Exploratorium After Dark: Red
Thursday, July 7, 2011
6-10 pm

Pay homage to the color of passion and pageantry at the Exploratorium After Dark: Red. On Thursday, July 7, from 6 to 10 pm, explore color chemistry, discover surprising uses for insects and vibrant vegetables, and get a crash-course in making your own paints.

After Dark is included in the price of admission to the Exploratorium. Or, you can become a member and attend the next twelve After Dark events for $30. To sign up for the Exploratorium’s After Dark email list and receive once-a-month event details, contact afterdark@exploratorium.edu.

After Dark: Red will also feature renowned Oaxacan artists who will demonstrate how the unassuming cochineal insect plays a critical role in the production of elegant crimson textiles. Elena Gonzalez Ruiz, Fidel Cruz, and Maria Luisa Mendoza will make dye and spin wool, weaving yarn into rugs.

Guests to After Dark: Red will be treated with a live performance by Theatre Flamenco – www.theatreflamenco.org – featuring dancers, guitarist and a flamenco music singer.

Learn the secret to making paints from scratch from Alex Warren, artist and founder of Sinopia Pigments and Materials.  Staff scientist Dr. Isabel Hawkins will explain the significance of scarlet in Mayan astronomy.

This After Dark event is presented as part of ColorFest, a two-month extravaganza featuring over 30 color-related exhibits, film programs, adult seminars, performances, and hands-on activities. For information on other ColorFest happenings, visit http://press.exploratorium.edu/colorfest-press-kit/.

After Dark, an adult evening program on the first Thursday of every month, mixes cocktails, conversation and adult-oriented programming in science and the arts. Each night showcases a different theme, which might include live performances, films and new media, or feature cutting-edge technology and unexpected extravaganzas. Programs are playful, unique and content-rich, addressing the science behind topics of adult interest—from gambling, alcohol, fashion and sex to extreme sports and gaming. Not a theater, a cabaret, or a gallery, After Dark involves aspects of all three, with a mood unlike anything else in the city. Where else can you find music, a cash bar and an intellectually stimulating playground for adults—all with free parking?

For more information on the Colorfest schedule of events, buy tickets, shop for a rainbow of color-making items – or just learn more about the spectrum and physics of color perception, visit the Colorfest web site at: http://www.exploratorium.edu/colorfest