One of the more memorable events that I attended in Oxford was the DeadFriday at Ashmolean Museum. The museum has this LiveFriday programme where it opens doors to visitors during night time on certain Fridays, featuring a specific exhibition theme. DeadFriday was organised in conjunction with the Halloween celebration, focusing on the topic of "Death".
It has been a long time since I visited a museum at night. The last time was probably the Field Museum in Chicago, during freshman year's orientation week. I remember being greeted by an enormous T-Rex skeleton at the museum lobby, in the dark, and the first thing that came to mind was Jurassic Park, and then the realisation that "Yes, this is US, where cool things like this happen!".
Many years later, at Oxford, cool things still happen. The DeadFriday at Ashmolean was a more cheerful and festive event, despite its "Death" theme. People, young and old, were roaming around the museum in costumes; at the basement, a DJ was playing music, and people were dancing and drinking; at different corners in the museum, there were activities going on...we bumped into a "lonely ghost" who was dying to tell us her ghost story...there were also volunteers stationed at different sections of the museum, sharing stories about "Death" in different cultures...but my favourite experience of the night was getting to see the museum's collection of Japanese Ukiyo-e woodblock prints, which was shown exclusively on that night only, 10 people at a time in a closed room, where we get to see up-close the detailed artwork of warriors and demons based on Japanese folklores, and even hear from the experts about the stories of these prints.
This year, Ashmolean Museum is continuing its great LiveFriday programme with the FrightFriday event on 25 November, exploring the theme of hope and fear. For those who will be in Oxford around this time, I strongly recommend that you attend. Given that the event's Facebook page is featuring the image of an Ukiyo-e print, I dare to assume that the Ukiyo-e collection may be open for viewing again.
The tickets are free, so do remember to book early. For more info, check out the following pages:
Webpage: http://www.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/livefriday/2016-11/
It has been a long time since I visited a museum at night. The last time was probably the Field Museum in Chicago, during freshman year's orientation week. I remember being greeted by an enormous T-Rex skeleton at the museum lobby, in the dark, and the first thing that came to mind was Jurassic Park, and then the realisation that "Yes, this is US, where cool things like this happen!".
Many years later, at Oxford, cool things still happen. The DeadFriday at Ashmolean was a more cheerful and festive event, despite its "Death" theme. People, young and old, were roaming around the museum in costumes; at the basement, a DJ was playing music, and people were dancing and drinking; at different corners in the museum, there were activities going on...we bumped into a "lonely ghost" who was dying to tell us her ghost story...there were also volunteers stationed at different sections of the museum, sharing stories about "Death" in different cultures...but my favourite experience of the night was getting to see the museum's collection of Japanese Ukiyo-e woodblock prints, which was shown exclusively on that night only, 10 people at a time in a closed room, where we get to see up-close the detailed artwork of warriors and demons based on Japanese folklores, and even hear from the experts about the stories of these prints.
This year, Ashmolean Museum is continuing its great LiveFriday programme with the FrightFriday event on 25 November, exploring the theme of hope and fear. For those who will be in Oxford around this time, I strongly recommend that you attend. Given that the event's Facebook page is featuring the image of an Ukiyo-e print, I dare to assume that the Ukiyo-e collection may be open for viewing again.
The tickets are free, so do remember to book early. For more info, check out the following pages:
Webpage: http://www.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/livefriday/2016-11/
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/events/208932779523211/
An exhibit featuring the celebration of the Day of the Dead in Mexico
A choir performance accompanying the screening of a horror film
A sinful man burning in the fire of hell
Dressing up as ancient Egyptians
Nothing beats KFC after a fun night out at the museum
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