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The El Paso Museum of History will hold an opening reception of its newest exhibit Gifts and Prayers: The Romanovs and Their Subjects at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 28, at the museum.

“The mission of the El Paso Museum of History is to be an educational resource for the community,” said El Paso Museum of History Director Dr. Vladimir von Tsurikov.

“With that in mind, we want to bring a wide variety of content to the space so El Pasoans can explore how the story of El Paso resonates with or differs from other geographically-distant parts of the world. Bringing Gifts and Prayers to the museum is an opportunity to experience a culture halfway around the globe and to situate El Paso within a global community.”

The free event will feature live music, food, and a variety of guest speakers.

Appearing for the first time in the American Southwest, Gifts and Prayers displays a collection of objects from the Georgia Museum of Art (Athens, Georgia) including rare historical artifacts and sacred art from across centuries of the imperial family’s rule (CE 1613-1917).

Diamond-encrusted swords, intricate military medals, gilded statuettes, ornate icons, and Fabergé-produced objects will adorn the museum, engaging the public in the lavish splendor of the Romanov era. Assembled by a single private collector, the collection has been virtually unknown for decades and has rarely been seen.

Residents interested in attending the free opening reception can RSVP by emailing the El Paso Museum of History at RSVP.EPMH@elpasotexas.gov or calling (915) 212-3161.

The free exhibit runs through March 2020.

On Tuesday, El Paso Museum of History (EPMH) officials said they are now accepting submissions from the public for the Pasos Urbanos: A Photographic Narrative of the Borderlands, a juried photography exhibit set to open at the museum later this year.

“There are always so many things happening Downtown—live music, murals, festivals, new businesses, and of course just the excitement everyday life,” said El Paso Museum of History Director Dr. Vladimir von Tsurikov. “As the City’s Museum of History, we wanted to make sure we are honoring all of the different people and experiences that make up the Downtown/Borderland identity.”

Artists, photographers and anyone from either side of the border are encouraged to submit material that captures “the vibrant culture and new developments that make downtown El Paso an exciting and dynamic space.”

“The binational component is meant to strengthen the relationship between the El Paso and Ciudad Juarez, celebrating a shared past, present, and future,” EPMH officials added via a news release

A complete description of the Pasos Urbanos contest, including information and an application to submit, is posted online.

A maximum of five photographs can submitted by October 1. Participants must be 18 years of age or older and must currently reside within 150 miles of downtown El Paso and Ciudad Juarez.

Late or incomplete submissions will not be considered.

The Museum of History has partnered with organizations and businesses from around El Paso to celebrate “National Day of the Cowboy” at Cleveland Square Park.

“Cowboys are such a universal symbol of the West in the United States,” said El Paso Museum of History Director Dr. Vladimir von Tsurikov. “Many people grow up watching westerns—but there’s more to cowboys than gunfights and creaky saloons. The vaqueros, the ranchers, and even the animals are all part of what makes the ‘old West’ such a captivating era. What better way to bring together different groups from the community and get kids excited about history?”

During the celebration, which will run from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 27, the museum will host an afternoon filled with hands-on activities, giveaways, and history that are fun for visitors of all ages.

The “National Day of the Cowboy” is free and open to the public, and guests are encouraged to visit each booth for the full cowboy experience.

Additionally, visitors can take a break from the heat and head inside the Museum to enjoy two recently opened exhibitions: Changing Pass: People, Land, Memory; and Bases Loaded: El Paso and Beyond.

Free parking will be available at the Glory Road Transit Center during the event, and visitors can ride the streetcar to downtown for free.

The El Paso Museum of History (EPMH) invites the public to celebrate the opening of its newest exhibition, Bases Loaded: El Paso and Beyond.

“Baseball, like apple pie, is one of those ideas that is inseparable from the idea of America,” said El Paso Museum of History Director Dr. Vladimir von Tsurikov. “Here at the Museum, we’re excited to take that national mythos and examine it from the unique El Paso perspective.”

The exhibit, which opens at 6:30 p.m., July 11., celebrates the local and national history of baseball starting with its pre-Civil War origins to the Chihuahuas arriving in El Paso.

In addition to tracing the evolution of baseball’s legacy as a national pastime, the exhibit also highlights baseball’s intersections with race, like the sport’s role in Mexico and key events in breaking the color barrier.

“As visitors move through the exhibit, they are invited to explore how different groups across the United States have shaped baseball’s beginnings, rise, and continued popularity,” museum officials shared. “Interactive displays, like a walkable baseball diamond and Chihuahuas fan photo booth, transform the space into an immersive historical experience.”

