kevin Sloan: A Collection of Rarities on November 8, 2018. Sloan, a Denver-based painter whose work is characterized by a deep reverence for the natural world, will take visitors on a surreal journey examining the precarious position facing wildlife today. The museum anticipates 15,000 visitors during the exhibition run and has developed accessible educational materials and public programs to complement the exhibition.

Since 2015, CMATO has exhibited acclaimed artists at the City’s property; welcomed thousands of visitors from throughout Southern California; and seen its membership, donors, and volunteer contributions steadily increase. During this time, CMATO received two substantial gifts: Shawn and Letal Skelton ($100,000) and Larry Janss ($100,000). Both donors are committed to providing the means for CMATO to be a cultural gathering place for generations to come and fully support the move to the Oaks.

As part of CMATO’s mission to be a place for authentic and meaningful engagement with art, the museum’s new location will accommodate larger exhibitions, provide more robust programming and feature dedicated areas for participatory and interpretive experiences. The space will also provide greater exposure opportunities for museum sponsors. Plans are currently underway for CMATO to collaborate with Macerich on major events throughout the year, including its School Cents program.

About CMATO:

The California Museum of Art Thousand Oaks (CMATO) is a cultural institution dedicated to engaging, educating and uplifting the human spirit through the palette of art. Established in 2008, the museum showcases established and emerging contemporary artists, with a unique focus on participatory art. As part of its mission to connect people to creativity, ideas and to each other, CMATO features rotating temporary exhibitions, artist lectures and educational programs that foster discussion, participation and an appreciation for the visual arts. To learn more or to become a museum member, visit www.cmato.org

About Macerich:

Macerich, an S&P 500 company, is a fully integrated self-managed and self-administered real estate investment trust, which focuses on the acquisition, leasing, management, development and redevelopment of regional malls throughout the United States.

Macerich currently owns 52 million square feet of real estate consisting primarily of interests in 48 regional shopping centers. Macerich specializes in successful retail properties in many of the country’s most attractive, densely populated markets with significant presence in the Pacific Rim, Arizona, Chicago and the Metro New York to Washington, DC corridor.

A recognized leader in sustainability, Macerich has earned NAREIT’s prestigious “Leader in the Light” award every year from 2014-2017. For the third straight year in 2017 Macerich achieved the #1 GRESB ranking in the North American Retail Sector, among many other environmental accomplishments. Additional information about Macerich can be obtained from the Company's website at www.macerich.com.

Grand Re-Opening of Museum of Ventura County in January 2017

The Museum of Ventura County is preparing excitedly for the Grand Re-Opening of its galleries after being closed since September 1.  A fundraising gala, “Splendors of the Museum” will be held on Saturday, January 7, followed by a community celebration—free and open to all— on Sunday, January 8 from noon to 5 pm.  The community celebration begins with an opening ceremony at 12:30 pm, followed by free tours throughout the afternoon of the museum’s new galleries.  Two new exhibits, “Masterworks of the Museum” and “Really Awful People, featuring the George Stuart Historical Figures” will debut.

The rebirth of this century-old institution came from a desire to give residents throughout Ventura County more access to their history, and to provide a more participatory and exciting experience for all visitors from the moment they enter the museum.

Under the new direction of interim executive director and consultant Elena Brokaw, it is no longer business as usual. “As I toured this treasured cultural resource from top to bottom, I immediately saw one core problem—not enough gallery space.  We needed to increase our ability to share more of the history of Ventura County with visitors and residents. Our 104-year-old collection comprises more than 31,000 historical objects, and it belongs to all of us.  Although it can never be displayed all at one time, the lure of “what is in the basement” is so strong.  We wanted to do something about that.”

Accordingly, exhibition space has been nearly doubled by reinventing spaces, such as the lobby, courtyard and museum store as galleries where more artifacts could be installed and stories could be told. Changes literally begin at the front door, where guests are greeted by historic photos, large-scale objects and digital installations covering previously blank walls. This space is now meant to “set the stage”, telling visitors where they are and what they can expect.

