News Release
For Immediate Release: August 26, 2006
Contact: Andy Graham, Communications Manager, andrew@maaa.org, 816-421-1388

Tour of Unique Purses Teaches, Entertains

Pocketbook Anthropology: A Treasure of Handbags kicks off its tour September 1, 2006 at the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum in Wichita, Kansas. Organized by ExhibitsUSA, the national exhibition touring program of Mid-America Arts Alliance, this fashion-forward exhibition takes a closer look at the beloved handbag and its place in today’s society.

Pocketbook Anthropology showcases more than 50 purses dating from 1880 to the present. Visitors will have a chance to view handbags made from a myriad of different materials ranging from cigarette packs to silk to beads to precious metals. There are funky bags, elegant bags, whimsical bags, and utilitarian bags: every viewer is sure to find her favorite.

The exhibition also features hands-on examples, as well as anecdotes, quips, and literary quotations about this uniquely feminine item. Pocketbook Anthropology tours through August 2009.

The purpose of ExhibitsUSA is to create access to an array of arts and humanities exhibitions, nurture the development and understanding of diverse art forms and cultures, and encourage the expanding depth and breadth of cultural life in local communities. ExhibitsUSA is a national division of Mid-America Arts Alliance, a private, nonprofit organization founded in 1972.

For more information, please visit www.maaa.org, or contact Andy Graham at andrew@maaa.org, 816-421-1388.

Pocketbook Anthropology Tour Schedule
(as of 8/26/06)

Sept. 1–Oct. 5, 2006, Wichita–Sedgwick County History Museum; Wichita, Kansas

Oct. 21–Nov. 30, 2006, Museum of Texas Tech University; Lubbock, Texas

Dec. 15, 2006–Jan. 21, 2007, Stauth Memorial; Montezuma, Kansas

Mar. 25–Apr. 30, 2007, Texarkana Regional Arts & Humanities Council; Texarkana, Texas

Sept. 1–Oct. 5, 2007, Museum of the Gulf Coast; Port Arthur, Texas

Feb. 3–Apr. 30, 2008, Arlington Heights Historical Society; Arlington Heights, Illinois

Sept. 1–Nov. 30, 2008, Boulder Museum of History; Boulder, Colorado

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