CJAD 800AM at 8:40am – Free Museums
Q 1: It’s holiday time for a lot of people, you have some ideas of outings that are cool and FREE to the public?
With money for vacation fun limited in a tight economy, you can enjoy a holiday in your own city. Museums which are cooly air-conditioned have a FREE days, and you can spend hours exploring.
Q 2: Of the art museums, which ones are open for FREE and on which days?
Musee d’art contemporain du Montreal focuses on modern art, so the color and forms are usually quite appealing to children and its always FREE for kids under 12. Right now the exhibit “With Glass, Under Glass, Without Glass” focuses on glass, neon and mirrors in sculpture, architecture, furniture and films. Kids might like the shattering mirror one. There’s a Projection Series about Music Video.
Location: 185 Ste. Catherine ouest
Tel: 514-847-6226
FREE Hours: Wednesday 5 – 9 pm. Always FREE for children under 12
www.macm.org
Musee des Beaux Arts’ entire permanent collection in the building on the North side of Sherbrooke is always FREE to the public. You can see Monet, Picasso, Renoir, Rembrandt, Renoir, Dali, Corot, Courbet and more.
One show on now is a collaboration between Cirque de Soleil and the House of Bourgeron, the Parisian jeweler, with 20 necklaces on view. You can also see Ben Weider’s Napoleon collection.
Location: 1379 Sherbrooke ouest
Tel: 514-285-1600.
FREE Hours: Everyday for the North side main building. South side Demerais Pavillion which houses temporary exhibits are ½ price Wed evenings 5:30 – 8:30 p.m. Children under 12 are always FREE
www.mmfa.qc.ca
Q 3: Some people don’t enjoy going to see artwork, what other options are there for them?
At the McCord Museum of Canadian History you can see see costumes, textiles, decorative arts, ethnology, drawings, photographs and First Nations collections from the 18th century to the present. On now: Dream Weavers – Costumes by Cirque du Soleil which salutes the costume designers and artisans by opening a window into Cirque’s costume workshop. You’ll see the various steps in costume and accessory production, from dyes and design to hats, lace and shoes.
If you like photography, Nance Ackerman traveled to all parts of Canada to capture faces and expressions of about 20 Aboriginal women.
Location: 690 Sherbrooke ouest
Tel: 514-398-7100
FREE Hours: 1st Sat each month 10 a.m- noon. Children 5 and under are always FREE.
www.mccord-museum.qc.ca
The Canadian Centre for Architecture focuses on architecture, urban planning, landscape design research and collection dating. Surprisingly the show on now is “Other Space Odysseys”: Greg Lynn, Michael Maltzan, and Alessandro Poli developed unique and imaginative approaches to the questions of space travel and the habitation of new, extraterrestrial areas. Expect to see models, collages, animation, and drawings both real and virtual, from the simple tools of a farmer to the digital animation of a science fiction film.
Location: 1920 Baile St.
Tel: 514-939-7026
FREE Hours: Thurs eves 5:30- 9. Students and children are always FREE
www.cca.qc.ca
The Redpath Museum on the McGill University campus is in a gorgeous grand home. It holds real gems, dinosaur bones, sea shells, skulls, skeletons , stuffed animals, fossilized plants, Egyptian mummies as well as African musical instruments.
Location: McGill Univiverstiy, Sherbrooke St. at McTavish St.
Tel: 514-398-4086.
FREE Hour: Always Free
www.mcgill.ca/redpath
Q4: You haven’t spent anything for your entrance but you haven’t yet stepped into the gift shops, is it good idea to shop in them?
At the Musee des Beaux Arts de Montreal you can buy prints of the artwork. At their jewelry counters they showcase original designs by Quebec artisans, toys, stationery and serving pieces.
Since the Musee d’Art Contemporain de Montreal is so modern, the items sold here are cutting edge designs like zipper necklaces, costume jewelry designed by Anne-Marie Chagnon, Vanessa Yanow, Michel de Bellefeuille, Sonia Ferland, Racine, Marianne Alexandre, and Carole Rivet. There are purses made out of recycled 45-rpm records, pens and desk accessories, Atelier Entre-peaux re-cyled sacs, Toma vases, glass objects, kitchen gadgets, Scrap Postal albums, key holders, Cloe dolls, wooden mind puzzles, note cards, and toys.
The Musee Pointe a Calliere focuses on archeological history so you can buy Amerindian jewelry, wampum pouches, quill pen sets and Inukshuks.