Field Trip Day
Today the PolarTREC teachers were excited to be going on a field trip. I was especially excited because we were going to a museum – the University of Alaska Museum of the North.
There were several galleries throughout the museum but I spent the majority of my time in three:
- Gallery of Alaska
- Rose Berry Alaska Art Gallery
- The Place Where You Go to Listen - Now that was an interesting name!
Gallery of Alaska
As I stepped inside the Gallery of Alaska, I was greeted by the museum’s unofficial mascot – a nearly 9 foot tall grizzly bear seemingly standing guard at the gallery entrance. The journey through the gallery was a fascinating look at the native cultures from five geographic regions in Alaska. With each step I took, I couldn’t help but recognize and appreciate how the Arctic Natives survived in the harsh Alaskan environments.
Here are two of my favorite museum artifacts.
- The Grey Whale Skull I am sitting next to was washed ashore near Kodiak Island in 1989. Behind it, is a skull of a Bowhead Whale.
- Blue Babe a step bison that met its fate 36,000 years ago at the claws of an American Lion.
Rose Berry Alaska Art Gallery
This galley was home to a variety of artwork all expressing the Alaskan experience in one way or another. One of the truly unique pieces of art was the Gut Parka – a fancy hooded parka made from sea mammal intestines and decorated with the feathers and beak parts of the auklet bird. Yes, I said sea mammal intestines! I know this sounds strange but many items - from waterproof clothing, to musical instruments, to decorative items - were made from sea mammal intestines
The Place Where You Go to Listen
This was definitely the highlight of my trip. The Place Where You Go to Listen was a small, white room with a wall of panels on one side. Each member of the audience quietly entered the room and sat either on a wooden bench or the floor listening to musical tones while watching subtle light changes on the paneled wall. This ever-changing sound and light composition was driven by the real-time movements of the Sun, Moon, aurora, and seismic activity.
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