Shoes reveal cultural stories at UO Museum of Natural and Cultural History

Exhibit opens on Friday, April 11, 2008 with a “Kick Up Your Heels” reception

EUGENE, Ore. -- (March 14, 2008) – ‘Walk A  Mile In These Shoes-The Stories They Tell,’ a new exhibit at the University of Oregon Museum of Natural and Cultural History, is a hands-on, feet-in experience that invites visitors to discover the heart and ‘sole’ of footwear.

The exhibit opens Friday, April 11 at 1680 E. 15th Ave. with a free reception from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Guests are invited to wear their favorite shoes and participate in a footwear fashion show.

In a way that few possessions can, shoes tell stories of individuals, geographic areas, cultures and human history. They may discretely reveal clues about the owner, or boldly proclaim their ethnicity, economic status and sense of style.

‘Walk A Mile In These Shoes’ gives visitors the opportunity to view the shoes of local and international celebrities, trace the styles and stories of a century’s worth of footwear and learn the truth behind cultural “shoe-perstitions.” Over 200 pairs of shoes will be on display, including 10,000 year-old sagebrush sandals, boots worn by a member of the rock band KISS and traditional footwear from countries around the world.

In addition to cultural items, explore Oregon’s illustrious track history through the footwear that made it possible, including shoes worn by track coach Bill Bowerman, runners Steve Prefontaine, Mary Slaney and others.

The exhibit continues through August 24.

Museum hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. Admission is $3 for adults; $2 for seniors and youths ages 17 and under and $8 for families (two adults and up to four youths). Museum members, university faculty and staff and students are admitted free. Admission is free for the public on Wednesdays.

About the University of Oregon

The University of Oregon is a world-class teaching and research institution and Oregon's flagship public university. The UO is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization made up of 62 of the leading public and private research institutions in the United States and Canada. Membership in the AAU is by invitation only. The University of Oregon is one of only two AAU members in the Pacific Northwest.

Media Relations contact: Pauline Austin, 541-346-3129, paustin@uoregon.edu

Museum contact: Judi Pruitt, 541-346-1671, judip@uoregon.edu

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