Even the way visitors proceed through the museum is different. Instead of entering through the museum store, they will proceed from the lobby into the outdoor courtyard space; they are literally re-directed into a more welcoming, expansive and chronological adventure.  This space features a historic timeline mural, created by local artist Ryan Carr, which transports visitors back in time.  Also in this space are citrus trees evoking the Mission Orchard, which existed on that very site 200 years ago.

Visitors will discover many artifacts and works of art that haven’t been seen for years, which have been researched and revealed by the museum’s curators.  The inaugural exhibition, “Masterworks from the Museum’s Collection” will pair works of art with artifacts and photos that convey the proud heritage and important stories of individuals and families throughout the region.

The beloved Chumash gallery, an essential field trip stop for 3rd- and 4th- grade students throughout Ventura County, has been transformed into a more vibrant and educational environment with the installation of large-scale graphics, authentic artifacts and interactive stations providing hands-on experiences for kids.  This re-invigorates the museum’s popular education program, led by a devoted Docent Council, which serves nearly 5,000 schoolchildren per year.

A new interactive gallery called “Is it Art?” brings forth some of the more unusual items from the collection and invites visitors into a collective discussion of what constitutes a work of art. 

ABOUT THE MUSEUM

The Museum of Ventura County, located in historic downtown Ventura at 100 E. Main Street, was founded in 1913.  Its first home was in the County Courthouse building, now Ventura’s City Hall. www.venturamuseum.org

The museum’s collection of artifacts began with pioneer Cephas Bard, a doctor who accepted Chumash baskets, trinkets and personal items from indigenous patients in lieu of payment for his services. Bard was a beloved doctor from Pennsylvania who relocated to the California Coast with his brother Thomas, who became a U.S. Senator from California.

The collection has grown to over 31,000 artifacts, which includes Chumash-era objects and implements, as well examples of contemporary clothing, ephemera, fine art and photography from the past century. The Museum of Ventura County’s collection reflects life in Ventura County, and includes items from every city in the County.

One of the most well-known features of the Museum is its renowned Research Library, housing a collection of more than 150,000 documents, books, maps and historic photographs and periodicals.

Museum of Ventura County to Close Galleries Temporarily through December 2016

The Museum of Ventura County, which houses the region’s oldest and most comprehensive collection of documents, maps, and historical artifacts, will briefly close its downtown Ventura galleries (at 100 E. Main St.) in order to design and install a new exhibition on Ventura County history. Its Research Library will remain open during this period, as will the Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula. Some of the museum’s special programs, such as Free First Sundays for Families and popular community events, including the traditional Dia de los Muertos celebration in November, will still be held at the museum during this time. The Museum galleries will re-open and public programming will resume in early January.

In addition to newly remodeled exhibition space depicting the history of Ventura County, more of the museum’s exceptional art collection will be displayed throughout the facility. New educational exhibits will be installed at the Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula as well.

This decision stems from the board’s desire to highlight the quality and depth of the museum’s collection on an ongoing basis, and to reach out and engage with Ventura County residents about the museum’s mission and purpose.

For more information, visit www.venturamuseum.org or call 805.653.0323.

Smithsonian Traveling Exhibit at Museum of Ventura County Celebrates Asian American History

Vietnam refugees (photo courtesy of U.S. Department of the Navy)

Asian and Pacific Americans make up more than 5 percent of the U.S. population—more than 17 million people—and those numbers are growing. Their ancestral roots represent more than 50 percent of the world, extending from East Asia to Southeast Asia, and from South Asia to the Pacific Islands and Polynesia.

