Bowers Museum

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2002 N. Main St. Santa Ana, CA 92706

714-567-3600

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3 User reviews Write A Review

Best Art Museum
Award Winner 2011

Cuisine(s): American, Traditional
Hours: Sun,Tue,Wed,Thu,Fri,Sat 10am-4pm
Reservations: Accepted

Description

California Gold Exhibit

Daily from May 10 until September 9

Highlighting the stunning raw beauty of “native” gold found in some of California’s most important historic mines brought to life by gold rush memo...
Masters of Adornment: The Miao People of China

1:00 p.m. January 22

The title of the exhibit kind of says it all. The Miao are a cultural group that come primarily from southern China, and they really put some thoug...
Spirits and Headhunters

1:00 p.m. every Tue., Wed., Thu., Fri., Sat., Sun.

Remove yourself for a minute from the stifling minutiae of modern American civilization. Close your eyes and reach out to a more primal humanity—wh...
Bead Society of OC Art Workshop: Working with Metal Disks

1:00 p.m. May 26

Join instructor Anneliese Drake as she leads a special workshop on how to make stunning pieces by working with metal disks. Presented by the Bead ...
Bead Society of OC Art Workshop: Working with Metal Disks

1:00 p.m. May 26

Join instructor Anneliese Drake as she leads a special workshop on how to make stunning pieces by working with metal disks. Presented by the Bead ...

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2011 | Best Art Museum

Back in the '70s, the Bowers collection seemed sad. Seemingly full of detritus scavenged from an Indian trading post, the collection was OC-centric (pictures and news clippings from the county's history), plus old pottery, a few dusty landscape paintings by local artists, moldy old Indian baskets, various cowboy accouterments and a handful of arrowheads. The museum closed in 1982, then reopened in 1992 with better bankrolling and new leadership. After a couple of massive expansions, it has... More »
2008 | Best Art Museum Raided by the Feds

So it only took 75 years, but something finally interesting happened at the Bowers. In January, federal investigators raided the place after learning that several Asian antiques, all of them purchased from a Southland dealer on the somewhat shady side, had apparently been looted from historical sites in Thailand. One has to wonder what ethical hand-wringing accompanied the retrieval of Native American and pre-Columbian artifacts that form the bulk of the Bowers' standing collection, much... More »
2008 | Best Show at an Art Museum Raided by the Feds

Even though the raid got the Bowers noticed for all the wrong reasons, it was quite a bit of serendipitous timing, for in late May, the museum unveiled what people have been calling the Bowers' best exhibition ever: "Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China's First Emperor." Guest-curated by Albert Dien, "Terra Cotta Warriors" has earned rave reviews, and the crowds have flocked to get up close and personal with the crumbling, life-size soldiers of China's... More »

The Bruery To Hold 4th Anniversary Dinner at Playground

By Dave Lieberman | Mon, May 21, 2012

Beer lovers of Orange County, what are you doing tomorrow night?Hie thee to Playground from 5-10 p.m. for the Bruery's 4th anniversary dinner. The hops wizards of Placentia will be bringing plenty of ... More »
The Playground To Bring Back Omakase-Style Dinner Event--And This Time, It's Veggie-Based

By Michelle Woo | Tue, May 8, 2012

Frank DeLoach put on a fantastic omakase-style pop-up dinner at The Playground last month. Guests sat at the bar and watched the restaurant's inventive sous chef assemble raw creations with fish flown... More »
Latin American Famiy Festival

By ERIN DEWITT | Thu, May 03, 2012

Cinco de Mayo is officially over and all that remains are splitting hangovers, three-digit credit card charges at the bar, and perhaps some mysterious stains on the carpet. As sweet relief from the bacchanalian holiday, Bowers Museum is hosting th... More »
A Recap of 'Bites: A Raw Bar' at The Playground

By Michelle Woo | Wed, April 18, 2012

When I spent a day with The Playground gang a couple months ago for my cover story on chef Jason Quinn, I was in awe of the ideas that kept spewing out of the mouth of sous chef Frank DeLoach. He came... More »
Holocaust Remembrance Day Event: Laura Hillman, Schindler's List Survivor

By ERIN DEWITT | Thu, April 12, 2012

In Laura Hillman's autobiography, I Will Plant You a Lilac Tree: A Memoir of a Schindler`s List Survivor, the author recounts her harrowing march through eight concentration camps—beginning with her decision to leave school to be with her family t... More »
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JosephV | Costa Mesa, CA | 9 Reviews

| Mon, September 7, 2009

Nice
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Kristan5 | San Francisco, CA | 86 Reviews

| Mon, November 24, 2008

I have always loved going to museums and this is one of the first I ever went too. They feature a lot of native exhibits, so if your into that watch out for their events.
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jewgirl | Los Angeles, CA | 11 Reviews

| Tue, June 24, 2008

great kids museum and worth the drive. very hands on and fun.

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Bowers Museum

2002 N. Main St. Santa Ana, CA 92706

714-567-3600

Description

California Gold Exhibit

Daily from May 10 until September 9

Masters of Adornment: The Miao People of China

1:00 p.m. January 22

Spirits and Headhunters

1:00 p.m. every Tue., Wed., Thu., Fri., Sat., Sun.

Bead Society of OC Art Workshop: Working with Metal Disks

1:00 p.m. May 26

Bead Society of OC Art Workshop: Working with Metal Disks

1:00 p.m. May 26

2011 | Best Art Museum

2008 | Best Art Museum Raided by the Feds

2008 | Best Show at an Art Museum Raided by the Feds

The Bruery To Hold 4th Anniversary Dinner at Playground

By Dave Lieberman | Mon, May 21, 2012

The Playground To Bring Back Omakase-Style Dinner Event--And This Time, It's Veggie-Based

By Michelle Woo | Tue, May 8, 2012

Latin American Famiy Festival

By ERIN DEWITT | Thu, May 03, 2012

A Recap of 'Bites: A Raw Bar' at The Playground

By Michelle Woo | Wed, April 18, 2012

Holocaust Remembrance Day Event: Laura Hillman, Schindler's List Survivor

By ERIN DEWITT | Thu, April 12, 2012

JosephV | Costa Mesa, CA | 9 Reviews

Kristan5 | San Francisco, CA | 86 Reviews

jewgirl | Los Angeles, CA | 11 Reviews

People Who Like Bowers Museum