Learn more about the new exhibit at the Anderson Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum

Twenty years ago, the Anderson Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum opened its doors to the public.

Now, the museum is celebrating that milestone with “20 Years of Joy!,” a new exhibition that combines its history, art and interactive technology to tell the story of how the museum became a beloved Albuquerque institution.

One of the key features of the exhibition is the balloon envelope fabric donated by Kubicek Balloons and designed by local artist Thomas Tomlinson to re-create the lower portion of a hot air balloon overhead.

“This exhibition tells the story of the tenacity it takes to bring a vision to life,” said Rebecca Prinster-Caloca, an independent contractor with the museum. While the museum is celebrating its 20th anniversary, the story actually begins 42 years ago, when the Anderson family first conceived of an international balloon museum in 1983.

The museum was born from the desire to honor the memory of Maxie Anderson, the renowned balloonist who died in a ballooning accident, and to celebrate the greater world of lighter-than-air flight. Anderson’s friend and ballooning partner Ben Abruzzo, who perished in a ballooning accident in 1985, was added to the museum’s name as well.

The path to opening wasn’t easy. Through the 1980s and 1990s, the Maxie L. Anderson Foundation spearheaded fundraising efforts. A breakthrough came in 1987 when Albuquerque passed a quarter-cent quality-of-life tax to help fund cultural institutions, including the proposed Balloon Museum. But setbacks and plan changes delayed construction until ground was finally broken in 2002.

“The Anderson and Abruzzo families, early Balloon Museum staff, the city of Albuquerque, and countless donors and volunteers never wavered in their support for this museum, and that’s the story we wanted to tell,” Prinster-Caloca said.

In addition to the balloon fabric designed by Tomlinson, the exhibit will be full of historical objects, interactive activities, photographs spanning the museum’s two decades, and excerpts from video interviews with some of the museum’s stakeholders. Visitors will get to see a piece of fabric from the famous Hindenburg airship, branded merchandise from the museum’s earliest days, and architectural drawings of an earlier museum design.

Current staff members were invited to select favorite objects from the Soukup & Thomas Collection, which forms a significant portion of the museum’s permanent collection. Jacques Soukup and Kirk Thomas were avid collectors of ballooning history, particularly 18th-century artifacts, and donated their entire collection when their museum in Mitchell, South Dakota, closed.

“These collections really helped ‘launch’ the Balloon Museum,” Prinster-Caloca said. “Plus, they’re full of historically significant objects.”

“We hope visitors leave feeling a little more joyful!” Prinster-Caloca said. “We want local visitors and tourists alike to get excited about being involved in the future of the Balloon Museum.”

The “20 Years of Joy!” exhibition will remain on display for the next year. Entry fees are $5 for New Mexico adults, $4 for seniors 65 and over, $3 for children 6-17, and $6 for out-of-state adults. Children 5 and under are free.

The museum offers free admission every Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and all day on the first Friday of each month, except during the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

Anderson Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum exhibit celebrates 20 years of history