A Night at the Museum: Masquerade at the Johnson!

By: Kathy Qingyu Xu '16

Where can you find elegant ladies dressed in ball gowns and spooky wizards casting spells on a Friday night? At Cornell University’s Herbet F. Johnson Museum of Art’s Night at the Museum: Masquerade Ball of course! The Museum Club at Cornell University hosts a variety of free events at the Johnson to promote the beautiful artwork on display, special collections, and creativity of the University’s students. The Masquerade Ball is always an annual favorite! With over 35,000 works of art on exhibition, free tours, and accompanying technological displays, the Johnson Museum already draws thousands of annual visitors on a regular basis.

During the Masquerade Ball, you can watch a screening of Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, make your own sparkling mask, or participate in the costume competition. I particularly enjoyed watching the cultural dances by Illuminations, Shimtah, and other Cornell student performance organizations. Illumination’s Flowers dance this year was phenomenal; the performers were elegant and poised! As a student docent, I was able to take a more active role in the Masquerade this year. During the event, I showcased one of the beautiful Chi Wara headdresses in the Johnson Museum’s collection.

This headdress was made by the Bamana people from Mali. In fact, the Bamana people would wear this headdress and perform a special dance during the Chi Wara masquerade – very fitting for our event! I especially enjoyed presenting the Chi Wara headdress during our Masquerade because it’s usually not on display for the public. On Friday night, however, students were even able to touch the Chi Wara (with gloves of course!), which was a rare and special treat. If you come to Cornell’s Ithaca campus, definitely stop by the Johnson Museum! Even if there isn’t an event going on at the time, you can always explore a special collection or climb up to the fifth floor and bask in the breathtaking views. I’ll see you at the Johnson Museum - maybe I’ll even give you a tour!