Materials for the exhibit have been sourced from across El Paso’s enthusiastic baseball community.

Many of the artifacts for Bases Loaded have been provided by Fernando Grado, an El Paso native and baseball enthusiast. His personal collection, which he began in his youth, includes local memorabilia from the Browns and Diablos as well as collectibles from eminent players like Jackie Robinson and “Shoeless” Joe Jackson.

Also on display are items borrowed from the El Paso Chihuahuas’ own archive.

The exhibit runs through January 2020 and is free and open to the public.

On Tuesday, officials with the El Paso Museum of History (EPMH) announced that the exhibit – Changing Pass: People, Land, & Memories – would be opening as a permanent part of the facility this weekend.

Residents are invited to the free, family-friendly opening event featuring hands-on activities, to be held from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 29.

“People tend to think of history as static and unchanging,” Dr. von Tsurikov explained of the process. “But history—and the way we tell that history—is an ever-evolving experience. As a public institution, it is our responsibility to tell the story of El Paso with as many voices as we can.”

The opening of Changing Pass, the permanent installation at EPMH, marks a new chapter for the institution. While Changing Pass is not technically a new exhibit for the museum, the approach to its curation and narrative are reflective of EPMH’s new direction and leadership.

Last fall, Dr. Vladimir von Tsurikov was named as EPMH’s new Museum Director, and since then, he and his team have embarked on an ambitious project updating Changing Pass’s content to better reflect the diverse identities of the El Paso community.

For many, Changing Pass is their first introduction to El Paso history. The exhibit serves as a learning tool for classrooms and organizations throughout the area as well as an attraction for those visiting from out of town.

In its new location on the first floor gallery, Changing Pass immediately greets visitors who walk through the door, inviting them to explore and reconsider what the borderlands are all about.

Covering more than 400 years of El Paso del Norte region history, Changing Pass begins with early Indigenous settlers and concludes with ASARCO in the 20th century. As visitors move through different exhibits, they are invited to explore how the El Paso del Norte area, along both sides of the Mexico-United States border, has been defined not only by the unique Chihuahuan desert but by the different groups, countries, and empires who sought to control it. New artifacts, interactive displays, and text panels encourage guests to examine how El Paso’s political, economic, social, environmental, cultural, and religious past has evolved across centuries.

For more information about the museum and exhibits, click here.

On Tuesday, officials with the El Paso Museum of History (EPMH) officials announced the new film exhibition Pride Cinema: Queer Film and Culture in the 20^th and 21^st Century.

The exhibition,which opens Saturday, June 1, the start of international PRIDE month, will feature films focused on LGBTQ+ issues in the 20^th and 21^st Century.

The films in the exhibit, Milk, Paris is Burning, Longtime Companion and others, share the adversities, benchmarks and successes of LBGTQ+ people with a broader audience.

Local El Paso and Juarez LGBTQ+ histories are paired with these films highlighting the reality of these issues as they are ever-present within the borderland community.

“This programming highlights unique local histories that are significant to the El Paso and Juarez region,” said El Paso Museum of History Director Vladimir von Tsurikov. “We are dedicated to bringing more inclusive exhibitions that reflect our diverse communities.”

In addition to the exhibit, the museum will display two panels from the 1987 NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt throughout June. Before the opening of the exhibition, visitors are encouraged to attend a community vigil scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 1, at Cleveland Square Park.

EPMH has partnered with the Borderland Rainbow Center (BRC), a local non-profit organization dedicated to providing resources for the El Paso LGBTQ+ community and its allies, to exhibit two sections from the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt.

Individuals seeking to memorialize their loved ones who died from AIDS can create a quilt panel and submit to the NAMES Project Foundation. The Quilt was displayed in the fall of 1987 across the National Mall in Washington D.C. and was composed of 1,920 individual panels spanning the length of a football field.

The NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt is recognized as a monumental legacy to bringing awareness to the AIDS/HIV pandemic.

The Pride Cinema: Queer Film and Culture in the 20^th and 21^st Century exhibit runs through November and is free and open to the public.

The El Paso Museum of History (EPMH) has extended operating hours for DIGIE, the nation’s only Digital Wall, to include 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays.

“DIGIE is a valuable resource that the history museum makes available to the community.” said El Paso Museum of History Director Vladimir von Tsurikov. “We are excited to further serve our community by extending DIGIE’s operating hours beyond the museum’s operating hours. This allows for greater accessibility to visitors and community members interested in viewing El Paso’s digital community archive.”

DIGIE stands for Digital Information Gateway in El Paso. The digital wall sustains a vast collection of images and videos exploring El Paso’s past and present through a giant 3-D touch-sensitive TV screen, an online database and the mobile Mini DIGIE.

