To find the Children’s Creativity Museum in San Francisco, turn left at the carousel at 4th and Howard and follow the sounds of laughter. The Children’s Creativity Museum, formerly Zeum, reopened last month with a new name, a clearer mission statement and expansive plans through 2015.
Originally opened in 1998, the museum always had a name problem. Zeum sounds too much like “zoom” and it was never immediately clear that it was a children’s interactive museum. Built with redevelopment funds during the high-roller days of the dot com era, Zeum failed to expand in the ways that it felt it could have.
The redesign, aided by a number of top Bay Area firms, not only clarifies the museum's name, but reflects their commitment to nurturing the 21st century skills of creativity, collaboration and communication.
Executive director Audrey Yamamoto said, “We really hope with the new name we can move from being one of the best-kept secrets in the city to a top destination.”
In fact, the word “museum” is not a fair description of this Ali Baba treasure trove of creativity and activities. No child has to worry about touching the art; the art is created by them and for them
They have expanded their core audience from ages 6-12 to include ages 3 to 5 and revamped and reorganized the space around their motto of “imagine, create and share.”
The museum walls are enlivened by “colorful critters” developed by the children with smaller replicas hung from circular modules from the ceiling.
Every space is kid friendly; not only full of interactive activities but built to withstand the wear and tear of lively children. Areas where children roll, climb and slide are covered with material that protects against bumps and bruises. Everything is sturdy and functional so if something is spilled or somebody gets sick, there’s no problem with clean up.
The museum has invested $250,000 to create an “Imagination Lab” that covers the whole first floor. Families are encouraged to image an idea and Move it, Build it, Sculpt it, Perform It, style it or Dream it.
There is a DIY studio and a Movie studio where children can perform and have the performance recorded on DVD’s to take home to enjoy. When I visited, there was a charming performance of “Now I Know My ABC’s” in progress and while one child seemed rather shy, the other was belting out the song like a future candidate for “You’ve Got Talent.” Children can create their own animated films and the digital studio comes fully equipped with Apple computers, large screens and up-to-date software.
The Children’s Creativity Museum is also responsive to the needs of the low-income students. Ever year, 25% of their programming is fee-waved. They are also engaged in a three-year Community outreach and Engagement Initiative to reach out to families in under served areas such as the Bayview/Hunters Point, South of Market Tenderloin and the Inner Mission.
When I visited on Thursday, the space was humming with activity. A couple of little children were sliding up and down on one of the slides and one little girl was having fun patting the “Green screen” with great glee. More children were drumming in the Cloud Gallery, designed to be a “Cosmic camping indoor experience” by local artist Michelle Blade.
Every space brimmed over with purposeful activity, emphasizing the museum's mission to shift children from media consumers to media producers.
When I left, one little one was being carried out of the museum. howling at the top of his lungs. He didn’t want to leave the fun behind! I knew how he felt.
221 Fourth St.
San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 820-3320
Open Wed - Sun. 10 AM - 4 PM
http://creativity.org/
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