Central American traditions will be celebrated at the Smithsonian’s Hispanic Heritage Month family day Saturday, Sept. 15, between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. at the National Museum of American History. The day will feature a sampling of music and dance performances as well as food demonstrations and hands-on arts and crafts. The Smithsonian Center for Education and Museum Studies brings together the National Museum of American History, the Smithsonian Latino Center and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden to present the Central American Traditions Family Day.
The museum’s terrace, which faces the National Mall, will feature fair tables that include demonstrations of foods such as pupusas and tamales, traditional weaving from Guatemala using a back strap loom and musical and dance performances, including the New York-based band, Bodoma. Inside, activities include designing a family bandera (flag), making alfombras or carpets, which are temporary artworks made with sawdust and based on a 400-year-old Guatemalan tradition, a lecture on Central American ceramics with Alex Benitez, archeologist and George Mason University professor, and engaging in conversations about immigration based on objects in the museum’s teaching collections.
The National Museum of American History collects, preserves and displays American heritage in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific and military history. To learn more about the museum, visit americanhistory.si.edu