Events
Audubon Society Program: Birds of the Chiwaukee Prairie
Thursday, February 3 | 6pm – 7pm | Presenter: Dr. Dana Garrigan and John Krerowicz
Carthage College biology professor Dr. Dana Garrigan and John Krerowicz, a local bird enthusiast and member of the Hoy Audubon Society’s board of directors will introduce you to some of the bird species present in Chiwaukee Prairie. View engaging photos of both common and less familiar species and learn about the biology and behavior of birds. Following the presentation there will be an opportunity to view the exhibit Chiwaukee Prairie – A photojournal of preservation. Suitable for all ages.
The Purpose-Driven Landscape: How to Reintroduce Life Into Your Yard With Native Plants – Virtual Program
Saturday, February 12 | 11am – 12:30pm | Presenter: Nan Calvert, Root-Pike Watershed Initiative Network | Free Virtual Program – Register Here Through Root-Pike WIN
Learn the difference between native landscaping and conventional (horticultural) landscaping and why the difference matters to the fabric and quality of all life. Techniques for inviting native plants into a private or public landscape will be included, as well as resources for native plants and books you must have. There will be oodles of pretty pictures to entice and inspire you!
Artsy Afternoons
Explore the amazing world of art through the eyes of artists and see how their artwork can inspire your own. Try new techniques and get your creativity flowing. All materials included. Space is limited in these free programs – advance registration required.
Friday, January 7 | 2pm – 3pm: Ages 5-6: Register Here | 3:30pm – 4:30pm: Ages 7-10: Register Here
Friday, February 25 | 2pm – 3pm: Ages 5-6: Register Here | 3:30pm – 4:30pm: Ages 7-10: Register Here
Sensory Friendly Days
Sensory Friendly Days are designed to give visitors of all ages with complex developmental disabilities, sensory sensitivities, or on the autism spectrum a safe, comfortable environment to explore the museum exhibits during special hours before the museum opens to the general public. Where possible, our lights will be dimmed and the sound turned off. Signage will be posted for those areas in which we are unable to turn off the sound or there may be other sensory triggers. Trained staff will be available to help visitors navigate the museum and offer supportive resources (noise-cancelling headphones, fidgets, weighted blankets, quiet spaces), as well as opportunities for sensory engagement during your exploration of the museum.
Dinosaur Discovery Museum: Saturday, January 8 | 11am – 12pm
Kenosha Public Museum: Saturday, February 12 | 9am – 10am
PUBLIC Education
We’re joining forces with PUBLIC Craft Brewing for a series of fun, interesting talks about a variety of topics from dinosaurs to art to some guy who collected amputated limbs during the Civil War. Join museum curators in an informal setting (a brewery!) to discuss all sorts of topics while sampling some of Kenosha’s finest craft beers. The first one is on us!
We’ve Got a T. rex!
Tuesday, January 25 | 5:30pm – 6:30pm | Location: PUBLIC Craft Brewing | $15 ($25 non-members) | Register Here
Don’t you just love Jurassic Park? The acid spitting Dilophosaurus? The clever Velociraptor? The massively impressive T. rex that can’t see you if you don’t move? Well that’s all nonsense! Join Curator of Education Nick Wiersum for a cold pint and talk about what the Jurassic Park movies got right, how they’ve reignited a global passion for paleontology, and then have your childhood dinosaur dreams dashed as he completely ruins this movie franchise with science. Includes one beer. Must be 21 or older to register.
Famous Artistic Vices
Tuesday, February 22 | 5:30pm – 6:30pm | Location: PUBLIC Craft Brewing | $15 ($25 non-members) | Register Here
Do you have to be a jerk to be a good artist? Why does the primarily male ‘tortured genius’ artist trope continue to persist in our collective memory? Grab a beer with Curator of Education Anna Wolff and decide for yourself if drugs, sex and gambling improved the artwork of Vincent van Gogh, Thomas Kincaid, Paul Gaughin, Lucien Freud and Salvador Dali. Warning… you may not be able to look at them in the same way again! Includes one beer. Must be 21 or older to register.
VIRTUAL African American Read In: Honoring Kay Wikel
Saturday, February 19 | 1pm – 2pm | Watch live on the Kenosha Library Facebook page
Celebrate literary works by African American authors as adult and youth readers from our community lend their voices to poetry, essays, short stories and children’s books during the 33rd year of the National African American Read In. Each year communities across the country are urged to make literacy a significant part of Black History Month.
Art History Small Talk: Nature Photography
Thursday, March 3 | 6:30pm – 7:30pm | Presenter: Anna Wolff
Learn about the development of landscape and nature photography and how the art form went hand-in-hand with the American preservation movement. Photographers such as Ansel Adams, Immogean Cunningham, Edward Weston and Phillip Hyde will be discussed along with lesser known artists.
Museum Munchkins
Wednesdays | 9:30am – 10am
Get your preschooler excited about science and the world around them through stories, songs and activities using pieces from the museum collection.
JANUARY: 5 – Badgers; 12 – Horses; 19 – Kindness Week (Animal Friends); 26 – Giant Beavers
FEBRUARY: 2 – Triceratops; 9 – Pangolins; 16 – Lyrebirds; 23 – Humpback Whales
MARCH: 2 – Water Deer; 9 – Ants; 16 – Elephants; 23 – Ocelots; 30 – Shrikes
APRIL: 6 – Black Bears; 13 – Otters; 20 – Gray Fox; 27 – American Lions
SPARK!
This monthly program is for individuals living with early to mid-stage memory loss and their care partners. Participants are engaged in lively conversations, storytelling and other multi-sensory activities.
Please register for the free program at [email protected] or 262-653-4141.
2pm – 3:30pm | Location: Civil War Museum | Free but registration required at [email protected] or 262-653-4141
Friday, January 21: Tour the Chiwaukee Prairie: A Photojournal of Preservation – View the Kenosha Public Museum exhibition, Chiwaukee Prairie, learn more about this ecological gem here in Kenosha County, then do leaf pressings and flower rubbings.
Friday, February 18: Victorian Valentine’s Day Cards – The tradition of sending hand-made Valentine’s Day cards goes back to before the Civil War. Create your own unique cards to share with friends and family.
