Selected Past Exhibits:
Links are provided to exhibition pages if applicable. The most recent exhibition is listed at the top of the page. For more information about the exhibitions below, contact Candace Perry, Curator of Collections.
Fraktur Gallery
Flora Heebner and the Chinese Mission
September 21 through December 30, 2012
The Schwenkfelder missionary to China, Flora Heebner, was beloved and respected by her family, friends, and colleagues. She sent many wonderful souvenirs and curiosities from her 40-year stay in China to everybody back home in Pennsylvania, and these objects are certainly well known to anyone who visited the museum on the second floor of the Perkiomen School's Carnegie Library. Flora's lovely gifts of ceramics, textiles, and all manner of Chinese art and material culture are a very small part, however, of her story. The exhibit is a journey into Flora's tenure in China as a missionary and teacher through her extensive correspondence and photographs, and will be enhanced by the gorgeous Asian silk textiles, brilliant ceramics, and other objects Flora generously presented to her loved ones. We hope this will be another step in furthering our understanding our Flora's amazing experiences far away from her Schwenkfelder roots in Worcester Township.
Local History Gallery Wall Cases
Miniature Millinery from the collection of Joan Nichols
October 12 through December 30, 2013
Local doll collector Joan Nichols is lending us her exquisite collection of miniature hats for the holidays. The hats were originally displayed at Saks 5th Avenue to illustrate the history of millinery from the 19th century into the 20th century, and they beautifully capture a bygone profession -- that of the milliner. Be sure to see these adorable petite chapeaux in the wall cases in the First Floor Gallery!
Art Gallery, Local History Gallery
Dutch Deco: Pennsylvania German Design in the 20th Century
October 15 through January 4, 2013
By the 1920s, traditional forms and motifs plus new materials and colors equaled a modern interpretation of textiles, craft, and art that the Pennsylvania Dutch had been making for over a century. Dutch Deco will feature selections from the Heritage Center's permanent collection that illustrate how traditional activities, such as quilting, embroidery, and the making of fraktur, evolved in the 20th century with the use of synthetic materials and a vibrant color palette that was unknown in the previous century, bringing a touch of Art Deco and later mid-century modern aesthetics. It's a new twist on the old folks!
Local History Gallery
2012 Christmas Putz: A Touch of Modern
Through December 30, 2012
Our annual putz glitters with the charming pre-war "Made in Japan" paper houses in their fanciful candy colors and sparkling mica. As always we are grateful to the late Ron Treichler for his generous donation of the putz collection -- his legacy will continue to charm our visitors for years to come!
Art Gallery and Local History Gallery
Love, Pennsylvania Dutch Style
March 4, through October 1, 2012
There’s a universal language of love, and the Pennsylvania Dutch spoke it, albeit with a German accent! Visit our First Floor Gallery and discover a collection of charming artifacts that reflect love and romance among our Schwenkfelders and other Pennsylvania Germans. There will be a bevy of beautiful wedding dresses, plus some unexpected treasures from our fraktur and scherenschnitte collections, our portrait collections, and of course, at least a couple of wonderful quilts and other textiles. Join us for this heart-warming, heartfelt show of affection!
Library Hallway Cases and Local History Gallery
Upper Perkiomen Valley Baseball Memorabilia
April 15 through October 1, 2012
Once again we feature our annual exhibit of local baseball memorabilia: photos, uniforms, baseballs, and bats for a special spring exhibition in the hallway between the Local History Gallery and the Library. The local leagues played an important recreational role throughout the Perkiomen Valley in the early and mid 20th century. Be sure to stop by and take a stroll down memory lane!
Meeting Room Gallery
Evelyn Schule Paintings
September 20 through January 20, 2013
We welcome the return of a show and sale of paintings by the late Evelyn Schule to the Meeting Room for the autumn and winter months. Mrs. Schule's lovely work is a crowd pleaser and very fitting for the season. We will have a variety of appealing works so collectors take note: you will want to add one or more to your collection!
