12 best U.S. museum exhibits to see this fall

Didn’t make it to Space Camp this summer? Satisfy your zero-gravity curiosity this fall at Beyond Spaceship Earth in Indianapolis, Be the Astronaut in Peoria, and Star Wars and the Power of Costume in Denver. Or maybe presidential politics is on your mind. Turn off the TV and see museum exhibits featuring the Air Force One plane used by eight presidents, George Washington’s will that freed his slaves, and the new Richard Nixon Presidential Library museum. Here are 12 of the best museums exhibits to see this fall.

Dali17 in Monterey, Calif.
Permanent
The largest private collection of original Salvador Dali art in the United States, and the first and only museum of its kind on the West Coast, Dali17 now has a permanent home in Monterey. Opened this summer, the exhibit holds more than 570 works of art by the Spanish surrealist artist who lived in Monterey in the 1940s. In 1941, Dali hosted a fundraiser in town — with guests including Bob Hope and Gloria Vanderbilt — to aid WWII refugee artists. Dali17 will permanently display the largest collection of photographs from the event, A Surrealistic Night in an Enchanted Forest. dali17.com

Beyond Spaceship Earth at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis
Permanent
The world’s largest children’s museum’s newest exhibit — with an $8.1 million investment — is ready for liftoff. With the help of a full-time astronaut on staff, Beyond Spaceship Earth includes a re-creation of the International Space Station, digital games to allow children to perform the tasks of real astronauts aboard the ISS, and an Astronaut Wall of Fame (Indiana has produced many astronauts). Inside the new Schaefer Planetarium & Space Object Theater, find real space vehicles and equipment, as well as a dynamic light-and-sound experience to tell stories of space exploration. childrensmuseum.org/exhibits/beyond-spaceship-earth

Lives Bound Together: Slavery at George Washington’s Mount Vernon, Alexandria, Va.
Oct. 1 - TBD
Mount Vernon’s groundbreaking new exhibition addresses the enslaved people who worked and lived at George Washington’s estate. “George Washington was a meticulous record keeper,” said Mount Vernon president Curt Viebranz. “As he made notes about activities at his home and on his farm, he was, in a way, writing biographies for these men and women who left no written records behind.” After being a lifelong slave owner, Washington’s opinion of slavery changed over the course of his life and he freed his slaves in his will. The museum will display 150 artifacts, including household furnishings, art works, archaeological discoveries and documents. mountvernon.org/plan-your-visit/calendar/exhibitions/lives-bound-together-slavery-at-george-washingtons-mount-vernon

Presidential Gallery at National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, Ohio
Permanent
The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force recently opened its fourth building, a 224,000-square-foot space with a gallery focused on U.S. presidents. The centerpiece: the Air Force One plane used by eight presidents — Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Clinton. The museum is located on the grounds of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, which has its own deep aviation history as the place where the Wright Brothers grew up. nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/MuseumExhibits/PresidentialGallery.aspx

David Friend Hall Gem and Mineral Gallery at the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History in New Haven, Conn.
Oct. 23 - Permanent
The Yale Peabody Museum has brought together 150 of the world’s premier mineral and gem specimens drawn from the some of the most significant private collections in the United States for its new exhibit. Highlights: a 4,000 pound Chinese fluorite with quartz, a three-foot-tall geode lined with dark purple amethyst crystals with a giant sparkling white Calcite crystal, a two-pound dark blue Tanzanite crystal (one of the largest in the world), and an array of thumbnail-sized crystals. Custom lighting has been designed to enhance the viewing of each mineral and gem. peabody.yale.edu

The 75th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor: Why We Still Remember at the International Museum of World War II in Boston
Oct. 8, 2016 - Jan. 7, 2017
In the lead-up to the 75th anniversary of the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor, the International Museum of World War II will chronicle what transpired before, during and after the attack. More than 100 artifacts tell the story, including the original first telegram announcing the attack on Pearl Harbor, the formal declaration of war by Japan on the U.S., pieces of Japanese planes shot down over Pearl Harbor, and a Japanese postcard celebrating the attack. museumofworldwarii.org

