Estelle J. Kelsey Foundation Hands ON! Second Saturdays offers free admission to the Museum. Extend your experience with #HandsONatHome. Click here for fun project ideas inspired by the collection that you can do from anywhere. 

Title sponsorship for Hands ON! Second Saturdays is provided by the Estelle J. Kelsey Foundation.

Media sponsorship by Entravision.

Jack Malotte makes artworks that celebrate the landscapes of the Great Basin, with a unique focus on contemporary political issues faced by Native people seeking to protect and preserve access to their lands. Join us for informal conversation in the gallery before the exhibition The Art of Jack Malotte closes later this month. Coffee, book signing and short film will be offered in the adjacent Founders’ Room. 

NOTE: This is an informal opportunity to connect with the artist Jack Malotte. The book “Jack Malotte” is available for purchase in the Founders’ Room or in the Museum store.

Edi Rama: WORK, an exhibition of the artist and Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, includes a series of new drawings created on documents and notes Rama creates during meetings and phone calls, as well as ceramic sculptures and a floor-to-ceiling wallpaper that emulates the wallpaper in his office at the Ministry in Tirana. Edi Rama’s drawing practice has developed in close parallel with his career as a politician. Rama views his art as an essential element in a functional society. A clear example is his initiative to paint the facades of decaying communist bloc buildings after being elected Mayor of Tirana in 2000, an undertaking Rama has described as “a political action, with colors.” Join us for a gallery walk through with Julia Ballantyne-Way, Senior Director of Rama’s Berlin gallery carlier | gebauer.  

Edi Rama lives and works in Tirana. A former professor of painting at the Academy of Fine Arts and author of several books, his works have been exhibited in numerous solo, two-person, or group exhibitions including at the Venice Biennale (2017); São Paulo Biennial (1994); Haus der Kunst, Munich (2004); the Centre Pompidou, Paris (2010); the Musée D’art contemporain de Montréal (2011); Biennale of Marrakesh, Morocco (2015); The New Museum, New York (2016); and Kunsthalle Rostock (2019). Edi Rama began his political career in Albania as the Minister of Culture in 1998. He was the Mayor of Tirana from 2000-2011. Rama was elected Prime Minister of Albania in September 2013, following a landslide victory in the general elections, and his government has since embarked the path of reforms that aim to bring Albania closer to the European Union. He is currently serving his second term as Prime Minister.

This event is a FREE program, pre-registration required.

From the beginning, handheld guns have invited the development and application of a wide range of ornamental design and techniques. Far from conforming slavishly to the prevailing conventions in the decorative arts, guns played an important part in establishing original trends and styles, encouraging great artists to demonstrate their full measure.

Dr. Pierre Terjanian is the Arthur Ochs Curator in Charge Department of Arms and Armor at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. A native of Strasbourg, France, Terjanian obtained a master’s degree in law from Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas, a master of science degree in management from HEC Paris, and a doctoral degree in history from Université de Metz’s Faculté de Lettres et Sciences Humaines. Pierre Terjanian joined The Met in 2012. Previously, he held the dual role of J. J. Medveckis Associate Curator of Arms and Armor and acting head of the Department of European Decorative Arts and Sculpture before 1700 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Held annually in Telluride CO, Mountainfilm is a documentary film festival that showcases nonfiction stories about environmental, cultural, climbing, political and social justice issues that matter. Mountainfilm on Tour showcases a curated selection of powerful films from the festival. This special screening is presented in partnership with the Eastern Sierra Interpretive Association.

NOTE: Doors open at 5 pm with cash bar.

Safe Haven | Directed by Tim Kressin
Inner-city Memphis is not the likeliest setting for an enormous rock climbing gym. But since it opened in March 2018, Memphis Rox, the nation’s only nonprofit climbing gym — open to all, regardless of ability to pay — has proven that the challenges of technical climbing have strong appeal, and can provide benefits well beyond the traditional outdoor-recreation community. (USA, 2018, 8 min.)

Cracking Ice Ceilings | Directed by Mariano Carranza
The cholita climbers of Bolivia have been subverting the culture of machismo since 2015 by climbing mountains. Not content to stay in their traditional roles as high-mountain cooks, these 11 escaladoras wanted to see for themselves what it felt like to go to the top. Pairing the traditional cholita garb of colorful skirts, shawls, bowler hats and brooches with ice axes and crampons, these women climb for the same reason many others do: that feeling of freedom that comes with standing on the summit. (USA, 2017, 3 min)

Brotherhood of Skiing | Directed by Tyler Wilkinson-Ray, Colin Arisman
The Brotherhood of Skiers has been bringing camaraderie and dance parties to the slopes since 1973. The annual summits, which unite African-American ski clubs across the country, are fundraisers for youth programs to pass the love of skiing down to the next generation. First born of necessity — safety in numbers in the aftermath of the civil rights movement — four decades later, the Brotherhood of Skiers is still creating a safe space and upending stereotypes. (USA, 2018, 10 min.)

Sweetheart Dancers | Directed by Ben-Alex Dupris
Indigenous dancers Sean and Adrian challenge the rulebook of San Manuel’s Native American Sweetheart Special as they attempt to compete in the annual couple’s competition. Dancing not only against the other dancers, but against the drums of oppression and closed-mindedness, this Two-Spirit couple is determined to rewrite the rules of “one man, one woman” with their resplendent charisma, character and resilience. (USA, 2019, 13 min.)

