Wed, Dec 2, 2020
2020 Holiday Gift Guide
Celebrate the creativity and abundance of Santa Cruz County with a robust gift guide spanning local shops to DIY creations to carefully curated experiences.
Treat yourself to joyful artworks, learning more about Santa Cruz County history, and delicious bites from Abbott Square on your next Downtown Santa Cruz shopping trip.
We've teamed up with the Downtown Santa Cruz Association and local artists to pop-up delightful displays and outdoor exhibits throughout Downtown.
Check out the interactive map below and click on the icons to learn more about each stop! We recommend starting at Abbott Square, picking up lunch or a warm beverage, before swinging by all the window displays. They are all within a two-minute walk of each other!
Now on View Downtown
Community is Collective Care
Outdoor Exhibit at the MAH | On view until July 25, 2021
Stroll through this outdoor exhibition to imagine individual and collective pathways toward healing with artist Irene Juárez O’Connell.
Irene's mural 'Sana, Sana: We Heal Together' features six community members with objects that represent healing for each of them. Plus, you can now listen to each of the six interviews that inspired Irene's murals by scanning the barcode on the exhibition text.
1918 Influenza History Exhibit
Created in partnership with the Downtown Association of Santa Cruz. The displays showcase objects from the MAH's archive, including Mary Ann True's December 6th, 1918 diary entry detailing how “everything shut uptight" as flu cases increased around town.
1918 Influenza History Exhibit
Window Displays on Walnut Avenue | On view through Early 2021
Created in partnership with the Downtown Association of Santa Cruz visit two pop-up window displays highlighting Santa Cruz County's first pandemic experience – the 1918 influenza.
The displays showcase objects from the MAH's archive, including Mary Ann True's December 6th, 1918 diary entry detailing how “everything shut uptight" as flu cases increased around town. Blown up in size, the diary entry acts as a mask covering a large caricature made out of empty respirator boxes.
Presented as part of our upcoming exhibition, In These Uncertain Times, the two neighboring displays are on view now at 119 & 121 Walnut Ave in Downtown Santa Cruz.
Bright Spots: In These Uncertain Times
Bright Spots: In These Uncertain Times
Window Display on Pacific Avenue | Debuts Monday, December 15th
Created in partnership with the Downtown Association of Santa Cruz, local artist and the MAH's Learning & Engagement Manager, Jamie Keil, shares how art has been her bright spot in these troubled times. The joyful window display highlight snippets of her art journal, inviting you to share your #brightspots of 2020.
The display is also part of the upcoming exhibition, In These Uncertain Times, and is on view at 1362 Pacific Avenue.
Related Reads
Wed, Sep 2, 2020
Irene Juarez O’Connell on Community Healing & Wellness
Read an interview with 'Community is Collective Care' Exhibiting Artist Irene Juarez O’Connell as she shares her inspiration for the mural and where community care and art intersect.