News Release

Holiday Activities Announced at Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History

November 20, 2006

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History celebrate the holidays with a variety of special programs. Following is a complete list of events for this holiday season. All activities are included in the price of admission unless otherwise indicated.

At Carnegie Museum of Art:

Holiday Tree Display: Favorite Legends and Fairy Tales
November 30, 2006-January 7, 2007
Hall of Architecture
This year the traditional display of themed trees will highlight legends and fairytales from around the world. Included are Bringing the Rain to Kipiti Plain, from Africa; The Ugly Duckling, organized by members of the Carnegie Library; The Chinese Dragon's Gift, from China; The Mitten, a Ukranian folktale, organized with the Origami Club of Pittsburgh; and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Members and friends of the Women's Committee of Carnegie Museum of Art decorate each tree with hundreds of handcrafted ornaments.

Holiday Tree Preview Party
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
6:00–8:30 p.m.
Hall of Architecture
The holiday tree display opens with a preview party hosted by the Women’s Committee of Carnegie Museum of Art. Guests will enjoy cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. At 7:00 p.m., a holiday tree adorned with 35 ornaments created by noted designer Christopher Radko, and donated by Louis Anthony Jewelers, will be sold in an auction led by Jim Roddey. Tickets are $45 and must be purchased in advance by calling 412.622.3325.

Neapolitan Presepio
November 24, 2006-January 4, 2007
Hall of Sculpture
The presepio, a centuries-old tradition in Naples and southern Italy, is an elaborate Nativity scene recreated with miniature figures and animals and arranged in a detailed panorama. Handmade by craftsmen between 1700 and 1830, Carnegie Museum of Art's vibrant Neapolitan presepio features more than 100 superbly modeled human, animal, and angelic figures, accessories, and architectural elements. A holiday tradition since 1957, the museum's presepio is one of the finest examples of its kind. The presepio will be displayed in the Hall of Sculpture.

Guided Tours of the Neapolitan Presepio
Visitors can take a free docent-led tour of the presepio Tuesday-Saturday, 12:00-12:30 p.m. and Sunday, 12:15-12:45 p.m., through January 4th. Tours meet in front of the museum store.

Lunch and Learn: Holiday Traditions and Religion in Art
Thursday, December 14
10:30 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
$45 members/$55 nonmembers
Lunch in the Carnegie Café included.
Call 412.622.3288 to register.
Visit the Nationality Rooms at the University of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning. After lunch, join museum docents for a tour of religious art in the collection, including the 18th-century Neapolitan presepio.

Origami Holiday Fun
December 2, 3, 9, and 10
12:30-2:30 p.m.
Hall of Architecture
Free with museum admission.
Participants learn to fold ornaments and animals with members of the Origami Club of Pittsburgh. Club members created the ornaments decorating The Mitten holiday tree on view in the Hall of Architecture.

At Carnegie Museum of Natural History:

Winter in the Discovery Room
Tuesday-Friday, 1:00-3:00 p.m.
Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
Sunday, 1:00-4:00 p.m.
Visitors experience the wonder of wintertime. They will learn about holiday greenery by seeing and smelling live spruce, pine, and other festive plants. They can also touch a caribou's winter white fur, investigate animals in the Discovery Room tree, listen to the calls of wild birds, and more.

Who Ate the Cookie?
Fisher Scientific Biotechnology Laboratory
Saturdays in December
12:00-4:00 p.m.
A special holiday who-dunnit featuring state-of-the-art technology teaches about DNA extraction through hands-on experiments. The 30-minute programs begin on the half hour in the Green Classroom (ground floor). Children under age 16 must be accompanied by an adult.

Other Activities and Information:

Holiday Concerts
Hall of Architecture
Musical performances will be held select weekends in December. For a schedule, call 412.622.3131. Concerts are free with museum admission.

Holiday Shopping
The gift stores at Carnegie Museum of Art and Carnegie Museum of Natural History offer unique, imaginative, and affordable gifts-many of them exclusive to the museums. The gift stores are open during museum hours.

Shoppers can also purchase items from the stores online at www.carnegieartstore.com and www.naturalhistorystore.com.

Holiday Clearance Sale
December 5, 9:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
This one-day clearance sale will offers "Bargain Basement" prices with savings up to 60% off. Tables stationed in front of the two museum stores in Oakland will offer discounted merchandise from all four Carnegie Museum stores.

Shopping and Dining Discounts
Carnegie Café diners receive a 10% discount on purchases made in either the Museum of Art or Museum of Natural History stores.
Museum store shoppers get a coupon for 10% off a meal in the Carnegie Café.

(Coupons are good only for date of purchase. Maximum discount in stores is $10 [$100 purchase], maximum discount in Carnegie Café is $5 [$50 purchase]. Promotion runs until January 3, 2006. Cannot be combined with other discounts.)

Membership Holiday Promotions
Gift Memberships to Carnegie Museums offer a full year of museum enjoyment for any size household. For a whole year, recipients will receive free general admission to all four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh and additional member benefits. Gift memberships are wrapped in a gold gift folder. Details are available at the admissions desks, by calling 412.622.3314, or by visiting the Member Center at www.carnegiemuseums.org. A buy-one-get-one-free gift membership offer will be featured online at www.carnegiemusuems.org from November 15 through December 15. All gift membership orders receive free shipping and handling. Orders received by December 15 guarantee delivery by December 25.

Restaurants
Carnegie Café, quality self-serve dining, Tuesday-Saturday, 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Fossil Fuels Refreshments, family-friendly food, Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m., Sunday, noon-4:00 p.m.
Brown Bag Lunchroom/Vending area, daily during museum hours

Special Holiday Hours
This holiday season, Carnegie Museum of Art and Carnegie Museum of Natural History will observe the following changes in hours:
Closed Thursday, November 23.

Carnegie Museum of Art and Carnegie Museum of Natural History

Located at 4400 Forbes Avenue in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh and founded by industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie in 1895, Carnegie Museum of Art and Carnegie Museum of Natural History, two of the four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, are nationally and internationally recognized for their collections. For more information call 412.622.3131.