China’s Last Empire will be making its final stand through Oct. 19 at the Lowe Art Museum. The exhibition “China’s Last Empire: The Art and Culture of the Qing Dynasty” extended its reach as the museum welcomed community members to its Family Day on Sunday.
The exhibition features, among many things, intricate pen-and-ink pieces and beautiful porcelain vases and dishes from the late 19th century.
“We have Chinese Theater Works from New York flying in to present a traditional Chinese shadow puppet performance,” said Jodi Sypher, curator of education at the Lowe. “They are also going to teach everyone how to make their own shadow puppets.”
The event also included art activities and a scavenger hunt. More than 200 people attended the puppet show and around 280 people explored the museum throughout the day, according to receptionist Janie Graulich.
“It is really the kickoff to our family program for the year, so the more people, the merrier,” Sypher said. “The performance is for ages 5 and up, but anyone who is interested in the culture of China, puppetry or art is welcome to come.”
Cathi Rivera, an art teacher at Glades Middle School, is a member of the Lowe Art Museum and attended the event to take several of the craft activities back for her students who could not attend the event.
“They need to be culturally aware,” Rivera said. “I think everyone lives in their own little box. With the advent of all the technology, people are experimenting more with other places and other cultures, and I think that the more they learn, the more understanding and peace we’ll have in the future.”
The Lowe will continue its schedule of events this week with its monthly LoweDown Happy Hour event from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday. Each month, the program has a different theme and offers visitors a guided tour and refreshments such as cheese, wine, cocktails and coffee.
This month, the theme is “Artlab @ the Lowe – Conquest and Coexistence: The Cultural Synthesis of Spanish Colonial Art.”
“The LoweDowns are super classy and chic,” said junior Andrea Brook, who works at the museum. “It’s kind of like a good mixer-type of environment where you mingle with people in a college environment but we also have adults and other people coming to the event. It’s a very lively event.”
The museum will also be hosting the Lowe’s Annual Recycled Book Sale on from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday through Sunday, where you can purchase used art books on sale. All the proceeds go to the Lowe Art Museum.
Junior Jessica Ilias believes the Lowe’s various events throughout the semester provide an opportunity that students should take advantage of an attend.
“You’re educating the community, not just the students as well, about different cultures that exist, different historical time periods and … art preserves history and the culture that we live in, and if you don’t have that, then what are we doing?”
IF YOU GO
WHAT: LoweDown: “Art Lab @ The Lowe – Conquest and Coexistence: The Cultural Synthesis of Spanish Colonial Art”
WHEN: 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at the Lowe Art Museum
WHERE: 1302 Stanford Drive Coral Gables, FL 33146
Admission is $10
For more information visit miami.edu/lowe/index.html.