USC Pacific Asia Museum

46 North Los Robles Avenue
Pasadena, California 91101
Open Wednesday through Sunday 10am to 6pm

JOURNEYS: THE SILK ROAD

Journeys: The Silk Road is an interactive family-friendly exhibition where visitors can explore the legendary trade route that linked Europe and Asia for more than a thousand years.

Most people are familiar with the phrase “Silk Road” and enchanted by the romantic images it brings to mind. USC Pacific Asia Museum chose this intriguing theme to not only help visitors deepen their knowledge of the road, but to explore the wider idea of cultural exchange as seen throughout the museum’s extensive collection.

Designed for self-directed learning, hands-on engagement with objects and ideas, Journeys creates a museum experience that is different every time. The fundamental idea – that people, things and ideas traveled the Silk Road – becomes much more meaningful when you can pretend to be the people, touch the things, and see the ideas expressed visually. Visitors of all ages can try on a camel handler’s coat, unravel a silkworm cocoon, sit on a lotus blossom, touch real gold and jade, investigate a map, relax in the travelers’ tent, try an ancient dance, or even sit on a camel. Just as no two people are alike, ways of learning are not alike. By encouraging discovery through playing, pretending, touching, and looking in new ways, USC Pacific Asia Museum is allowing more people more ways to enjoy art and culture.

Journeys: The Silk Road was made possible in part by grants from the Ahmanson Foundation, Kresge Foundation, Ralph M. Parsons Foundation and the Docent Council of USC Pacific Asia Museum.

Join storyteller extraordinaire Sunny Stevenson in the Silk Road exhibition room for Silk Road Storytime. Each Free Second Sunday of the month, she reads stories from across the world, delighting children and parents alike. Storytime begins at 10:30 and 11:30 am and is followed by a hands-on activity. Free and open to the public.

Download “My Masterpieces” Silk Road Curriculum
In partnership with Pasadena Unified School District, USC Pacific Asia Museum is pleased to be participating in My Masterpieces, an award-winning innovative partnership between Pasadena’s schools and cultural institutions. My Masterpieces brings Silk Road-themed art, social studies, and creative writing lessons to local 6th graders, as they design historic characters, work as a team in a virtual caravan, and encounter objects from the museum’s collection in their travels. The students also enjoy a free visit to the museum, where they explore the collections with a docent, and engage in a hands-on art activity.

Click here for My Masterpieces lesson plans [PDF: 328KB], here for student workbook and overheads [PDF: 1.98MB].

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