Museum staff encourages the community and surrounding regions to share their story by uploading files to digie’s website. The website is user friendly and easy to navigate. The content is curated by the community and available for browsing online.

Since opening on Valentine’s Day in 2015, DIGIE has captured 48,080,491 touches and currently holds a collection of more than 14,000 images and videos.

The wall was the first project completed as part of the 2012 Quality of Life Bonds and is one of only four in the world. The others are located in Copenhagen, Denmark; Cairo, Egypt; and Christ’s Church New Zealand.

The El Paso Museum of History, 510 North Santa Fe Street, is open Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Starting Friday, April 19, the El Paso Museum of History will be honoring El Paso Community College’s half century of contributions to the area via a very special exhibition.

El Paso Community College’s 50^th Anniversary: Honoring the Past, Building the Future at the museum will give visitors an opportunity to see memorabilia and learn about important milestones in the college’s history.

“We are excited to host such a commemorative event in honoring this momentous occasion. Knowing how well established EPCC is within the community, this exhibition highlights not only the institution’s successes, but the importance of education made accessible to the El Paso community and beyond,” said El Paso Museum of History Director Dr. Vladimir von Tsurikov.

The exhibit highlights all aspects of college’s history from its beginnings at Logan Heights at Fort Bliss to all the growth and accomplishments that have helped more than 80,000 students earn degrees.

“El Paso Community College has a legacy of excellence and a real commitment to serving students,” said El Paso Community College President Dr. William Serrata. “I am proud of the work that our board of trustees, faculty and staff have done throughout the past 50 years to facilitate this success which is celebrated in this exhibition. EPCC has a long history of serving this community, serving the state, and ultimately serving the nation by helping students in our region earn the degrees and certificates that they need to achieve their dreams.”

“We invite the community visit the exhibition, to explore the vibrant past of EPCC as well as to look forward to the future we will build together,” said External Relations and 50^th Anniversary Co-Chair Associate Vice President Keri Moe. “This is a real opportunity for us to honor the great work that has been done and to understand the power of education in our community.”

Established in 1969, EPCC is a nationally recognized community college that offers a variety of academic programs, continuing education classes and workforce training.

Today, EPCC serves more than 28,500 students and offers 145 degree and certificate programs.

The exhibition will be on view until September 29. For additional information on the history of EPCC or other events, visit the college’s special anniversary website.

The El Paso Museum of History (EPMH) will host the public screening of the critically acclaimed film “ROMA” on Friday, March 29.

“We invite local community members to head over to the Museum of History to enjoy this public screening of this award-winning film. Partnering with the Consulate General of Mexico offers an excellent opportunity to embrace cultural diplomacy, and engage a broader audience,” said Dr. Vladimir von Tsurikov, Director of the El Paso Museum of History.

This screening,  from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., at 510 North Santa Fe Street, is hosted in partnership with the Consulate General of Mexico to commemorate Women’s History Month.

This event will feature a pre-screening social hour beginning at 5:30 p.m. A cash bar and appetizers will be available. The screening will commence at 6:30 p.m.

Directed by Alfonso Cuarón, the film follows a year in the life of Cleo, a young domestic worker employed by a middle-class family in the neighborhood of Roma in Mexico City.

The film captures her gracefully struggle against the social, political, and economic hierarchies of the 1970s, and what the implications of these systems mean for Cleo and her loved ones. “ROMA” won both an Academy Award and BAFTA for Best Foreign Language Film. Cuarón won an Academy Award, Golden Globe, and BAFTA for Best Director.

The El Paso Museum of History exists for the educational benefit of the community and visitors. It promotes the understanding and significance of the rich multicultural and multinational history of the border region known as the Pass of the North.

The event is open to the public. Admission to the El Paso Museum of History is free.

Officials with the El Paso Museum of History announced that they will join the “Last Thursdays El Paso: Art Walk and Gallery Crawl” beginning next Thursday.

“Last Thursdays El Paso” is a community grown monthly event that highlights downtown arts, culture, and entertainment.

The cultural event takes place every Last Thursday of the month beginning in March and runs through November, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. beginning on March 28.

“The Museum of History is proud to support a local organization driven to share the rich history and arts culture present in Downtown El Paso,” said El Paso Museum of History Director Vladimir von Tsurikov.

“This is an opportunity to extend our facilities to the greater arts community within the city. The narrative of El Paso’s cultural history is currently included in Last Thursdays and we are pleased to enhance the story further.

