SAN DIEGO (Press Release)–Starting June 11, the Museum of Man is getting serious about playing. Their new exhibit, Counter Cultures: The Secret Lives of Games will feature games from around the world that will give visitors insight into various cultures, in addition to American favorites that have surprising origins. (Chutes and Ladders, for example, was originally Snakes and Ladders from India). Children will be delighted to see contemporary favorites on display and parents will see classics that they grew up playing.
Games relating to different religions and ethnicities, such as the Jewish dreidel game, also will be on exhibit.
There are many reasons why we do and don’t play games, some of which will be highlighted in the exhibit. Visitors will be able to identify with some of these reasons or think up some of their own. One of the reasons we use games is to learn through play, and hands on displays will allow visitors an opportunity to do this as they learn about games while playing them or watch demonstrators and ask questions. The new exhibit will help us learn how games reflect our cultural values and teach us about ourselves.
The Museum is hosting a game design contest for the general public and two contests for kids to help get in the spirit of game playing. Full contest rules are available at www.museumofman.org. Winners will have their game displayed in the exhibition. The deadline is July 1, 2010.
The Museum’s collection will be supply some of the games, including Native American stick dice, hand-game sticks, gaming counters, a huge Inuit cribbage board, Mexican games, and a rare handmade chess set from colonial times. Special events will include Game Day in the Plaza, Identify-Your-Game Day, game demonstrations by local groups, mini-tournaments, game design contests, and a lecture series. There is also a summer camp for 3rd through 6th graders, August 23-27.
Counter Cultures: The Secret Lives of Games, is the newest in a series of special exhibitions featured in the Museum of Man. The Museum also hosts Gods & Gold: Ancient Treasures From Mexico to Peru and The Genographic Project. These special exhibits complement the Museum’s five permanent exhibits which explore the Maya, ancient Egypt, the Kumeyaay Indians of San Diego County, Human Evolution, and the Human Life Cycle.
For more information about Counter Cultures: The Secret Lives of Games or other exhibits in the Museum, visit www.musuemofman.org or call (619) 239-2001.
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Preceding provided by the Museum of Man in San Diego