Giant-screen Films
Current Exhibitions
Upcoming Exhibitions
Past Exhibitions

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CONTACT:
Tim Murray
Director of Exhibits
619.255.0205
fax: 619.232.0248
exhibits@sdnhm.org

Fossil Mysteries
Permanent exhibition
From dinosaurs to mastodons, discover the rich fossil history of our region. In this major exhibition, created by the Museum, ponder a mystery, examine the strong fossil evidence from the Museum's collection, and use scientific tools to discover answers. Traveling through a 75-million-year timeline, from the age of dinosaurs to the Ice Ages, experience an unfolding of the prehistory of southern California and Baja California, Mexico.

    Developed by the San Diego Natural History Museum. Major funding provided by the California Cultural and Historic Endowment; National Science Foundation; Stephen and Mary Birch Foundation; an anonymous donor; and generous support from the J. W. Sefton Foundation; the San Diego Foundation: Weingart-Price Fund and Carol and Henry F. Hunte Fund; San Diego County Supervisors Pam Slater-Price, Ron Roberts and Greg Cox; The Legler Benbough Foundation; THE PARKER FOUNDATION: Gerald and Inez Grant Parker; Thomas C. Ackerman Foundation; Charmaine and Maurice Kaplan; Carol and Dennis Wilson; Rice Family Foundation; Samuel and Katherine French Fund; Ellen Browning Scripps Foundation; and Sony Electronics Inc.

Water: A California Story
July 19, 2008–Indefinite
Through photos, maps, video, and hands-on activities, learn about current, local issues on land and in the ocean. Examine the infrastructure of the regional water system, and discover how we import the majority of our water and the costs associated with this practice. Water: A California Story also looks at effects of a changing climate on our region’s water supply and reveals how southern Californians can help protect water for future generations. Natural history specimens and live animals will serve as reminders that the natural environment and its inhabitants are also legitimate users of water resources.

The Art of Robert Bateman
November 1, 2008–February 1, 2009
Experience the work of Robert Bateman, long recognized as one of the world’s premier wildlife artists. The work on display reflects his commitment to ecology and preservation. The Museum is proud to feature Bateman’s art in a one-man show that will captivate visitors with its lifelike realism and stark, natural drama.

Aerial Portraits of the American West: Photographs by John Shelton
May 11–Indefinite
This photography exhibition, a retrospective of Shelton’s work, marks the first time works by the legendary geologist will be exhibited for the public. A geologist filled with a love for music and machines, John Shelton is best known for his pioneering aerial photography. Formerly an associate professor of geology at Pomona College, he has always been intensely interested in the process of learning. Shelton’s love and knowledge of flying enabled him to reveal geologic features and processes through his aerial photographs of wondrous landscapes. His aerial photographs of North America are especially valuable today, when diminishing air quality makes some of his shots irreplaceable.

Buddhist Earth: Sacred Places/Sacred Work
Tibet and Other Lands
November 15, 2008–March 1, 2009
Fine-art photographer Kenneth Parker has immersed himself in the culture and landscape of Tibet. His images reveal the religious monuments, prayer flags, modest homes and dramatic mountains of the region. Monumental 14th-century monasteries, with giant Tantric fresco wall murals, can be found in his images from Mustang. In order to create his imagery, Parker engages in 5–10 day backpacking excursions to remote areas and carries 75–85 pounds of gear. Regarding his work, Parker says, “Moved as much as by any wilderness I have ever happened upon, the light and form of their lands have the power to evoke in me an arresting image that can make one feel immersed...as if actually willing to climb deep inside its own special world and somehow inhabit it.”

Upcoming Exhibitions

Best of Nature Photography Show
CALL FOR ENTRIES
January 15–March 15, 2009
The Ordover Gallery at the San Diego Natural History Museum is announcing a CALL FOR ENTRIES for the Best of Nature Photography Show. Entries may be submitted through March 15, 2009. The international juried show of outstanding nature photography will be on view at the Museum between June 27 and September 13, 2009. Amateur as well as professional photographers are invited to submit nature photography for the jurying process. Landscape, wildlife, and nature-based abstract/impressionistic images will be considered. Prizes will be awarded for top-placing images: Grand Prize: $1000; First Place: $500; Second Place: $250; Third Place: $150; Six Honorable Mentions: $100 each; People’s Choice Award: $100.

Gunther von Hagens’ BODY WORLDS & The Brain–Our Three Pound Gem, The Original Exhibition of Real Human Bodies
OPENS March 5, 2009, for a limited engagement
The BODY WORLDS exhibitions have been hailed by many as the most educational exhibitions ever created to improve the public’s awareness, knowledge, and appreciation of the human body. Thanks to a process developed by Dr. Gunther von Hagens called “plastination,” these exhibitions feature dynamic, whole-body plastinates that are unparalleled for their aesthetic and informative value. Visitor studies have shown that people who see BODY WORLDS exhibitions have made lifestyle changes in diet, alcohol, smoking, and exercise habits to improve their health. BODY WORLDS & The Brain–Our Three Pound Gem focuses on the brain.

The Osa: Where the Ocean Meets the Rainforest
March 7–June 21, 2009
Roy Toft has been exploring and photographing the fauna of the Osa Peninsula for 20 years. He focuses on creating images that convey a sense of the animal’s character and spirit. Toft has returned numerous times to the Osa, a locale that The National Geographic Society has called “the most biologically intense place on the planet.” The Osa Peninsula juts into the Pacific Ocean and is located in the southwest corner of Costa Rica. It encompasses lush rainforests and a complex system of freshwater and marine systems. Toft’s photography has been featured in publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian, Audubon, Wildlife Conservation, and Discover magazine, among others. Also on view in The Ordover Gallery will be dramatic wildlife images by Frans Lanting, Abe Ordover, Galen Rowell and Art Wolfe. All artwork in The Ordover Gallery is for sale; a substantial portion of proceeds will benefit the Museum.

Darwin
November 7, 2009–February 28, 2010
A remarkable exhibition developed by the American Museum of Natural History, Darwin celebrates the life and work of the great 19th-century British naturalist. The exhibition's appearance in San Diego coincides with the celebration of the bicentenary of Darwin's birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of On theOrigin of Species.

 Past Exhibitions

Water H₂O=Life
Cool Globes
Autumn
Spirits in Stone—Art & Animals of Africa
Enraptured: Works by Mitch Dobrowner
A Day in Pompeii
Contemporary Israeli Photography
Dead Sea Scrolls
Playing with Time
Earth, Wind & WILDFIRE
Dinosaurs: Reel & Robotic
GENOME: The Secret of How Life Works
Backyard Monsters
Wildlife Art
Fossil Hunters San Diego
Natural Treasures: Past and Present
Chocolate: The Exhibition
Feathered Dinosaurs and the Origin of Flight
Plant Portraits: The California Legacy of A.R. Valentien
Spirit of the Mountains: Images by Thomas D. Mangelsen
The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition
Spirits in Stone: The New Face of African Art
Glow: Living Lights
Rare Places in a Rare Light: The Wildlands Photography of Robert Turner
DOGS!
FORE! The Planet
T. REX on Trial
California's Native Grandeur
Animal Eyes
After the Dinosaurs: When Crocodiles Ruled
Monarca: Butterfly Beyond Boundaries
Epidemic! The Natural History of Disease
BEARS: Imagination and Reality
The Dinosaurs of Jurassic Park: The Lost World
Desert and Sea: Visions of Baja California
The Nature of Diamonds
SHARKS! Fact and Fantasy
REPTILES! Real and Robotic
Cats! Wild to Mild
Shona