SCAVENGER HUNT FAMILY GALLERY GUIDE
Welcome to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art! Parents Explore each gallery highlighted on the museum maps and give clues to help children find the objects on display!
YOU ARE THE DETECTIVE!
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Do you have your tools?
Your Imagination
L3 Contemporary
BLOCH BUILDING
Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park
Secret Door
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Imagine each object based on the given clues. The objects may be easier to spot if you can already “see” them in your head.
Your Mind African
L9
How will you use the clues to find the objects you are searching for?
A Keen Eye Use the visual clues inside each magnifying glass. If you need extra help, there are full images of each object on the inside back cover.
Let’s Begin!!
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LOCATION
Gallery L3
CLUES Paint you can EAT?! Full of penny candy (only 1 CENT!). POPS of color.
ANSWER Jawbreaker Machine, Wayne Thiebaud
Pop artists turn ordinary objects like candy and soup cans into art. Be a Pop artist! What candy or sweet would you paint? Write it below.
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LOCATION
Gallery L9
CLUES So many SPIRALS. So many TEETH. A CROCODILE wearing a hat?!
ANSWER Water Deity Headdress, Etim Abassi Ekpenyong
Imagine wearing this on your head. How does it feel? This headdress was worn like a mask. Can you find other masks in this gallery? Which one is your favorite?
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If you want to go outside, follow the secret door (see maps). If the weather is bad, stay inside and follow the clues.
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Alternate secret doors marked on maps
LOCATION
Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park
LARGER than life! LANDED on the lawn. A GAME made for giants.
ANSWER Shuttlecocks, Claes Oldenberg and Coosje van Bruggen
What games do you like to play on the lawn?
Did you know that the artists Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen wanted to make it look like giants were playing a game on the lawn? The artists thought the Nelson-Atkins Building looked like a net and set the Shuttlecocks on the lawn for a giant game of badminton. Each of the four Shuttlecocks weighs 5,500 pounds. Only a giant could pick one up!
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CLUES
What other art objects have you seen so far today?
Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely. — Auguste Rodin
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Sculptor of The Thinker
S21 You’ve found all of the objects in the Bloch Building! American Indian
Now use these clues to explore more of the museum. Enter the Nelson-Atkins208 Building and go to Kirkwood Hall on the Plaza Level. NELSON-ATKINS BUILDING Plaza Level
* Kirkwood Hall
European
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LOCATION
ENTER HERE
Sculpture Hall
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L3
Kirkwood Hall
Contem
CLUES A dragon SLAYER to protect you. Looks like STONE, but is it? A gruesome reminder to brush your teeth. Beware of the DRAGON’s breath! ANSWER Saint George, Christian Jorhan the Elder
Did you know that Saint George is the patron saint of England? “George” has always been a popular name for English kings and might be why Duchess Kate and Prince William named their baby George.
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NELSON-ATKINS BUILDING Level 2
227 South Asian
Japanese
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Chinese
231
S21 American Indian
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LOCATION
Gallery 208
CLUES Hat fit for a CHIEF. Kirkwood FEATHERS Hall to the floor. TALLER than most.
ANSWER Eagle Feather Headdress Design your own headdress here! Would yours be long or short? Would it have feathers or horns or would it look like a turban? Add some symbols that represent you. 6
Sculpture Hall
European
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LOCATION
Gallery S21
CLUES SEATED in a peaceful pose. A GOLDEN being. He is BIGGER than you!
ANSWER Amida Nyorai (Amitabha Buddha)
Did you know that the Buddha’s hands are “talking” to you? The hand gestures in sculptures of the Buddha are called mudras. Each mudra means something different! The gesture that the Buddha is doing in this sculpture means “meditation.” You’ll need to concentrate hard, too, to find the next object!
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LOCATION
Gallery 227
CLUES A PIG’s cousin. Is he wearing a SWEATER? Made of STONE, but has a kind heart.
A N S W E R Vishnu as the Boar Varaha Did you know that this figure’s “sweater” is actually made of figures of people? Legend says that the god Vishnu saved the world from a flood. All of the wise scholars of the world rode Vishnu’s back to escape the water. 7
CLUES
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LOCATION
Gallery 231
A HOUSE made for dolls? FOUR mini stories tall. Find shelter in my beautifully PAINTED walls.
ANSWER Model of a Multi-Storied Tower Can you find the little figure sitting above the gate? He probably owned a large estate that looked like this model.
YOU DID IT! You explored the museum and used the clues to find all of the objects on your list. You’re an expert museum visitor! In your expert opinion, what is the coolest thing you saw on your scavenger hunt? Which art object would you like to take home? Write it below.
Learn more about the works in this guide by going to these links: 1: nelson-atkins.org/Jawbreaker
5: nelson-atkins.org/EagleFeatherHeaddress
2: nelson-atkins.org/WaterDeity
6: nelson-atkins.org/AmitabhaBuddha
3: nelson-atkins.org/Shuttlecock
7: nelson-atkins.org/Vishnu
4: nelson-atkins.org/SaintGeorge
8: nelson-atkins.org/Tower
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45th & Oak, Kansas City, Missouri nelson-atkins.org | 816.751.1ART
Keep exploring with these books recommended by the Kansas City Public Library. Hidden Object Books that are Fun for All Ages The Everything Kids’ Hidden Picture Book: Hours of Challenging Fun by Beth L. Blair
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I Spy (series) by Jean Marzollo and Walter Wick Look-Alikes Seek and Search (series) by Joan Steiner
Amazing Mysteries FOR YOUNG READERS
Detective LaRue by Mark Teague Moose Tracks by Karma Wilson FOR OLDER READERS
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett Holes by Louis Sachar
Great Books about Museums FOR YOUNG READERS
The Museum by Susan Verde and Peter H. Reynolds You Can’t Take a Balloon into the Metropolitan Museum by Jacqueline Preiss Weitzman FOR OLDER READERS
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Franweiler by E. L. Konigburg Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick
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Connect to the Mobile Guide for more family fun! Check out a FREE mobile device at the Bloch Lobby Info Desk or use your own. Start your mobile tour at naguide.org. Visit nelson-atkins.org for updates about art classes, festivals and hands-on activities for families and children.