For this year’s first session of “Last Thursdays El Paso,” guests who visit the Museum of History may participate in any of the following:

• Film Screening, “The Century of Immigration”: 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. as a part of six-week “Becoming American” documentary and lecture series.
• Three-Minute Thesis competition: 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. UTEP Graduate School students present research thesis in three minutes.
• DIGIE Demo: (Hourly 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.) Learn how to navigate and submit your El Paso story to the nation’s only Digital Wall. The Museum staff encourages residents to share their story by uploading their files to www.digie.org
• “From Fire and Earth: Pottery Traditions of the Casas Grandes Medio Period.” The free exhibit features many examples of Casas Grandes and Mata Ortiz ceramics from the permanent collections of the El Paso Museum of Archaeology and the El Paso Museum of Art.

The museum will host programming on “Last Thursdays El Paso” throughout the year with artist pop-up shops, “Becoming American” lecture series, gallery openings and tours.

One of El Paso’s most beloved works of art, Tom and Sarah Lea’s “Southwest,” will be temporarily relocated from its present home at the Main Library to the El Paso Museum of History.

Visitors to Museum of History will be able to study this piece from a new perspective as it will be installed closer to the viewer.

“The temporary move is in preparation of the renovations planned for the Main Library. This was an opportune time to move and reinstall the mural as El Paso will be hosting meetings for museum and public art professionals later this year.” City officials share, “The temporary location will provide additional opportunities to study and appreciate the mural at museum-hosted events. There will also be opportunities to display artifacts from the museum’s collection as well as offering additional programming at the museum.”

A photographic reproduction will be placed in the Main Library while the facility under goes renovations.

“Southwest” was painted in 1956 as a collaborative effort between Lea and his wife, Sarah, as a gift to the people of El Paso and the Main Library. It is the only known collaboration of its kind between one of El Paso’s most prolific artists of the mid-twentieth century and his wife.

In a passage from his book, “A Picture Gallery,” Lea describes his work as a panoramic window onto a vast and open landscape. “It spoke of space, sun, cloud, rain, wind, mountain, mesa, rock, sand, soil, and of living growth nurtured by them. The only human habitant was the viewer of this mural…” Lea states in his book.

“Southwest” will be officially unveiled at the Museum of History, on March 21. The unveiling reception will be held from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. for members and supporters.

For more information on the unveiling, contact the Museum of History at (915) 212-3160

On Friday, February 22nd, the El Paso Museum of History (EPMH) invites the public to view the newest exhibition at the museum: From Fire and Earth, featuring Casas Grandes and Mata Ortiz ceramics from the northwest corner of modern-day Chihuahua, Mexico.

“We are very pleased to present this exhibition in partnership with the City’s Museums of History, Archaeology and Art. This opportunity will allow visitors to view unique artifacts, rarely presented together in this kind of exhibition,” said El Paso Museum of History Director Vladimir von Tsurikov.

The exhibit shows the art expressions of the Casas Grandes people, who would become prolific potters, producing some of the finest pottery of the Pre-Columbian world.

The exhibition features ceramics from the permanent collections of the El Paso Museum of Archaeology, El Paso Museum of Art and private collections.

This ceramic revival has spurred national and international interest in the Casas Grandes region over the past few decades, as well as rekindled in the local population an appreciation for tradition and their cultural heritage. Mata Ortiz pottery is recognized as some of the finest handcrafted ceramics produced in the world today.

“The Casas Grandes culture is recognized as having produced some of the finest pottery of the ancient Pre-Columbian world,” said El Paso Museum of Archaeology Director Jeff Romney. “This collaborative exhibition between the City’s Museums affords the public an amazing opportunity to view examples rarely seen from our world-class collections.”

In the mid-1970s, Juan Quezada and others from Mata Ortiz, Chihuahua, Mexico launched a new era in Casas Grandes pottery. Inspired by the shards and other artifacts that they found in this region, they began making pottery using only natural elements.

These art pieces show not only the ancient art of pottery, but also the appreciation of Mesoamerican cultures.

The exhibit is free and open to the public. From Fire and Earth and runs through September 22.

Officials with the El Paso Museum of History are inviting the public to a Valentine’s Day event that celebrates the fourth anniversary of DIGIE, the nation’s only digital wall.

“Functioning both as a time capsule and a community digital archive, DIGIE allows for both El Pasoans and visitors to experience a unique borderland history,” said El Paso Museum of History Director Vladimir von Tsurikov.

“DIGIE serves as an interactive experience for the community to utilize. We hope to celebrate many more DIGIE anniversaries, and invite the community to take maximum advantage of this resource.

