Daily Planet Cafe - North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences

This is the first time that I visited a museum… and its café, of course… and came home with a painting! In November 2017 I attended a marketing conference in downtown Raleigh, home of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. When checking out the museum before leaving on the trip, I saw the stunning photo above and instantly wanted to go there. Yes, that globe is cool. It houses the Daily Planet Theatre, which hosts science programs and 3-D displays of nature scenes. When I hurried past the interior, on my way to the café, it was snowing inside the planet - a snow globe!

I was hurrying because my flight had been delayed and the museum was closing soon. Had enough time to grab coffee and a great turkey burger at their Daily Planet Café. Snapped a quick photo – note the painting showing on the TV screen. The café and coffee bar are in a modern, streamlined space with big windows out onto the street, a pleasant, airy environment. They even had a small stage for lectures and presentations. Learning while eating – that’s something I can get behind.

Planets Lead to Cardinals

Once the café had been fully explored, I was able to take a quick look at some of the exhibits and swing by the gift shop for note cards. Their gift shop also hosts an art gallery featuring the work of local artists. There was a small painting of red and yellow cardinals that caught my eye. Simple, refreshing, bright colors. Cheerful. We all need “cheerful.” The paintings on exhibit were for sale, but that one had been snapped up right away. I was advised that note cards featuring the painting also sold out immediately. I wasn't the only one that liked it!

Cardinals Lead to Orchids - and the Ultimate Souvenir

Back at the hotel, I looked up the artist’s name in case she also sold cards from a website. She did! Rita Baldwin is a painter who lives in Pittsboro, NC and also runs the Orchid Gallery. (One of their services is Orchid Boarding – who knew there was such a thing?! It’s just what it sounds like…) I ended up exchanging emails with Rita and the next thing you know – I was ordering an original work. She painted a version of the cardinals just for me. (The cardinal is the state bird of North Carolina – so, this was the ultimate souvenir of a Raleigh museum.) And here is the painting.