Behringer-Crawford Museum is throwing a birthday party for the community, and everyone’s invited to celebrate with free admission, live animals, hands-on activities, local vendors, history and plenty of family fun.
From 10 a.m.-4 p.m. July 11, Birthday Bash@BCM celebrates the museum’s 76th birthday while joining communities across the country in commemorating America’s 250th anniversary. The free event offers families, friends and neighbors a unique way to spend a summer Saturday together in beautiful Devou Park before capping off the evening with the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra’s patriotic concert at the Devou Park Bandshell.
Throughout the day, visitors can enjoy hands-on activities presented by community partners, live music, lawn games and shopping at Behringer’s Bazaar, featuring local artisans and vendors.
At noon, guests can meet one of the day’s most popular visitors, Kentucky, a rescued great horned owl, during a live presentation by Tom Sproat of Biology Integration and Outreach for Science Education. After suffering a wing injury as a young owl that left him unable to return to the wild, Kentucky found a new purpose as an educational ambassador, inspiring children and adults while teaching them about native wildlife and conservation.
Animal lovers won’t want to miss Hillview Farm’s petting zoo from 2 to 4 p.m., where children can meet and interact with friendly farm animals.
History and fashion enthusiasts can step back in time during Edwardian Fashion in Form from 1 to 3 p.m. with nationally recognized tambour beading and fashion expert Robert Haven. Through a lecture and live dressing demonstration, Haven will explore the transition from Victorian to Edwardian fashion, explaining how corsets, petticoats and other understructures created the elegant silhouettes of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Haven is also the creator of the exquisitely detailed miniature room displays featured throughout the museum’s current exhibition, Treasures From the Attic: 250 Years of Fashion & Furniture. Following his presentation, guests can explore the exhibition for themselves, strolling through period rooms, admiring remarkable artifacts and discovering how fashion, furniture and everyday life evolved over the past 250 years.
“We’re excited to celebrate both our 76th birthday and our nation’s 250th with a day that’s all about community, history and fun,” said Laurie Risch, executive director of Behringer-Crawford Museum. “This is our way of saying thank you to the community that has supported us for more than seven decades.”
The celebration doesn’t have to end when Birthday Bash does. Beginning at 7:30 p.m., the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra will present its free “From Sea to Shining Sea” concert at the Devou Park Bandshell. Featuring the music of Aaron Copland and Ferdé Grofé, along with a unique historical presentation of “The Star-Spangled Banner” and other patriotic favorites, the concert provides the perfect finale to a full day of celebrating America’s 250th anniversary in Devou Park.
Birthday Bash@BCM is free and open to the public. Guests are encouraged to bring the whole family, spend the day exploring all the activities the museum has to offer and then stay in Devou Park for an unforgettable evening of music under the stars.
For more information, or to plan your visit, go to bcmuseum.org.
Behringer-Crawford Musuem