Penn Museum Honors Indigenous Peoples of the Americas

PHILADELPHIA — The Penn Museum honors the contributions of Indigenous Peoples of the Americas in April with CultureFest!, which offers virtual activities and events for all ages:

Tuesday, April 6 at 11:00 am ET | Global Voyagers: Expedition to Indigenous North America
In a highly interactive virtual tour, everyone is welcome to see some of the Museum’s oldest artifacts and hear stories about the world’s origins that have been passed down through generations. FREE. Register here.

Tuesday, April 6 at 1:00 pm ET | At-Home Anthro LIVE: Let’s Play Indigenous Games!
Families with children ages 5-12 learn about Indigenous games from North, Central, and South America, and how similar games are still played today. FREE. Register here.

Tuesday, April 13 at 1:00 pm ET | At-Home Anthro LIVE: Escalonada Symbols
For many cultures like the Aztec and Maya, the greca escalonada (or stepped fret, a symbol found in Indigenous art) represented the perfect harmony of the universe. Kids ages 5-12 can draw their own greca escalonada to use in household decor. FREE. Register here.

Friday, April 16 at 6:00 pm ET | Our Language Sits Alive Inside of Us
Artist & Curator Talk with Dr. X_'unei Lance Twitchell and Dr. Lucy Fowler Williams
In a virtual conversation that highlights Indigenous perspectives, Associate Curator Lucy Fowler Williams, American Section, and language professor and mixed media artist X_'unei Lance Twitchell will discuss his newest art piece, Our Language Sits Alive Inside of Us, now on view in the Native American Voices: The People—Here and Now exhibition. Primarily an homage to Tlingit language speakers, ancestors, and future speakers, this new artwork sheds light on how amplifying traditional cultural languages is helping to heal and push against erasure of Alaska’s Native peoples. $5. Register here.

Native American Voices presents contemporary topics that are of importance to Native peoples, including language loss and revitalization, identity, representation, and ongoing activism. Our Language Sits Alive Inside of Us will be on display through 2023.

Monday, April 19 at 6:00 pm ET | Beyond Land Acknowledgment
In an online roundtable, members of Natives at Penn (formerly Six Directions, Penn's Native student organization that increases Indigenous awareness and visibility) discuss ways to expand land recognition. FREE.

Tuesday, April 20 at 1:00 pm ET | At-Home Anthro LIVE: Aztec Symbols and Stamps
Kids ages 5-12 create a geometric design found on an Aztec stamp. FREE. Register here.

Wednesday, April 21 at 4:00 pm ET | World Wonders: Exploring Mesoamerican Frescoes
After school, kids ages 5-12 safely globetrot with an interactive workshop that examines frescoes (paintings on buildings) and artifacts from Mexico and Central America. Local artist Cesar Viveros will teach attendees about preparing the surface before painting and kids design their own fresco. Pay-what-you-wish. Register here.

Thursday, April 21 at 4:00 pm ET | Living Room Lecture: Preserving Indigenous Language
In a Facebook live happy hour, creator of the Quechua Language Program, Penn Professor Americo Mendoza-Mori, talks about the most widely spoken pre-Columbian language family of the Americas. FREE.

The full CultureFest! lineup, including activities families can do at any time can be found here.