Saturday Community Programming

$10 per family to participate with Museum Admission!

Come join us for our Saturday drop-in art activities! Experience the Everson's engaging and interactive sessions, available every Saturday from February to May.

"Make & Take" from 10:30am –12:30pm
In this drop-in arts activity, children and families are invited to attend a clay forming session led by Everson staff and docents. Participants will be provided blocks of air-dry clay, sculpting tools, and creative guidance in an encouraging setting. Participants are also welcome to explore the museum after the activity, or even use pieces in the Everson’s permanent collection and rotating exhibitions as inspiration for their clay formations. Join us for a creative morning of communal artmaking.

Young Poets Club from 2:00pm – 4:00pm
Children aged 12-17 are invited to attend Young Poets Club—an encouraging creative writing community led by Everson staff and docents. Participants will generate stories and poems in response to pieces in the Everson’s permanent collection and rotating exhibitions, and learn about forms of creative writing relevant to their interests. Participants will also receive writing prompts and have the opportunity to perform their creations for their peers and families.

Janet Biggs: Imagination and Desire in a Northern Landscape

On view February 10, 2024-May 12, 2024

In 2009 and 2010, Janet Biggs traveled to the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard with a crew of artists and scientists to document the changing Arctic landscape. As the subject of centuries of exploration, the Arctic was once seen as indifferent to human enterprise, so vast and inhospitable as to be immune to any imposition. Today, scientists expect climate change to leave Arctic summers ice-free as early as the next decade, and Svalbard, located halfway between Europe and the North Pole, finds itself at the epicenter of this metamorphoses. Using footage compiled on her voyages north, Biggs explores this history and the alarming consequences of human enterprise in three videos: Warning Shot (2016), Brightness All Around (2011), and Fade to White (2010). Shown together, these works are a clarion call for a heroic landscape that will completely transform within our lifetimes.

Janet Biggs: Imagination and Desire in a Northern Landscape is organized by the Barry Lopez Foundation for Art & Environment. Based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the Barry Lopez Foundation works with contemporary artists to organize exhibitions addressing climate change, biodiversity, habitat loss, and our relationship with the land in a time of environmental crisis.

Janet Biggs

Fade to White (video still), 2010
Single-channel HD video with sound, 16×9 format, running time 12:28
Courtesy the artist and Cristin Tierney Gallery, New York

Syracuse Crawfish Festival

The Syracuse Crawfish Festival is a fun, family-friendly event held the first Saturday in May in the heart of downtown Syracuse. It holds the bragging rights of being the first festival of the season, offering authentic Cajun Music, lively dancing, crafters, vendors and an endless assortment of delicious food otherwise only offered on the Gulf Coast. It is organized and executed by a well-established local nonprofit organization, Operation Northern Comfort (ONC), a group of skilled volunteers who work tirelessly year-round to serve the needs of our community.This festival acts as a fundraiser to provide operating dollars for ONC's mission, "empowering and giving hope to those in need." The roots of ONC, originally known as "Operation Southern Comfort," were planted following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, a small group of brave Central New Yorkers donated their time and energy to travel to New Orleans and aid in the cleanup effort. Since then, there have been 66 trips to provide relief to areas devastated by natural disasters. We have already made our first trip of 2024. In January we traveled to Buffalo, NY to continue repairs at a church. We will organize and go where we are needed when we are needed.The individuals behind ONC pride themselves on their projects, including 5 -home rebuilds, over 90 ramp installations, 14 lift installations and hundreds of home improvements. ONC is responsible for the Desks4Kids Initiative, which saw over 1,500 desks build for children in need of dedicated in home learning spaces, as well as Bookshelves4Kids, a literary initiative to provide children with books and bookshelves. To date we have built and delivered over 400 book shelves. Our goal is to continue providing services for our community and develop new projects in accordance with the needs our local people.The 17th Annual Syracuse Crawfish Festival has free admission and will feature five local bands that will take the stage to bring live musical entertainment to attendees. This year, we will have a Native American dance performance as well as a performance by dancers from PGR Inc. We are proud to present over 50 small business crafters and vendors who will offer their products and creations for sale. This festival provides free space for other local nonprofits, giving them the opportunity to distribute their information and sell items for their own fundraising efforts. DJ's from local radio station and media sponsor "Inner Harbor Media" will introduce the bands and the annual Mascot Dance Off, where Syracuse's favorite mascots will compete for the title of best dancer and a donation to the charity of their choice. The festival includes a kid's area where children will enjoy face painting, a magician, games and kid-friendly food options.The star of the show is our fresh crawfish and shrimp flown up from the Gulf Coast the day before our festival and prepared by our Louisiana-trained boilers. Event-goers are offered the unique experience to talk with boilers and learn the proper way to eat crawfish. There are also opportunities to indulge in authentic Cajun cuisines, including crawfish mac and cheese, Jambalaya, Gumbo, Bread Pudding and Beignets. Festival attendees may choose from regional favorites, including Hofmann's hotdogs, Gianelli Sausage, pulled pork, walking tacos and New England clams. Eight local food trucks will feature their specialty drinks and dishes.The 17th Annual Syracuse Crawfish Festival will be held on Saturday, May 4, 2024 from 11 am-7 pm in Clinton Square, with 100% of profits earned to fund future ONC projects. ONC is a 100% volunteer run organization.