The Litas | Directed by William DeSena
Growing up gay and black in Los Angeles in the 1960s, Gevin Fax felt alone. Then, at age 12, she discovered dirt-biking. “The boys grew out of it, but she never did,” her father reminisces in this short about the Litas, a 5,000-strong global women’s motorcycle collective founded in 2015. For Gevin, finding the Litas was a revelation. “I’m truly present when I’m alone on that bike and I can just be,” she says. (USA, 2018, 7 min.)

All In: Alaska Heli Skiing | Directed by Scott Gaffney
Tune in for a tutorial on how to absolutely shred Alaskan spines. (USA, 2018, 4 min.)

Mi Mamá | Directed by James Q Martin, Jade Begay
There is a force of healing in nature and a power of connection — connection with ourselves, our hopes and dreams, and with the mystery and grandeur of life on our planet. For Nadia Iris Mercado, there is also in nature a connection with her ancestry. And, the connection she makes most strongly, and most tenderly, is with her mother — who sacrificed her own hopes and dreams to give Nadia the best possible chance to realize hers. (USA, 2019, 6 min.) 

The Wild Inside | Directed by Andrew Michael Ellis
“Saying goodbye to an animal – it’s hard,” says Chris, who is leaving Florence, Ariz. State Prison after serving a six-year sentence. He’s one of 30 minimum-security participants in the prison’s pioneering Wild Horse Inmate Program, working five days a week to “gentle” the wild mustangs, which are saved from slaughter. Training them as saddle horses keeps recidivism at bay in Arizona, where inmates face a 49 percent chance of reincarceration within five years. Since 2012, only three of the prison’s 53 WHIP trainers are back behind bars. (USA, 2019, 15 min.)

R.A.W. Tuba | Directed by Darren Durlach, David Larson
“I like the tuba because it reminds me of my life, it’s the underdog.” That’s Richard Antoine White, whose biography reads like a manual in how to overcome odds. White grew up intermittently homeless on the streets of Baltimore, and went on to become a world-class symphony musician, professor and the first African American in the world to receive a Doctorate in Music for Tuba Performance. He’s got music in him, yes. But he’s also got a drive rarely seen, even in the most competitive artistic circles. As he puts it, “the only thing that will stop me from being successful is death.” (USA, 2019, 29 min.)

Jágralama | Directed by Marek Partys
In the high steppe of Little Tibet, a young boy develops an unlikely obsession: ice hockey. He fashions pucks out of stones, trains on homemade skates and worships Czech hockey icon Jaromír Jágr. And he has his heart set on an outsized dream. (Czech Republic, 2018, 2 min.)

What makes a gun great? Dr. John Byck joins us from the Metropolitan Museum of Art to explore key aspects of fine historical firearm design. From ingenious mechanisms to beautiful decorations to perfect balance, this lecture will explore key aspects of fine historical firearm design from the sixteenth century through the modern period.

Dr. John Byck is the Assistant Curator in the Department of Arms and Armor at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Byck holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania and a PhD from New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts. A specialist in ornament, he joined the Department of Arms and Armor at the Met in 2015 after serving as research assistant in the Department of Drawings and Prints. 

Reko Rennie is a contemporary Aboriginal artist based in Melbourne, Australia. Through his art, Rennie provokes discussion surrounding Indigenous culture and identity in contemporary urban environments. Rennie’s work references the ways in which Aboriginal people have had to hide, blend in, and conceal their identity. Join us for a lecture on Rennie’s current work and his first large-scale mural for an American Museum, commissioned by the Nevada Museum of Art.

This talk is sponsored by Porsche of Reno | Sandy Raffealli.

ONLINE SALES FOR THIS EVENT ARE NOW CLOSED.

An internationally recognized artist who has studied lions for decades, John Banovich has created a body of work that is also an homage to these animals. King of Beasts features more than 30 artworks that explore questions about humankind’s deep fear, love, and admiration for these creatures. The exhibition spans nearly 25 years of work and assembles his body of work focused on African lions for the very first time. Join Banovich as he discusses his advocacy and love for these magnificent creatures.

*Doors open at 5 pm with a cash bar and book sales. Book signing to follow.

Join us for an evening exploring the broad spectrum of emotion within the tango genre. This live performance will feature original tango compositions performed by cellist Joseph Tatum of Darabello alongside the choreography of Susana Rojo Miró and dance of Julia Auzmendi and Fredy Maldonado of Reno Tango Collective. 

*Doors open at 6 pm with cash bar in chez louie.

Drawing inspiration from Georgia O’Keeffe’s floral paintings, dramatic gestures and inspired lines, choreographer Eve Allen Garza presents Flower, Magnified a contemporary ballet. This short six minute ballet will be performed live followed by a presentation by Allen Garza that traces her creative process in drawing inspiration for movement from O’Keeffe’s artwork, persona and fashion. Following the presentation, visitors are invited to view the exhibition Georgia O’Keeffe: Living Modern. 

Eve Allen Garza is a dancer, dance educator and choreographer based in Reno.  She received her MFA in ballet from the University of Utah and BS in business administration with a dance minor from the University of Nevada, Reno. Allen Garza is the founder and director of the Downtown Dance Collective, a collaborative dance organization that aims to bring together local talent and present accessible performances to our community. Allen Garza performs locally with A.V.A. Ballet Theatre, Belle Contemporary Dance Company, and Rosie Trump | With or Without Dance. She has choreographed for Municipal Ballet Co. in Salt Lake City, the Nevada Opera, Sierra Nevada Ballet, and the University of Nevada, Reno.  Allen Garza is a lecturer for the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of Nevada, Reno.