You know what's better than a museum? A free museum. You know what's better than a free museum? Twenty-six free museums. Saturday, two baker’s dozen of the best museums in Sacramento swung open their doors and let in every Tom, Dick and Harry, free of charge. Gratis. Complimentary. On the house. Floated. Now, my motto has always been "If it's free, I'll take three," so I fought through a wicked head cold and really bad sniffles (I know, I know. Maybe I did take the Waaaaaaaambulance. So what?), and headed down to Old Sac to take my reward. And I took my reward. I may have to change my motto to the far less catchy, but way more accurate, "if it's free, I'll take six." The lucky half do

A young artist experiments with color and vision. Learning spatial relations and composition. Demonstrating kinetic art. The Crocker Art Museum was the first public art museum in the west,  dating from 1885 when Margaret Crocker donated the original building, grounds and art collection to the city of Sacramento.  Her intention was to create a public trust that would ensure that a vehicle for the appreciation of art would always be available to Californians.   The Crocker Art Museum Association  has upheld that intention through the decades, and has recently completed an ambitious expansion which tripled the size of the facility. The  expanded space enables the museum to display much mo

Sacramento's 12th annual Free Museum Day, from the Aerospace Museum of California at McClellan Park to the Old Sacramento Schoolhouse Museum was heavily attended. Twenty-six (26) greater Sacramento area museums offered free admission all day long. The event was presented by the Sacramento Association of Museums (SAM), and supported by Umpqua Bank. The Aerospace Museum of California (above and below) features 39 military and civilian aircraft, aerospace exhibits, an Aviation Learning Center, tours, and simulator ride.   The Crocker had long lines throughout the day, as did Old Sacramento's California State Railroad Museum.   A boy tests the old water pump at the Old Sacramento S