Message from Mary –
With the change of season, we look forward to the traditions that mark the time of year. Two weekends ago the 2nd Annual Harvest Festival and Indigenous Farmers Market at Colton Garden brought lots of people to the MNA campus to celebrate the bounty of the summer and the fabulous work done in the museum gardens. Kudos to the many volunteers and staff involved, particularly our partners for the event, Flagstaff Foodlink. Now we are in the midst of the annual Flagstaff Festival of Science, another of MNA’s community partnerships. On Tuesday kids and parents came to the museum’s Discovery Village to learn about volcanoes within view of our most dramatic volcano – the San Francisco Peaks. Our biggest FFOS event will be this Saturday, when we will hold a Science Play Day at the museum exhibit building. This event includes hands-on science activities for kids, a series of short science talks, and some very special guests. Like all of the Festival of Science, the Science Play Day is completely free to the public, a gift from us to our community. Another long-standing fall tradition comes at the end of October, when we partner with Flagstaff Nuestras Raices to put on Celebraciones de la Gente. That Day of the Dead Festival honors those we have lost while celebrating life. Three great events and three great community partners – we often talk about MNA as a center of science, art, and culture, but we are also a place of food, fun, and family.
I hope to see you soon at the museum,
Mary Kershaw
Executive Director & CEO
Museum of Northern Arizona
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Closed to the public on Saturday, August 27 for Member Appreciation Day
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Docent training
Wednesdays, October 19 to April 5
Do you like to learn and share your interest in the human and natural history of the Colorado Plateau? Consider becoming a museum docent. Docents are highly-trained volunteer educators who lead group tours and workshops at the museum. Find out more by emailing msoliday@musnaz.org.
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Check out a Culture Pass
MNA believes everyone should have access to the museum, which is why we participate in the Culture Pass program. The Culture Pass allows people to check out a pass to visit the museum from the local library, the same way you would check out a book. It’s another way we support our community. Learn more about Culture Passes here.
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Science Play Day at MNA – FREE Entry
October 1, 11 am to 3 pm
As part of the Festival of Science, the museum is free to the public Saturday, with hands-on science activities throughout the museum. Kids can touch real fossils, then make their own imprint fossil. Experiment with color and drill through a shell using prehistoric technology. Dig for dinosaurs and experiment with erosion.
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Meet Hopi-R2, and his makers
Oct. 1, 11 am – 3 pm
The world’s only Indigenous droid returns to MNA. Come meet the life-size astromech droid, a moving, beeping example of how engineering, art, and Hopi culture work together. Hopi artist Duane Koyawena and engineer Joe Mastroianni will talk about their collaboration, including the engineering process and many challenges they had to overcome.
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Science Shorts
October 1, 12 pm – 2 pm
Enjoy a series of six short talks by MNA researchers and research associates. Find out what they’ve learned from tiny fossils, broken pottery, and animal bones. Hear how MNA archaeologists work with regional Indigenous groups and federal agencies.
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Science stories and trivia games
October 1, 11:30 am reading, followed by booksignings and games
Meet children’s author Charlie Bynar and hear her Charlie and the Rainbow Trout. It’s an inspiring story of a young girl trying to save all the trout from a river that is drying up and a fun way to introduce concepts of animal conservation. Bynar will also lead science trivia games for all ages, so get ready to test your knowledge.
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Celebraciones de la Gente
October 29 & 30, 10 am – 5 pm
Courtyard Afterdark, Oct. 29, 5 pm-8 pm
Also known as the Day of the Dead, this event is a celebration of life, music, dance, food and heartfelt remembrances. In the evening, the decorated courtyard glows with candlelight and resonates with mariachi music. Tickets are good for the entire weekend and can be purchased in advance here.
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Sugar Skulls
October 29 & 30, 10 am – 12 pm
Decorating sugar skulls is a favorite activity for kids and families during Celebraciones. Nuestras Raices makes the sugar skulls and provides frosting and decorations. This popular event always sells out, so pre-registration is required to reserve your sugar skull. Cost $5
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Pine Needle Basket Workshop
Saturday Oct. 22 & 29, 10 am – 3:30 pm
Learn how to turn Ponderosa pine needles into a beautiful basket in this two-day workshop. You will learn how to select, gather, and prep pine needles, how to start and shape the basket, and how to add a foot, neck, and pinecone knob.
Cost is $140.
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Ongoing art classes
MNA made space available for local artists to teach in our Discovery Village. Learn more about these weekly classes on our website or by emailing the instructor:
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Petrified Forest National Park
October 22, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
The Petrified Forest is one of the most evocative destinations in Northern Arizona for bringing life to the ancient geologic past. Led by Dr. Kent Colbath, this trip will include a guided hike with park paleontologist Dr. Adam Marsh.
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MNA Archaeologists in Glen Canyon
From 1957-1963, MNA archaeologists were part of a multi-year project to record the human history of Glen Canyon before a dam flooded 153,000 acres, creating Lake Powell. At the time everyone expected these archaeological sites would be destroyed forever, but recently MNA archaeologists returned on another multi-year project to reassess the sites they could reach. This new exhibition looks at both projects and the responsibility we all share to protect the past.
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For hundreds of years people have responded to the beauty of Glen Canyon by creating beauty of their own. This exhibition presents an artistic narrative crafted around human responses to the natural world, focusing on the photographers who recorded the canyon and lake as the dammed waters rose to create Lake Powell.
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Bursting with color, this retrospective exhibit presents the full spectrum of art by Baje Whitethorne Sr., a visual storyteller acclaimed for his colorful paintings full of life and energy. Born and raised on the Navajo Reservation, his art often depicts the landscape around his family home near Shonto and the harmony of the Navajo way of life. Click here to watch Baje explain the meaning behind the title of his exhition.
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Read all about it
MNA has a long history of publishing research and some of the older publications are still available. Whether you want to learn more about who walked here during the Jurassic, how to identify pottery, or the original surveys at Navajo Mountain, you can find these research publications in the online store. Find more unique items, including pottery, jewelry, baskets, and books at the Museum Giftshop, where every purchase supports MNA and the artists.
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Select Museum of Northern Arizona to support MNA with every purchase when you buy through Amazonsmile.
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