Muskegon Museum of Art welcomes holiday season with Festival of Trees, events

MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) — The Muskegon Museum of Art is ready for the holidays as it unveiled its annual Festival of Trees display on Wednesday.

The six-week display serves as a fundraiser for the museum. It includes trees throughout the gallery space, holiday decor throughout the museum and musical performances.

“…This year, we’re taking a little vintage twist with it, and this year we are focused on vintage holiday collections. So our galleries are full of vintage holiday decor,” Kristina Broughton, director of marketing at the Muskegon Museum of Art, said.

The vintage decor is owned by 15 collectors in the Muskegon area who offered to display the items this holiday season.

“We’re getting a mix of a whole bunch of different things: everything from a large collection of vintage nutcrackers (to) Santa Claus (and) reindeer. We have blow molds, which are those plastic lights that are outdoor yard decor for the holidays,” Broughton said.

Admission to the Festival of Trees varies. For the public, it is $5 plus general admission and $5 for kids. For museum members, it is $5 and kids 5 and under are free. Every Thursday, anyone 65 or older receives a $2 discount and gets early access to the museum from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

The museum will hold an auction to sell the tree decorations that were decorated by designers.

“If you find a tree that you’re like, ‘I really love all of this decor,’ you can bid on it in the auction and then you get to take home — not necessarily the tree, but all of the stuff that’s on the tree,” Broughton said.

All items that are part of the auction will have a QR code next to them. If you’re interested in bidding, scan the code, create an account and keep track of the bids.

Bidding began Wednesday and ends Dec. 10 at 4 p.m. Winners will receive a notification that they can pick up their winnings Dec. 13 and 14.

All of the money raised will go to help fund the art museum.

In addition to the trees and vintage decor on display, the museum has several events for the public to enjoy.

On Nov. 25, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., the museum is holding its Teddy Bear Trail in partnership with several community businesses.

“We invite families to come to the art museum and bring their favorite teddy bear or stuffed animal with them. They get to meet with Santa and have candy canes and hot cocoa, and then they take their teddy bear on an adventure downtown,” Broughton said.

This walkable adventure includes going to the Muskegon Community College to have their teddy bear get a checkup by nursing students. Broughton said all healthy teddy bears will receive a sticker verifying their health. After that, they will go to a number of different businesses for crafts, eat donuts and more.

Tickets for this event are $5 per person.

Museum Tour: Lakeshore Museum Center historic sites in Muskegon

On Nov. 30, the museum is holding a ceramic tree painting workshop from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

“We’re partnering with Your Plate or Mine, which is also here in Muskegon, and we are painting 9 1/2-inch trees or 14-inch trees,” Broughton said. “We will have snacks that will be available with that.”

Prices for museum members are $85 for the 9 1/2-inch tree and $110 for the 14-inch tree. For non-members, the price is $95 for the 9 1/2-inch tree and $120 for the 14-inch tree.

On Dec. 9, the museum is holding Super Saturday and Hot Cocoa Hop. Every second Saturday of the month, the museum has free general admission to the permanent collection galleries and a free kids’ STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) workshop or activity. In December, the museum is making it holiday-themed.

“This year we’re doing DIY ornaments while you can get hot cocoa and candy canes as well,” Broughton said.

The Muskegon Museum of Art’s holiday activities, musical performances and displays end Dec. 30. For the full schedule, click here.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com.