Fraktur Gallery
Architecture in Contemporary Hooked Rugs and Traditional Folk Art
March 18 through September 7, 2012
Join us for an exhibition of marvelous contemporary hooked rugs and selections from our collection inspired by architectural motifs. Artist and rug designer Susan Feller is curating a collection of hooked rugs made by her and fellow rug hookers, plus using her wonderful eye to choose accompanying works from the Heritage Center collections that reflect the use of architecture in folk art. On view in particular will be the glorious Schwenkfelder townscape wool needlework pictures.
Meeting Room Gallery
Bob Wood: New Paintings
March 25 through August 26, 2012
Bright colors, simplified forms, and unsophisticated brushwork combine to present a painterly interpretation of farm and garden. These bold paintings present the artist’s unique approach to visual representation of the familiar local landscape. This vibrant, exuberant collection is sure to make our Meeting Room sing with light and color, so be sure to stop in and spend some time with our good friend Bob’s unique vision. Visit www.bobwoodpaintings.com to view more.
Library Hallway Cases
Schwenkfelder Dairies of Montgomery and Berks Counties
November 22, 2011 through April 1, 2012
This collection of Schwenkfelder dairy artifacts was recently donated to the Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center by Ellis Kriebel. Kriebel prepared historical information on the dairies to accompany the collection. Be moooooved by this little dollop of local farming heritage.
Art Gallery
The Legacy of Christopher Schultz
August 21, 2011 through February 29, 2012
Schwenkfelder immigrant Christopher Schultz (1718 – 1789) lived during extraordinary times and had an exceptional life, filled with accomplishment, his deep faith, and his devoted family. The staff of the SLHC will explore his life and the lives of his family members with a special exhibition of objects, manuscripts, books, and photographs in the First Floor Gallery. Schultz’s many descendants have provided the Heritage Center with an amazing material and paper record of his and their lives, and we will take this opportunity to show a cross section of the collection that interprets the family. Included will be fraktur, textiles, costume, portraits and other artifacts that depict the nearly 300–year history of this Schultz family in Pennsylvania and beyond.
Meeting Room Gallery
Pennsylvania From Above: Aerial Art Photography by Peter Stern
Beginning September 6, 2011
Special Brown Bag Lecture: Artist Talk October 12, 2011 12:00 p.m.; repeated October 16, 2011 2:00 p.m.
Piloting an ultralight aircraft, photographer Peter Stern seeks out the unique beauty of the Pennsylvania landscape from the air. His artistic compositions range from representational images of the familiar, farmland, towns, industry, and bodies of water, to abstractions of places hidden from view from most on the ground such as quarries and coal-mining areas. Using elements of the earth, combining colors, textures, and light, Peter's photographs often resemble paintings or hand-made prints.
Fraktur Gallery
Eighteenth Century Fraktur
November 1, 2011 through February 28, 2012
The Fraktur produced by schoolmasters and others in the decades following the early 18th century immigrations of Schwenkfelders and Mennonites represent a high point in calligraphic skill and sophistication both in content and design. This exhibition will focus on Vorschriften (writing models) and other common forms of 18th century Fraktur produced by schoolmasters working in the Mennonite and Schwenkfelder schools in the 18th century, and by other Schwenkfelder artsits expressing their faith and piety through their Fraktur.
Local History Gallery
Miniature Charm Quilts Helen Wolf's Collection
November 7, 2011 through February 19, 2012
A Charm Quilt is a quilt made entirely of different pieces of fabric cut in the same shape. Charm Quilt collector Helen Wolf from Bucks County shows her lovely collection of little quilt gems through February 19, 2012 in our local history gallery cases.
Local History Gallery
Annual Christmas Putz
November 7, 2011 through February 19, 2012
This year's theme is the Pennsylvania Dutch farm, tried, true and wonderful. This year we especially honor and thank Ron Treichler who donated the putz buildings, figures and foliage that have allowed us to bring our visitors this excellent holiday treat every year.
