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Exhibit Opening: cARTography
Join us Friday, August 4, from 5-7pm for the opening of cARTography. Curated by Exhibits Director Scott Bartlett, this exhibit is an exploration of maps, wayfinding, and related artworks from the Pratt Museum collections, along with recent geospatial and interactive products of Kachemak Bay. cARTography will be on display from August 4 through September 30, 2017.
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Online Auction Opportunity!
 The Pratt Museum’s online Summer Auction features unique hand-crafted items that celebrate native traditions, natural elements, and the animals of Alaska. Your purchases go directly towards helping the Pratt Museum fulfill its Mission of preserving stories and inspiring people about the culture, art, and science of the Kachemak Bay region. Proceeds from store and auction sales will help support programs in the schools and the Museum this fall, winter, and spring. Specifically, watch for a new series of Public Programs launching this winter, celebrating our 50th Anniversary as a Community Museum. With that anniversary in mind, we're also hoping to show the building a little love with some fresh paint, repairs, and renovations. Become a part of the 50th year celebration now!
Find the auction online, or visit the Museum today to view items or "buy now" in the Museum store. Stop by to take a closer look at the auction items that interest you and take advantage of store sales during the month of August.
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Field Casting Workshops with Lynn Marie Naden
 Join local artist Lynn Marie Naden at the Pratt Museum to learn the basics of mold-making and casting on Thursdays, Noon-4pm, August 3, 10, 17, 24, 31. Naden will walk you through using water based alginate and plaster to make molds of textures found in nature, and help you make a final cast in plaster. An introduction to mold-making, no prior experience is necessary for this class and all ages are welcome. Perfect for educators, artists, and those in scientific fields. Master molds will be incorporated into Naden's November 2017 exhibit, Root. Visit the Museum for additional ways to contribute to this installation.
Cost of the workshop, including all materials, is $75 per person or $65 for Pratt Members. Call the Museum to reserve your spot for one of the following Thursday dates:
August 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
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Te`arama: Tahitian Cultural Exchange and Events
In partnership with regional communities and organizations, the Pratt Museum is excited to host Tahitian drum and dance ensemble Te`arama to the Kenai Peninsula, August 14-19. This Seattle-area group is the performing ensemble of Te Fare O Tamatoa, founded by Merlyna Tahutini Manuru ‘Manio’ Radford in 1964. In the spirit of the biennial Tamamta Katurlluta (the Gathering of Native Tradition), seventeen traveling performers and Tahitian elders will visit several communities in the Southcentral region. Each of these visits will include rich opportunities to share elements of Tahitian and Native Alaskan cultures—distant yet allied traditions connected by a common ocean.
Te`arama’s Homer events are presented in conjunction with the Homer Dance and Aerial Festival coordinated by the Homer Council on the Arts. Check out our website for more information on opportunities to interact with Te'arama.
Please join us in welcoming these guests, and support cultural exchange activities by participating in workshops and joining us at the Mariner Theater on Saturday, August 19 at 7:30pm to see Te'arama and others in the Dance and Aerial Performance!
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NAME Conference
The Pratt Museum is co-hosting the Northwest Aquatic and Marine Educators (NAME) Conference in Homer, August 7-11, with partners Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies, Kachemak Bay Research Reserve, Kachemak Bay Environmental Educators Alliance, Alaska SeaGrant, UAF Cooperative Extension, US Fish & Wildlife Service, Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, and Alaska Natural Resource & Outdoor Education.
Keynote speakers include Kris Holderied, Nancy Lord, Loren Anderson,and Dave Aplin. The conference will focus on tracking environmental changes, celebrating ways of knowing, and transforming knowledge into stewardship. All marine education enthusiasts are welcome to join any or all of the conference activities.
More information about the conference can be found at www.pacname.org/conferences/2017-homer-alaska. Reduced price options for peninsula locals are available! For more information on specifics, call Beth Trowbridge at 907-235-6756.
Also available is a continuing education credit option through UAF Cooperative Extension. For more information or to sign up for the credit course, call Jennifer Greene at 907-786-1932.
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Volunteer Position Highlight:
Adopt a Garden Section!
The Pratt is in need of several volunteers who can help Gardener Michelle Smith with the general upkeep of the botanical garden.