Star Wars and the Power of Costume at Denver Art Museum
Nov. 13, 2016 - April 2, 2017
Star Wars devotees: Make plans to get to Denver this fall to see 60 of the original costumes from the movies in this exhibit that closely examines the process of costume design. Iconic outfits featured in all seven films include Princess Leia’s unforgettable bikini, Darth Vader’s imposing black armor, Queen Amidala’s dress, Chewbacca’s suit, and Droids, including C-3PO and R2-D2. “Characters like Han Solo, Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker have become inseparably associated with their costumes, and our unique presentation will give a look at the inspiration and nuanced creative processes of designers and artisans,” said Stefania Van Dyke, interpretive specialist at the DAM. denverartmuseum.org/exhibitions/starwars

New Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in Yorba Linda, Calif.
Oct. 14, 2016 - Permanent
After a $15 million renovation, a completely new interactive presidential museum is opening at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library in October. The museum will feature more than 65 new exhibits, including an exact replica of President Nixon’s Oval Office and an extensive exhibit on Nixon’s historic trip to China. Twenty-five years after it was built, the new space gets a tech upgrade with 30 multimedia experiences and 12 custom digital interactives. Also featured are 11 original films, plus curated archival film sequences, more than 600 photographs, 8,000 square feet of wall murals and more than 300 artifacts. nixonfoundation.org

Be the Astronaut at the Riverfront Museum in Peoria, Ill.
Now through Oct. 16
A pair of life-sized robots greet visitors to the Be the Astronaut exhibit and then guide them through their space voyage. Kids and kids-at-heart experience the world’s first museum exhibition centered on accurately recreated virtual planetary environments that play like a video games. Try your hand at landing on Mars or an asteroid and piloting the rover that explores the surfaces of other worlds — simulated using actual NASA space probe data. ​peoriariverfrontmuseum.org/exhibits-collections/exhibits/be-the-astronaut

Town and Country: From Degas to Picasso at Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art in Las Vegas
Sept. 23 - Feb. 20, 2017
Small towns come to Sin City at the Bellagio’s Town and Country exhibit that features 47 works of art that “provide a dazzling recount of cities and the countryside during the Industrial Revolution,” according to Tarissa Tiberti, executive director of Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art. Expect paintings, prints, drawings and photographs by artists including Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Edgar Degas and Jean-François Millet. bellagio.com/en/entertainment/gallery-of-fine-art.html#/Upcoming:%20Town%20&%20Country

Paint the Revolution: Mexican Modernism, 1910–1950 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Oct. 25, 2016 - Jan. 8, 2017
In the most comprehensive exhibition of Mexican modernism to be shown in the United States in more than 70 years, the Philadelphia Museum of Art studies the forces that shaped modern art in Mexico from the start of the Mexican Revolution in 1910 to the aftermath of World War II. Drawn from U.S. and Mexican collections, the exhibit features the work of Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, David Alfaro Siqueiros, Frida Kahlo, Rufino Tamayo, Dr. Atl, María Izquierdo, Roberto Montenegro, Carlos Mérida and Manuel Álvarez Bravo. In addition to portable murals, easel paintings, photographs, prints, books and broadsheets, the exhibition will display murals in digital form. In January, the exhibit travels to Mexico City’s Palacio de Bellas Artes. philamuseum.org/exhibitions/840.html

Carnivorous Plants Conservatory at INFINITY Science Center in Pearlington, Miss.
Did you know there are more than 200 species of carnivorous plants? Maybe you don’t want to know, but for the morbidly curious, the Carnivorous Plants will teach visitors about islands of animal-eating algae, people-chasing plants and flesh-eating flora. Yum. The conservatory will introduce visitors to the five trapping mechanisms of carnivorous plants: Suck, Pit, Stick, One Way Street and Snap. Lucky guests will be able to assist with feeding. Flesh-hungry plants from pop culture — including Little Shop of Horrors, Super Mario Bros., Harry Potter and Attack of the Killer Tomatoes — also take center stage. visitinfinity.com