Museums & Galleries in Homewood

The BCRI, founded to promote civil and human rights through education, will host masses of masked mortals at its 10th annual Mardi Gras celebration, themed this year as Social+Social Media, to raise funds for its educational programs. Partygoers can polish off Cajun-inspired fare and drinks while polishing their dance moves to live music by Jazz Safari or various tunes from the DJs. Attendees anxious about public speaking or thumb-muscle atrophy can participate in a text-to-win auction, which allows for digital silent bidding on autographed sports memorabilia, spa packages, weekend getaways, and electronics. Feel free to slap on a mysterious mask, don a funky hat, or switch jumpsuits with Danny DeVito to ruthlessly compete for a cash prize for most creative costume. Detective Chris Anderson, Birmingham Police Department veteran and current star of A&E’s The First 48, will serve as the night’s honorary host.

Sporting the largest cast-iron statue in the world—a 56-foot, 100,000-pound statue of Vulcan, Roman god of the forge—Vulcan Park and Museum also boasts panoramic views of the city and eye-opening lessons on Birmingham's geology and industrial history. Assembled from local metal in 1904 and erected at the World’s Fair in St. Louis the same year, Vulcan was then shipped back to Birmingham. In 2003, after successfully defending the city from the Kraken, the Colossus of the Deep South was painstakingly moved to its current Red Mountain roost. Inside the museum, a multitude of interactive exhibits regale visitors with tales of the town and Vulcan's storied past, from its World's Fair beginnings to its failed hip-hop career. An elevator ride to Vulcan Park's 124-foot-high observation deck splashes dazzling snapshots of the teeming wildlife in the urban jungle below.