Museum offers free family fun for Lunar New Year

Art activities and family fun abound for the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art’s celebration of the Lunar New Year.

To celebrate the Lunar New Year, the museum is hosting a free family day that will have art and learning activities for all ages Saturday, Feb. 6, from noon to 3 p.m.

“Our free family day encourages exploration and hands-on learning for visitors of all ages,” said Lisa Abia-Smith, the art museum’s director of education. “Families can explore a range of art activities inspired by traditional and contemporary Asian art forms as well as enjoy performances and tours.”

The day’s scheduled events include demonstrations of kite making, calligraphy and manga, a style of Japanese comic books. Also scheduled are a fan dancing performance from the Korean Central Church Dancing Group, a play from the JSMA Dragon Puppet Theatre called “The Dragon and the Phoenix,” and story time from the Springfield Public Library.

Family friendly museum tours also will be offered and will be available in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish and English.

One of the sponsors of the JSMA’s family day is “First Folio! The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare,” a touring gallery that displays the first published collection William Shakespeare’s plays. The First Folio exhibit will be on display on family day.

By Craig Garcia, Public Affairs Communications intern