On Thursday, February 14th, visitors can view vintage postcards from the Museum’s special collections, create their own postcards and Valentine’s Day crafts, take a picture in a photo booth, and enjoy treats.

In addition, the museum is giving away prizes through a social media contest.

The public can share the love of history by taking a picture by DIGIE, posting on Facebook and using the hashtags #iloveephistory and #DIGIEisturning4 to be entered to win a prize. People can also bring photos to the Museum to be scanned by the staff.

Since opening on Valentine’s Day in 2015, DIGIE has captured 45,781,386 touches and currently holds a collection of more than 14,000 images and videos.

DIGIE stands for Digital Information Gateway in El Paso. It is a vast collection of images and videos exploring El Paso’s past and present through a giant 3-D touch-sensitive TV screen at the Museum, an online database and the mobile Mini DIGIE.

Mini DIGIE, a portable version of DIGIE, is also available to help the Museum reach new audiences, so everyone has the opportunity to experience and be included in El Paso’s digital history. Mini DIGIE travels around the city visiting schools, libraries, community centers, and other educational institutions where citizens gather to learn about history.

DIGIE was the first project completed as part of the 2012 Quality of Life Bonds and is one of only four digital walls in the world. The others are located in Copenhagen, Denmark; Cairo, Egypt; and Christ’s Church, New Zealand.”

For more information, call the El Paso Museum of History at (915) 212-0320 or visit DIGIE’s website.

Officials with the El Paso Museum of History (EPMH) invite the public to learn about financial literacy at the “Growing Your Money Tree” this Saturday.

The event will run from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the museum.  The free, family-friendly event is open to all ages. It offers financial literacy resources, hands-on activities, make-and-take crafts, money related games as well as information tables.

The event will include special activities to spark learning and teach children about money.

Children will be able to participate in interactive activities by creating their own piggy bank out of recycled art material, decorate their own currency, play bingo, participating in a scavenger hunt adventure, learn about entrepreneurship, developing their own business idea and getting tips to be money smart.

In addition, guest can view the “Economy in Action: Centennial Commemoration of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, El Paso Branch” exhibition that will be on display through March. The exhibit highlights the history and impact of one of the most important financial institutions in the region. It features the role the bank serves in supporting the financial institutions of the region and represent the unique economy of the U.S. – Mexico border.

Professionals from the Federal Reserve of Dallas, El Paso Branch will be on hand to share resources to help community members improve their economic understanding and basic financial education. Guests can learn helpful information about money management skills.

The event is held in partnership with the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, El Paso Branch.

For more information on the “Growing Your Money Tree” event, call the El Paso Museum of History at (915) 212-3161.

For the Holiday Season, the City of El Paso is inviting everyone to spend part of the winter break visiting the Downtown Art and Farmers Market or one of the City’s three museums; El Paso Museum of Art, El Paso Museum of History or the El Paso Museum of Archaeology.

Visitors to the El Paso Museum of Archaeology can try their hands at archery or atl-atl during Saturday morning demonstrations. Please contact the Museum for a complete schedule of archery activities. The trails around the museum are also open for family friendly hikes.

Explore the El Paso Museum of Art (EPMA) at your own pace with family-friendly guides. Try a new hands-on art activity each day. Learn about painting, printmaking, and collage inspired by art on view. Enjoy working together and make art to share with family and friends.

Each of the workshops are designed for visitors 4 years and older and features an art making activity tied to the Museum’s current exhibitions. Museum admission and workshops are free to the public.

• Discover the collection and experience an augmented reality experience with the new family guide.
• Paint and Collage: December 26 – 28, 12-3 pm. Learn about painting and collage inspired by art on view. Enjoy working as a family and make art that you can take home. 12-1 pm exclusive time for EPMA Members and their families.
• Printmaking: January 2 – 4, 12-3 pm. Explore printmaking! Stop by each day and discover simple and fun printmaking techniques inspired by art on view. Enjoy working as a family and make art you can take home. 12-1 pm exclusive time for EPMA Members and their families.

Snap a photo in Santa’s sleigh and drop off last minute letters to the North Pole at the El Paso Museum of History. Visitors can learn about the history of the Pass of the North or discover how the banking system in the United States works in the Museum galleries

The museums will be open regular hours through the winter holidays. In observance of the City’s Christmas and New Year’s holidays, all three museums will be closed on Tuesday, December 25, and Tuesday, January 1.

The Downtown Art and Farmers Market will be open one last weekend this year. Stop by the market from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. December 22 to pick up those last minute gifts. There will also be free crafts and live entertainment.

The market will be closed December 29 and January 5. It will reopen for the New Year on Saturday January 12.