Museum of Art’s new exhibit is worth a reason to go for a walk

In San Jose, walking may still be considered a form of protest, but in most places around the globe, it’s the most common way to get around. The San Jose Museum of Art’s newest exhibition, “Other Walks, Other Lines,” showcases an international slate of artists who examine not only where we walk, but how and why.

The museum has been venturing into presenting more work outside its downtown building and Executive Director S. Sayre Batton said this show about immigration, protest and accessibility is perfect for a museum pondering what it means to be a borderless institution in San Jose.

“SJMA strives to work across cultural boundaries and to be a cultural hub for the community,” she said.

Visitors are grabbed right away by Omar Mismar’s striking installation, a walking route of red neon that becomes more interesting when you discover it’s the path he took one day through San Francisco following a man’s location through an online dating app. It’s an unexpected intersection of art and technology.

There are also a few pieces commissioned by the museum in the show that speak even more directly to the theme of protest. In the same area, Lordy Ro-

driguez’s “City of Marches,” a piece commissioned by the San Jose Museum of Art, lays significant protest marches, death marches and parades from around the world onto the same city grid. Look closely and you’ll see the paths for both the 2017 Women’s March and this year’s March for Our Lives in San Jose on the map.

Equally compelling is a collection from Dutch artist Lara Schnitger’s “Suffragette City” project, a celebration of women’s empowerment. The wearable art and banners from the collection will be used as part of a protest march that Schnitger will lead through downtown San Jose on Jan. 12. This is actually a good thing for San Jose: The march has previously been enacted in New York City, Basel, Dresden, Los Angeles and Berlin, as well as at the Women’s March in Washington, D.C. last year.

The exhibition is also part of “New Terrains: Mobility and Migration,” a collaboration among 30 South Bay groups that aims to show how bodies — in many senses of the word — move through political and social spaces. The New Terrains effort kicks off at the exhibition’s opening celebration Nov. 15, which will also feature performances and presentations by the Montalvo Arts Center, Mosaic Silicon Valley and San Jose Jazz.

LIBRARY GIVES KIDS A BREAK >> As the parent of two kids who have a tendency to lose track of both time and library books, the San Jose Public Library’s new initiative to make all children’s materials exempt from overdue fines is a godsend. The program, with the cute name “Breaking Barriers, not Piggy Banks,” was approved by the city council over the summer and library spokeswoman Nancy Macias said its goal is to get more kids to access library materials without worrying about the impact late fees may have on tight family budgets.

This is a good followup to the library’s amnesty program for kids enacted a couple summers ago, though I know some critics will complain that it encourages kids to be irresponsible with books that don’t belong to them. Children’s and Young Adult items that are lost or aren’t returned after 28 days will still be charged a fee to replace the item.

But seriously, when too many kids are holding onto books for too long, that’s a problem worth having. ‘SAN JOSE NUTCRACKER’ EXPANDS >> San Jose’s New Ballet is enhancing this year’s production of “The San Jose Nutcracker” through collaborations with Los Lupeños Juvenil, the College of Adaptive Arts, the Ragazzi Boys Chorus and drag artist George Downes.

Dancers from Los Lupeños will perform alongside New Ballet Studio Company dancers, the Ragazzi singers will perform as part of the Land of Snow, and Downes — whose stage name is Woo Woo Monroe — will bring flair to the role of Casa de Fruta, who leads the dancing cherries, apricots and plums in the second act.

New Ballet Director Dalia Rawson said she’s thrilled to be expanding the show’s reach through these collaborations. She advises people to get their tickets early for the Dec. 14-24 run at the Hammer Theatre Center in downtown San Jose since every single previous performance has sold out in the past. Go tosanjosenutcracker.com for details. HONOR ROLL >> The Addison-Penzak Jewish Community Center in Los Gatos is honoring three longtime community volunteers at its annual gala Saturday. The three women — Cookie Addison of Los Gatos, Doris Davis of San Jose and Sylvia Metz of Saratoga — have combined for more than 150 years of service. All three have served as president of the JCC’s board of directors and were major funders of the capital campaign that resulted in the construction of the Levy Family Campus on Oka Road in 2004. More information on the event is available at apjcc.org/gala. MAGICAL EVENING >> The fourth annual comedy and magic show hosted by Phil Ackerly — who does quite a bit of both himself — is coming up Nov. 14 at Rooster T. Feathers in Sunnyvale. Ackerly has Bay Area comedian Mickey Joseph opening the show and Phoenix-based comedy magician Michael Finney as the headliner.

Ackerly started the show as a way to support South Bay Blue Star Moms and its efforts to make and ship care packages to U.S. military personnel serving overseas. Last year’s show raised $3,000, helping the group send nearly 600 care packages.

“My wife and I have a son in the Air Force, and I know how much it means to our military men and women to receive a box of essentials and a few goodies from home,” Ackerly said.

Tickets to the 21-andover show are $25 in advance and $35 at the door. Go to roostertfeathers.com for tickets and more information.