 Has a moose eaten your entire garden, and now you don't know what to do with your time? Call a corner of the Botanical Garden yours, and keep that green energy flowing! Do you love weeding, but you don't have enough weeds in your own yard? We'd love to share ours with you! You're just in town for a few weeks, and miss yard work? Sounds perfect, see you tomorrow! You can only volunteer a few hours here and there? We'd love to have you, whenever you can be here!
Stop by the Museum today, or call us as soon as possible! The more people, the better, so tell your friends, or bring them along!
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Come ROAM With Us!
Pratt Museum is now part of the ROAM program! Pratt members at the Octopus club level ($100) and above who add an extra $20 can get a ROAM sticker on their Pratt member card which allows for free entry to hundreds of museums throughout the U.S. and Canada including the Anchorage Museum. Please check the ROAM box on the member remittance envelope and include an extra $20 for your Octopus club level ($100) or above membership renewal to receive this reciprocal membership benefit. For more information and a list of participating ROAM museums, check out the ROAM website.
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Volunteer Positions Open . . . .
Can you believe it is August already?! Interested in volunteering, but not sure where you might fit in at the Pratt? Don't worry, we can surely find something for you to do! As you are probably aware, volunteering is a great way to support and to get involved with your community Museum. Please let your friends, family and neighbors know how rewarding it is to share the culture, art and science of this place we call home. Encourage them to volunteer at the Pratt, and hint that if they work enough hours, they, too, could earn their very own Museum Membership!
Some essential volunteer positions include (but are never limited to!):
Front Desk Greeter
 Are you naturally good at smiling? Are you a fan of persuading people to love the Pratt as much as you do? Help whisk visitors into the magical world of the Pratt Museum. Invite them to explore the deep secrets of exhibits. Volunteer at the front desk, and your time will be wisely spent. If you can spare an hour or two, send a well-worded haiku. Or, contact the Museum via phone or email as soon as possible.
Cabin Docent (Pioneer Historian)
 Do you have the soul of a storyteller, and are happy to share your knowledge with Museum visitors? Are you interested in Homer history, and want to learn more? We would love to hear your stories, or even get you well-versed in homesteading and pioneer history in Homer, in exchange for your time as a Greeter in the Harrington Cabin! We especially need summer volunteers, so contact us soon for details!
Trail Groomer/Botanical Gardener
 Are you more of an outdoors type of volunteer? Don't worry-- not everything that goes on at the Pratt happens inside! We need assistance with grounds maintenance, including (but, as ever, never limited to!) trail grooming and upkeep of the botanical gardens. Check in with Art Koeninger or call (907) 435-3323 to hear the latest needs for these areas!
Octonaut/Aquaria Assistant
 Working along the trails or with the sea life at the Pratt, you'll become a critical part of one of our most popular exhibits and programs. One to two hours per week, this person will help care for the Pratt's fleet of aquatic holding vessels: cleaning tanks, changing water, making sure that the critters have a healthy environment. Art Koeninger has these projects and more to choose from, so contact him for details.
Collections Inventory Assistant
 Do you have Collections Hands? Do you like old documents, flat plants, historic photos, birds, jars with stuff in them, bones, or rocks? Would you be interested in preparing a bird skeleton for Museum study collections? The Collections Manager needs a group of detail-oriented volunteers to help take inventory of Collections and protect majestic and mysterious artifacts: recording object numbers, organizing drawers, and other tasks as needed. Email Savanna Bradley for more details, or call (907) 435-3338.
Audio Transcriber
 The Pratt Museum exhibits department is still in need of audio transcription! Scott Bartlett is hoping to make use of digital audio files from a number of recent and historic recordings, but needs your help listening and transcribing what you hear. This is volunteer work that you can do either at the Museum or at home from your computer, perfect if you would rather be a behind-the-scenes supporter of Museum activities!
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Collection Trip Success
By Andie Sonnen, High School Intern
On Friday, June 23, two of the Homer Pratt Museum staff members, Andie and Chessie, and two Anchorage Museum staff members, Erin and Nicole, packed their bags and headed to the Kasitsna Bay research facility for the weekend. The main goal of this trip was to collect new marine invertebrates for both the Pratt and Anchorage Museums’ aquaria. Sunny weather and two low tides, a -5.9 and -5.7, provided a large selection of invertebrates to choose from. A total of 37 specimens were collected from Jakolof Bay and Outside Beach and brought to the Pratt. Some of the newest additions to see are three new gunnel fish, a new gumboot chiton, six barnacle rocks, three sculpin, and a new helmet crab.
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