San Francisco Bay Area

San Jose’s SOFA Murals

murlas in San Jose California

[nggallery id=40] Surprise — San Jose, California has blossomed into an art-lover’s paradise! Public art enlivens every street in the city’s vibrant SOFA (South of First Area) district. On a recent visit we enjoyed sculpture-lined streets and these lively murals. By the way, San Jose used to be called “Valley of the Heart’s Delight,” which […]

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China’s Terracotta Warriors: The First Emperor’s Legacy

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The Asian Art Museum kicks off its 10-year anniversary with an epic exhibition from one of the greatest archaeological discoveries in modern times—don’t miss it! The exhibition will be on view from February 22–May 27, 2013 at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco.  China’s Terracotta Warriors presents ten life-size terracotta figures — the maximum number permitted outside China […]

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Olmec exhibit at the de Young

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Considered the mother culture of Mesoamerica and recognized as America’s oldest civilization, the people known today as the Olmec developed an iconic and sophisticated artistic style as early as the second millennium BCE. Their monumental head sculptures remain among ancient America’s most awe-inspiring and beautiful masterpieces.

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Earthquake in San Francisco

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Prepare to be moved!  Earthquake, a major new exhibit and planetarium show at the California Academy of Sciences takes visitors on a kinetic journey toward understanding these super seismic phenomena and how they fit into the larger story of our ever-changing Earth.  Occupying the entire west hall of the Academy, the exhibit features a number […]

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Nothing in Life is More Important than Sex

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By Laurie McAndish King. “Nothing in life is more important than sex.” So says Steinhart Aquarium Director Bart Shepherd, and I’m inclined to agree…

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Snow in San Francisco

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‘Tis the Season for Science at the California Academy of Sciences, as the popular exhibit celebrating the science behind holiday traditions returns for a second year. Enjoy indoor snow flurries twice an hour in the Piazza. View taxidermy specimens of the real birds mentioned in “The Twelve Days of Christmas” …

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Snakes & Lizards—A Striking Exhibition at the California Academy of Sciences

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Sixty fascinating reptiles take over the California Academy of Sciences this summer as part of its new exhibit, Snakes & Lizards: The Summer of Slither. Here are some of their friendly faces.

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Autodesk Gallery — Engineering Design made Fun and Green

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“If nature didn’t make it, one of our customers almost certainly did,” says Autodesk Gallery Senior Manger Jason Medal-Katz. As I toured Autodesk’s fascinating mini-museum with him, I began to believe Medal-Katz was right. More than 20 exhibits—ranging from a Ford Shelby GT500 to an 8.5-foot dinosaur made from more than 62,000 LEGOs—represent the diverse […]

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King Tut’s Menagerie: Animal Gods in Ancient Egypt

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The magnificent Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs exhibit at San Francisco’s de Young Museum provides a glimpse into the beliefs of ancient Egyptians, whose religion permeated daily life. A fundamental principle was that of maat, variously defined as truth, justice, order, balance, morality, or the preordained way everything in the created world […]

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California Academy of Sciences: The Rainforest in my Back Yard

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My favorite rainforest is less than four miles from downtown San Francsico. I’ve visited rainforests around the world—in Argentina and Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, in the mountains of Madagascar, and in Queensland, Australia. Each has its charms: rare plants, endangered animals, gorgeous butterflies. But they also come with swarms of hungry mosquitoes, hairy spiders the […]

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