San Francisco is My Home

20
Mar

Exhibits at the Conservatory of Flowers

Author: kris, Category: Golden Gate Park, Kids, Museums, Nature

The Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park has two exhibits going on right now. I saw both yesterday (ever your faithful correspondent, I go see pretty floral stuff in the middle of the workday so you don’t have to) and I can say with confidence that they are awesome.

First off is The Butterfly Zone. Now, I am not normally a girl who will cheerfully walk into a room full of giant flying insects, but somehow butterflies are different. I am still a little jumpy when they land on me, but my yen to be surrounded by pretty pretty colors overcomes — just barely — my aversion to things flying at my face. Butterfly Zone is an exhibit all about butterflies, as you might imagine, and includes tons of information on their lives and habits, none of which I paid any attention to. Instead, I sat on one of the benches and watched the many pretty little guys fluttering around the plants and flowers and occasionally coming to check out my shoulder blades and hair. This exhibit is good for kids, but very young kids will want to touch the butterflies, which is bad for them.

This exhibit runs through November 2. You can also check out their Night Safaris, where you get a different butterfly experience. Check the website for details.

Photo by Ron Lewis.

On the other side of the Conservatory (where you’ll find the secret passage to the Lounge), The Art of Penjing resides peacefully among the water plants. This ancient Chinese art consists of creating elaborate miniature landscapes of plants, wood and stone, with a few tiny houses and people in boats thrown in. (Incidentally, do you ever hear anyone talking about a modern Chinese art? Whenever you say “Chinese art,” you feel compelled to throw in an “ancient,” right? Weird.)

I love miniatures. I always have, since I was a little girl. I love elaborate dollhouses filled with sliver-sized spoons and knives no bigger than a freckle. I love books about tiny people or miniatures that come to life (The Indian in the Cupboard, Mistress Masham’s Repose, The Littles). And so I found these carefully constructed landscapes completely enthralling. The care that’s taken to choose the little plants that look like towering trees, the ones that look like pussy willows along the bank, and the tiny tiny blossoms blooming on hillsides — it’s unreal. Plus, there are itty bitty insects in there that were fluttering among the “trees” like birds. It was really enchanting. Top marks from me.

The Art of Penjing runs through April 27. Your Conservatory ticket will get you into both shows as well as the bulk of the Conservatory itself. Tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for students, $1.50 for kids under 11 and free for kids under 4. Enjoy!