Category: Amuseum Naturalis

Amuseum Naturalis Exhibit on Women and People of Color to Open Tuesday, Feb. 9th

This duck species was named by 19th century Jamaican naturalist Richard Hill.
This duck species was named by 19th century Jamaican naturalist Richard Hill.

Island residents and tourists of all ages are invited to the free grand opening of the exhibit Women, People of Color, and the Making of Natural History in the Caribbean, on Tuesday, February 9 from 6-10pm at Amuseum Naturalis in Grand Case.

The exhibit is a special series at Amuseum Naturalis, created to shine a light on the contributions of women and people of color in the study of natural history in the Caribbean, from the 1600s to the early 1900s. The exhibit brings their discoveries, explorations and stories to life with vivid biographical snapshots and reproductions of beautiful historical zoological and botanical illustrations, engravings, portraits and maps.

“The historical contributions of women and people of color to science have often been hidden, suppressed, or simply not as well publicized as those of their white male contemporaries, and this is just as true in the Caribbean as elsewhere,” explains Jenn Yerkes, Amuseum Naturalis co-curator and Les Fruits de Mer President. “We wanted to create an opportunity for people to discover the fascinating stories of these incredible women and men who helped to build the scientific heritage of the Caribbean.”

The exhibit's launch will include the 19th century mixed-race Jamaican naturalist and abolitionist Richard Hill.
The exhibit’s launch will include the 19th century mixed-race Jamaican naturalist and abolitionist Richard Hill.
The free, public exhibit will launch Tuesday night with the first installation of the series, which will include captivating figures such as naturalist and scientific artist Maria Sibylla Merian (1647 – 1717), known for her expedition to Suriname to document Caribbean insects, reptiles, birds, and plants; Graman Quassi (ca. 1690 – ca. 1780), a renowned Surinamese healer and botanist of African descent; Richard Hill (1795-1872), a trailblazing mixed-race naturalist and anti-slavery activist from Jamaica; and Felipe Poey (1799-1891), a Cuban zoologist known for his pioneering study of Caribbean marine life. The upcoming installations will be added throughout the run of the exhibit, so there will be new additions for visitors to enjoy every week. The exhibit will coincide with Black History Month and run through International Women’s Day, March 8, 2016.

Women, People of Color, and the Making of Natural History in the Caribbean will be on display in the special exhibit hall of Amuseum Naturalis, Les Fruits de Mer’s free pop-up museum of natural history located at 96 Boulevard de Grand Case. Amuseum Naturalis is open to the public on Tuesdays during the Mardis de Grand Case street fair, and is sponsored by Delta Petroleum.

Zoological images like this hummingbird, named by 19th century mixed-race naturalist Richard Hill, will be on display at the exhibit.
Zoological images like this hummingbird, named by 19th century mixed-race naturalist Richard Hill, will be on display at the exhibit.

Museum Babies

One other event of note that happened at Amuseum Naturalis was a birth. In fact, a lot of them. A shrimp that has had a large cluster of eggs under her tail for the past couple weeks gave birth to a bajillion tiny shrimplets. The shrimplets were about as big as grains of sand, so it was a little tricky to photograph them, but here are a few shots of them and their proud mom.

Amuseum Naturalis in Photos

After the mad rush to get open on the 12th, we took a week to refine our first set of exhibits and things were really looking great when we opened for the Mardis de Grand Case street fair last night. I popped by this morning to take a few photos of this version of the museum. If you haven’t come by to check it out yet, you can get an idea of what we have in our main exhibition hall and special exhibit room right now: Gut Life, To the Bat Cave!, The Tree of Life, Shadow of a Drought, The Shell Collector, Team Clean, and Women, People of Color and the Making of Natural History in the Caribbean.

Les Fruits de Mer Association Opens Free Natural History Museum in Grand Case

Les Fruits de Mer's free natural history museum will be open 6-10pm every Mardi de Grand Case. Visitors can see new additions to Les Fruits de Mer's free natural history museum every week. (Photo: Maël Renault)
Les Fruits de Mer’s free natural history museum will be open 6-10pm every Mardi de Grand Case. Visitors can see new additions to Les Fruits de Mer’s free natural history museum every week. (Photo: Maël Renault)

Hundreds of island residents and visitors poured into 96 Boulevard de Grand Case on Tuesday evening during the first Mardi de Grand Case for the grand opening of Amuseum Naturalis. Amuseum Naturalis is a free, public pop-up museum showcasing the natural history of St. Martin and the Caribbean, created by the Les Fruits de Mer association. Locals and tourists of all ages are invited to discover captivating natural history displays, biological curiosities, marvels of nature, spectacular specimens, live wildlife displays, a theater showing wildlife films, and more, throughout high season 2016 in this one-of-a-kind exhibition space.

Christian Papaliolios, President and General Director of Delta Petroleum, the sponsor of Amuseum Naturalis, officially opened the museum with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 6pm on Tuesday, accompanied by Mardis de Grand Case organizer Chantal Vernusse, and Les Fruits de Mer officers and volunteers. The space for the temporary museum was donated for the 2016 high season to the Les Fruits de Mer association by Papaliolios and Delta Petroleum.

President and General Director of Delta Petroleum Christian Papaliolios cut the ribbon to officially open Amuseum Naturalis. (Photo: Maël Renault)
President and General Director of Delta Petroleum Christian Papaliolios cut the ribbon to officially open Amuseum Naturalis. (Photo: Maël Renault)

“We’re absolutely thrilled to have been given the opportunity to bring Amuseum Naturalis to life, and see everybody enjoying it,” said Mark Yokoyama, Les Fruits de Mer co-founder and Amuseum co-curator. “It would not have been possible without all the hard work of our awesome volunteers, who came together to help create this incredible place, building and painting display tables and benches, and putting together these amazing exhibitions,” added the Amuseum’s other co-curator, Les Fruits de Mer President Jenn Yerkes.

On display now at Amuseum Naturalis are exhibits on St. Martin’s bats, the endangered native Gaïac tree, insects that help keep the island clean, and “Gut Life: the Fascinating Freshwater Ecosystems of St. Martin.” The Amuseum’s special exhibits room is currently featuring an exclusive show of stunning original photographs and text from the photo essay Shadow of a Drought by nature photographer Yokoyama, highlighting the effects of drought on key St. Martin wetlands. Also on view is the first installment of “Women, People of Color, and the Making of Natural History in the Caribbean,” a unique series that reveals and celebrates the often hidden, suppressed, or not widely known historical contributions of women and people of color to the study of Caribbean flora and fauna.

“We hope everyone will stop by every Tuesday during Mardis de Grand Case to see what’s happening at the Amuseum,” said Yerkes. “We’ll have new wonders every week!”

This crayfish, the apex predator of his ecosystem, is featured in the Amuseum Naturalis exhibit on St. Martin's freshwater habitats. (Photo: Mark Yokoyama)
This crayfish, the apex predator of his ecosystem, is featured in the Amuseum Naturalis exhibit on St. Martin’s freshwater habitats. (Photo: Mark Yokoyama)