May 2-6 Events: Written in Bone, Smithsonian Garden Fest and More

Monday, May 2 Written in Bone

Family-friendly and hands-on. Forensic anthropology is not just for scientists! Meet at Natural History in the exhibition, "Written in Bone: Forensic Files of the 17th-Century Chesapeake," and learn to use human bones to solve mysteries. In no time at all, be an expert at identifying people from the past and drawing conclusions about how they live their lives. Free. Natural History Museum. 1:00 PM-5:00 PM.

Tuesday, May 3 Outsider Art

Smithsonian magazine contributor David Taylor talks about how outsider art inspires his writing. The author describes his first encounter with the intensely religious and visionary work, "Throne of Third Heaven of the Nations' Millennium General Assembly" by James Hampton, on view in the Folk Art section of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Taylor 's contributions to Smithsonian magazine include articles on the WPA Project and ginseng Free. American Art Museum. 6:00 PM-7:00 PM.

Wednesday, May 4 Born to be Wild 3D

Featuring the conservation efforts of primatologist Birute Galdikas with orangutans in Borneo, along with that of Dame Daphne Sheldrick‘s work with elephants in Kenya. Both women live near the animals, rescuing them and returning them to live in the wild. The film is shown at 2:25, 4:25 and 6:25 daily, in the Johnson IMAX Theater at the Natural History museum. Tickets are $9 adults, $8 seniors and $7.50 children ages 2 to 12. Toll free phone 866-868-7774 or online.

​Thursday, May 5 Zing! Went the Strings

Enjoy string quintets by Haydn and Dvořák and a quartet by Mozart, performed by stars of the Marlboro Music Festival: violinists Benjamin Beilman and Veronika Eberle, violists Beth Guterman and Yura Lee, and cellist Judith Serkin. Free, but tickets required. 7:30 PM. Freer Gallery of Art.

Friday, May 6 Smithsonian Garden Fest

This two-day Family-friendly celebration of plants, gardens and gardening explore this year's theme of "Celebrating the American Garden Experience." Add to a garden mural, build a puppet, make a miniature Japanese garden and take home seeds. Saturday will includes live music performances and a stilt walker. Location: Enid A. Haupt Garden, south of the Castle. In the event of rain, activities will move to the Ripley Center. Free. Friday, 11:00 AM-1:00 PM. Sunday, 11:00 AM-3:00 PM.