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Winterthur Examines Pennsylvania German Folk Art

WINTERTHUR, Del. – Historic Pennsylvanian Germans who decorated everything from a tiny pincushion to the side of the barn will serve as the focus for a new exhibit called “A Colorful Folk: Pennsylvania Germans and the Art of Everyday Life.” . The exhibit comes to the Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library on March 1, 2015 and will run through January 3, 2016.

More than 125 objects will capture the love of color, whimsy and design in the Pennsylvania German’s fraktur and folk art. Many of the fraktur (decorated manuscripts), textiles, furniture, metalwork and pottery on display have never before been exhibited or published.

“Winterthur is delighted to present this extraordinary exhibition celebrating the creative artistry of Pennsylvania Germans, whose elaborate handiwork so uniquely captured the ideals and events of the day,” said J. Thomas Savage, director of museum affairs for Winterthur. “Most objects in the exhibition are drawn from Winterthur’s permanent collection, which now includes the fraktur and textile collection of the late pastor Frederick S. Weiser, a legendary scholar and collector of Pennsylvania German folk art.”

Highlights of the exhibit include rare and important fraktur, such as ornate baptismal certificates and rare religious texts by a Mennonite schoolmaster. Guests can also admire a 1783 painted chest, impressive examples of needlework and a large painted statue of an eagle.

For more information, visit www.winterthur.org.