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New Chumash museum now open to the public
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A journey 20 years in the making reaches its apex as visitors enjoy exhibits and architecture next to Highway 246 By Mike Chaldu michael@santaynezvalleystar.com
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fter months, and for some, years, of anticipation, the newest building to be seen from Highway 246 now has out the welcome mat as the Chumash Museum and Cultural Center opened to the public on Thursday, May 15. The opening culminates two decades of planning by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. “Twenty years ago, we were an advisory committee and now we’re a board,” said Museum Chairwoman Kathleen Marshall. “It has been a journey, but we appreciate it.” The 14,000-square-foot facility, which is located on the corner of Highway 246 and Edison Street in Santa Ynez, showcases a portion of the tribe’s collection of more than 24,000 historically significant cultural items, including baskets, musical instruments, hunting tools, ceremonial items, and regalia — highlighting the richness and diversity of Chumash culture. A huge part of the “journey” leading to the museum’s opening was obtaining the artifacts, which was
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Visitors to the Chumash Museum and Cultural Center explore the exhibits inside the museum. Photo courtesy of Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians
no easy feat, according to Marshall “Unfortunately we’ve had to purchase all our items, because they were stolen from us,” she said. “It’s been quite a process and we’ve been purchasing from personal collectors for a while, just trying to get our collection up to open a museum.”
Another feature of the museum is its unique architecture, which was designed by the award-winning Jones & Jones Architects (also designed the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.), and is anchored by large dome structures
that pay homage to the Chumash people’s traditional dwellings, the tule ‘ap. Outdoors, the 3.5-acre cultural park features exhibits and over 11,000 California native plants, including nearly 100 species used by the Chumash.
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