Basquiat, Zanele Muholi, Orchestra of St. Luke's Among Brooklyn Museum's May 2015 Programs

The Brooklyn Museum will present a variety of programs for adults, teens, and kids in May. Public programs include talks, nighttime events, performances, screenings, and hands-on workshops for children and adults that amplify the Museum's exhibitions and permanent collection, serve its diverse public, and support learning through the visual arts.

Highlights include performances by the Orchestra of St. Luke's and the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra; an Art Off the Wall evening of music and poetry in celebration of the exhibition Basquiat: The Unknown Notebooks; and an Artist Talk with Zanele Muholi and collaborators presented by the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art.

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The full schedule follows:

Friday, May 1, 2 p.m.
Artist Talk: Zanele Muholi and Collaborators: "Taking Stock"
Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, 4th Floor
Free with Museum admission

Join South African artist and activist Zanele Muholi and collaborators on a walk-through of the exhibition Zanele Muholi: Isibonelo/Evidence. Muholi discusses her photography, video, and installation that promote visibility for black lesbian and transgender communities of South Africa. Charmain Carroll, a participant in the Faces and Phases series, an ongoing portrait project that documents the breadth of identities contained within this community, presents an insider perspective. Pastor Z and MaGesh Zungu provide the point of view of community builders and leaders who support LGBTI unions. Presented by the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art.

Sunday, May 3, 3 p.m.
100 Disciplines: A Composition for 20 Performers by Kid Millions
Beaux-Arts Court, 3rd Floor
Free with Museum admission

Kid Millions would like you to check at the door all preconceived notions of what drums can sound like. For the first work ever commissioned for the Red Bull Music Academy Festival New York, the acclaimed drummer brings a troupe of percussionists to the magnificent Beaux-Arts Court for a sound exploration that draws on feedback, drones, and overtones.

Sunday, May 3, 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Arty Facts: "En Plein Air"
Rubin Lobby, 1st Floor
Materials fee (Museum admission not included): $10 per family (up to four participants); $5 for Gallery/Studio families and Members at the Family level; free to Members at the Friend level and above.

Children ages four to seven and their parents or caregivers explore the galleries, enjoy a team activity, and make art in each ninety-minute Arty Facts class. May's theme is "En Plein Air," a French expression meaning "in the open air." As the spring air warms and summer nears, create art inspired by nature. Note: There will be no Arty Facts on May 24 or 31.

Thursday, May 7, 7 p.m.
Artists Roundtable: Chitra Ganesh: "Fragmented Narratives"
Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, 4th Floor
Free with Museum admission

In conjunction with her Herstory Gallery exhibition, Eyes of Time, Chitra Ganesh invites friends, collaborators, and fellow Brooklyn-based artists Mariam Ghani and Christopher Myers to talk with her about the ideas that drive their practices. Presented by the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art.

Sunday, May 10, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
Mother's Day Brunch
Beaux-Arts Court, 3rd Floor
Tickets: $60 for adults, $50 for Museum Members, and $33 for children ages 4 and up.

Join us for Mother's Day this year. The event begins with a delicious brunch followed by tours that take a Mother's Day-themed look at our collections and spring exhibitions. Following the brunch, complimentary shuttles to the WantedDesign and BKLYN DESIGNS fairs will be available. The Brunch ticket includes free admission to both fairs. Tickets available at museumtix.com.

Sunday, May 10, 2 p.m.
Music: Orchestra of St. Luke's: "Tale of Five Cities"
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, 3rd Floor

St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble presents a musical tour through Paris, Darmstadt, Madrid, Dresden, and New York, with composers ranging from the Baroque to the present day, including Georg Philipp Telemann, Antonio Farina, Jean-Philippe Rameau, and Maria Chavez. For tickets and more information, visit oslmusic.org.

Tuesday, May 12, 2-4 p.m.
Brooklyn Afternoons
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, 3rd Floor
Free with Museum admission

Individuals with memory loss and their care partners join us for conversations about art. Program is free but registration is required at (718) 501-6350 or access@brooklynmuseum.org.

Thursday, May 14, 7 p.m.
Norma Marshall Memorial Lecture: Janine Antoni
Location to be announced
R.S.V.P. required; free with Museum admission

In this annual lecture honoring the memory of Norma Marshall, a former President of the Museum's Community Committee, artist Janine Antoni speaks about her desire for intimacy, the driving force behind her work, and leads a powerful exercise exploring perception and intuition. To R.S.V.P., email special.events@brooklynmuseum.org or call (718) 501-6589.

Saturday, May 16, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
Performance: "Assembly Required"
Throughout the Museum
Free with Museum admission

Students from the Brooklyn College Performance and Interactive Media Arts (PIMA) program combine live performance, technology, and interactivity in performances that relate and respond to the Museum collection and environment.

Symposium: "Revising Revisionism"
Sunday, May 17, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, 3rd Floor
Free with Museum admission

"Revising Revisionism" examines the intersection of biography, art history, historiography, and feminism-fields that align and diverge-by bringing together practitioners from different disciplines. Generating connections and new avenues for research, this series of panels analyzes methods of collecting, maintaining, and distributing information about women's lives across multiple platforms, from the oral to the digital.

Thursday, May 21, 6:30p.m.
Art Off the Wall: "Decoding Basquiat"
Throughout the Museum
$16 including Museum admission

Art Off the Wall is a series featuring site-specific performances inspired by exhibitions on view. For "Decoding Basquiat," enjoy an evening of music and poetry in celebration of the exhibition Basquiat: The Unknown Notebooks. Jean-Michel Basquiat took inspiration from the world around him: jazz, twists of language, anatomy, and expressions of the body. The evening includes an immersive performance by King Holiday, a ten-piece astro soul band led by Leslie Kujo Du Mouchel, that takes inspiration from Basquiat's artistic process, and a poetry reading featuring Erica Doyle, Harmony Holiday, John Keene, and Christopher Stackhouse. Tickets available at museumtix.com or at the Museum Visitor Center.

Thursday, May 28, 7 p.m.
Reading: "Hand-Me-Down Stories"
Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, 4th Floor
Free with Museum admission

Brooklyn-based author Mary Morris reads from her new novel, The Jazz Palace, which explores race, gender stereotypes, and prejudice through a story set in 1920s Chicago. Morris discusses her two-decade undertaking to tell this story, her writing process, and the power of personal narratives and history to tell new stories. Presented by the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art.

Sunday, May 31, 2 p.m.
Music: Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, 3rd Floor

The Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra continues its forty-first season with works by Richard Strauss and Sergei Prokofiev. For tickets and more information, visit brooklynsymphonyorchestra.org.

Photo Credit: King Holiday (c) Ronald Pressman