of "America's Smithsonian." In addition to its regular 

 concert offerings in Washington, D.C., this year the or- 

 chestra also performed at the openings of the "America's 

 Smithsonian" exhibition at all of its venues across the 

 country. 



February 8 and 28 



■ Special Events The Office of Membership and 

 Development and the Office of Special Events and Con- 

 ference Services produced an inaugural fund-raising gala 

 and a Members Night to celebrate the opening of 

 "America's Smithsonian" traveling exhibition in Los An- 

 geles, California. 



February p 



■ Lecture Dr. Irene Pepperberg, a renowned researcher 

 in animal cognition, presented a videotape-illustrated 

 lecture to 350 people — a standing-toom only crowd — in 

 the Education Building auditorium at the National 

 Zoo. Dr. Pepperberg described problem solving and 

 linguistic abilities in African gray parrots. 



February p 



■ Trave/mg Exhibition The Smithsonian opened 

 "America's Smithsonian," its special 150th anniversary 

 traveling exhibition, in its first venue, Los Angeles, 

 Calif. During the fiscal year, "America's Smithsonian" 

 appeared three more times in different venues — April 

 10 in Kansas City, Mo.; June 11 in New York City; and 

 August 21 in Providence, R.I. In each city, the Office of 

 Public Affairs served as the public relations team for the 

 exhibition, doing advance work and staffing the press of- 

 fice in the convention centers. A media preview and 

 opening ceremony w'ere arranged for each venue. 



February p 



■ Support Activities Throughout Fiscal Year 1996 the 

 Office ot Contracting and Property Management 

 negotiated and awarded a wide variety of contracts 

 necessary for the opening, operation, and closing of each 

 convention center site for the America's Smithsonian Ex- 

 hibition (Los Angeles, CA; Kansas City, MO; New 

 Yotk. NY; Providence, RI). The office was also integral 

 in the design and fabrication ot the America's Smith- 

 sonian Exhibition, negotiating and contracting for all 

 necessary components and logistical requirements for 

 each exhibition site (exhibit design and fabrication; in- 



stallation and de-installation at each site; security; spe- 

 cial event planning; audiovisual tours and productions; 

 event fund raising; concession and museum shop 

 operators; and all travel of personnel, museum objects, 

 exhibits, and equipment.) The first venue opened on 

 February 9, 1996, the culmination of over a year of intense 

 planning and development, and the exhibition continued 

 through the close of the Fiscal Year and into 1997. 



February 11 



■ Open House Marking the US opening of "America's 

 Smithsonian," the traveling exhibit celebrating the 

 Smithsonian's 150th anniversary, Archives of American 

 Art Trustee Alan D. Levy and his wife, Abby, hosted an 

 Open House and Brunch at the West Coast Regional 

 Center. 



February 11— 12 



■ Special Event/Public Program The National Portrait 

 Gallery presented "A Conversation with Gwendolyn 

 Brooks" as a feature in its Living Self-Portrait Series. 

 Marc Pachter, Counselor to the Secretary, interviewed 

 the Pulitzer Prize winning poet and recipient of a 1995 

 National Medal of Art. The following evening, the 

 Gallery's Cultures in Motion series celebrated Black His- 

 tory Month with "Conversation and Poetry with Gwen- 

 dolyn Brooks." 



February 15 



■ Exhibition and Programs "Georg Baselitz," a widely 

 reviewed exhibition organized and first shown by the 

 Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, 

 opened at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Gar- 

 den, honoring a German artist (b. 1938) long recognized 

 tor his uncompromising explorations into the nature of 

 painting and perception. Two curators' talks, docent-led 

 tours, and a family painting workshop highlighted the 

 exhibition, which was made possible in Washington, 

 D.C., by the Holenia Trust Fund. After closing at the 

 Hirshhorn on May 5, the show finished its international 

 tour at the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin. 



February ip 



■ Benefit Lundi Gras XXXVI-Monet's Garden, the an- 

 nual black-tie benefit ball, was presented by the Detroit 

 Council of the Archives of American Art. This long- 

 standing tradition (Monday before Ash Wednesday) was 



28 