In commemoration of this important history, “I Want the Wide American Earth: An Asian Pacific American Story” will open at the Museum of Ventura County, 100 E. Main Street, Ventura, on Saturday, June 18th as part of a 21-city national tour. “I Want the Wide American Earth” was created by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center and the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES). The exhibition is supported by a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

In this first exhibition of its kind, the Smithsonian celebrates Asian Pacific American history across a multitude of diverse cultures and explores how Asian Pacific Americans have shaped and been shaped by the course of the nation’s history. “I Want the Wide American Earth” tells the rich and complex stories of the very first Asian immigrants, including their participation in key moments in American history: Asian immigrants panned in the Gold Rush, hammered ties in the Transcontinental Railroad, fought on both sides in the Civil War and helped build the nation’s agricultural system.

Through the decades, Asian immigrants struggled against legal exclusion, civil rights violations and unlawful detention, such as the 120,000 Japanese who were interred during World War II. Since the 1960s, vibrant new communities, pan-Asian, Pacific Islander and cross-cultural in make-up, have blossomed.

The Ventura County presentation will be enhanced by artifacts, photos and documentary materials drawn from its own collection and from local residents.  These items will tell the stories of and celebrate the rich heritage of the Asian-American populations in the Central Coast region.

The banner exhibition is complemented by an e-book, which is a 14-page illustrated adaption of the exhibition. Produced in collaboration with SI Universe Media, creators of the first-ever Asian Pacific American comics anthology, the e-book will tell the Asian Pacific American story in graphic narrative, featuring work by seven Asian Pacific American comic artists. The e-book is free to download and viewable on all tablet devices and e-readers.

The exhibit also features a free mobile tour app (available on the App Store under “Wide Earth”), which includes interviews with authors Maxine Hong Kingston and Monique Truong; U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta; Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center director Konrad Ng; activist Deepa Iyer; and U.S. retired major general Antonio Taguba.

Curated by Lawrence-Ming Bùi Davis, Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center Initiative coordinator, “I Want the Wide American Earth” is a moving, dramatic and evocative narrative of Asian Pacific American history and culture.

The Museum of Ventura county’s presentation of this national exhibition was made possible by the generous support of Susan Van Abel and Eric Oltmann, Tolman & Wiker, and the Downtown Ventura Organization.

Commemorative Air Force SoCal Wing Constructing New Hangar Complex as Part of Expansion

Existing CAF Hangar at Camarillo Airport

Construction is underway on a new, 32,800 sq. ft. hangar complex, part of a multimillion dollar plan by the Commemorative Air Force Wing to develop a modern WWII aviation museum that will attract more U.S. and world visitors to Ventura County wanting to see its historical archives and flying fighter, bomber, training, and other aircraft on display.

The Wing has run out of space in the current CAF complex, built 14 years ago, consisting ofa maintenance/restoration hangar, and adjoining museum/and event hangar.

Concrete has been poured around the exterior perimeter of the new hangar building including the big foundation pads where the main steel beam framework will be bolted into place. Once all the foundation cement and flooring is poured and cures, then attaching the steel sections begins.

The new hangar was engineered, manufactured and specifically designed by Butler Buildings to fit adjacent to the present western side of the CAF property.

One key element of the expansion plan is a CAF wing 30-year leasing agreement with the Department of Airports. It insures the aviation museum complex will remain at Camarillo Airport for years to come.

The agreement also involves a lease-land swap with Camarillo Chapter 723 of the Experimental Aircraft Association. It wanted to give up its land, old office building and hangars next door to the CAF. In the exchange, the E.A.A. gets new offices, a new hangar and is leasing facilities in the new CAF Complex. The old E.A.A. buildings were torn down and foundations removed.

The new Hangar complex provides the Wing with much needed space for parking and displaying aircraft and museum historical artifacts.

Ultimately this will be a new state-of-the-art, temperature-controlled indoor two-story aviation museum with all new exhibits, a theater, digital video areas, a restaurant with an outdoor viewing area of the museum and hangar complex and a new gift shop.

More information at www.cafsocal.com.