Veterinarian's Animal Skull Collection Highlights Odd Museum Exhibit

By Jeff Sandstoe Tue., Jul. 31 2012 at 1:29 PM

Categories: Community

Ashley MacKinnon via Flickr

Skull collections are just plain weird

The last time you cleaned out your dryer's lint trap did it fill you with aspirations of artistic grandeur? If so, you probably should have headed down to Santa Cruz.

"Santa Cruz Collects," a new collection going on display at the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History, is about, well, collections. The exhibit will showcase items that range from the historic to just plain dumb -- yes, dryer lint displays are among them.

The exhibit aims to delve into the human psyche about why people collect things, how their identifies morph because of these collections, and what makes people value their bizarre possessions the way they do.

"People often ask why museums keep so much stuff," said MAH Director Nina Simon. "But museums collect for the same reason individuals do -- to memorialize the experience, people, and places that make us who we are."

So what are some of the things you might find on display at MAH? Apart from the caboodle of dryer lint there's a veterinarian's collection of animal skulls, flags from the Revolutionary and Civil wars, toasters from way back when, and our personal favorite -- Santa Cruz Mayor Don Lane's collection of thousands of decorated eggs.

Which got us thinking -- maybe this can inspire Rose Pak to do something creative with those 20,000 fake Ed Lee mustaches she tried to push on San Francisco voters last year.

Anyone who has seen an episode of Hoarders alreadys know that compulsive collecting can have a dark side. As a result, the museum will also host a Hoarders Anonymous support group during the exhibit.

"Santa Cruz Collects" runs from Aug. 11 to Nov. 25, so check it out on the way to the beach this weekend, and see what inspires you.

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