Art Gallery
Home and Away: Pennsylvania, Maine, and Maryland's Eastern Shore Watercolor, Drybrush, and Acrylic Paintings by Bradley Hendershot
November 12, 2011 through February 26, 2012
Opening Reception Saturday evening November 12, 7:00 p.m.
Art Gallery
Chris, Adria, and Jennifer Ovdiyenko: Art in the Family
April 10, 2011 through July 31, 2011
Opening reception: Sunday, May 1, 2011, 2:00 p.m.
Join us for an exhibition of three local artists' work, all from the same family. Husband and wife Chris and Adria Ovdiyenko will bring their own extraordinary point of view to the local landscape. Chris has an intriguing pixilation in his landscape drawings and Adria, with landscapes captured in glass. Chris's sister, Jennifer, will add her perspective with works in fiber– specifically baskets and bowls that recall traditional forms. All three artists explore their respective media in new and exciting ways.
Meeting Room
Boyertown Junior High East Student Art Exhibit
June 12, 2011 through July 31, 2011
Opening reception: June 18, 2011, 12:00 p.m.–2:00 p.m.
The work of 19 art students from Boyertown Junior High East will be on exhibit from June 12 through July 31 in the Meeting Room Gallery at the Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center. The exhibit at the Heritage Center features artwork from sixteen 9th graders, two 8th graders, and one 7th grader under the direction of art teachers Ms. Jana Heffner, Mr. Steve Fegley, and Mrs. Pamela Hendrix from Boyertown Junior High East. "We are all very proud of our students' artistic accomplishments," said Ms. Jana Heffner, art teacher at Boyertown Junior High East, "They have worked very hard over the past year to present an outstanding art show for the community." Student artists were selected for exhibition at the Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center by a student run voting process at Junior High East the week of May 29, 2011.
Local History Gallery
Passing On: Autumn Requiem by Lauren Curtis with Mourning Objects from the Heritage Center Collection
October 13, through March 13, 2011
Fraktur Gallery
Schwenckfeld's World
October 22 through February 13, 2011
Take a trip back to the time of Caspar Schwenckfeld with an enlightening exhibit in the Fraktur Gallery. Schwenckfeld lived in exciting times that altered the world's history and left us with a legacy of art, invention, scholarship, and exploration that even by today's standards is nearly incomparable. Selections from the Heritage Center's 15th and 16th century book and manuscript collections, a graphic timeline, will show visitors many of the extraordinary occurrences that happened before, during, and after Schwenckfeld's time.
Meeting Room
Paintings and Photographs by Bob Koenig
November 28, 2010, through February 27, 2011
Meeting Room
The Artwork of Evelyn Schule
October 3 through November 21, 2010
Art Gallery
Capturing the Soul: Historic Photographs from the Heritage Center Collection
May 15 through September 30, 2010
Local History Gallery/ Art Gallery
In Praise of Dutchy Quilts
March 31, 2010, through September 18, 2010
A feast for the eyes awaits visitors to our spring quilt exhibition focusing on "Dutchy" quilts—the vibrant colors and patterns that truly separate Pennsylvania Dutch quilts from those of other groups. Examples from the Heritage Center complement submissions from today's quilters.
Local History Gallery
110 Years of the Red Hill Band
April 17 through September 18, 2010
The SLHC is the repository of the archives and historic collections of the Red Hill Band, and in honor of their 110 year history, the Heritage Center will feature an exhibit in the First Floor Wall Cases. Visitors will have the chance to learn more about this venerable organization, one of the precious few traditional community bands remaining in Pennsylvania.
Meeting Room Gallery
Scenes of the Perkiomen Valley by George W. Bockius
March 21 through September 12, 2010
Join us for a very special exhibition of the glorious work of late local artist George Bockius. Bockius was well-known in art circles in the region and exhibited widely throughout southeastern Pennsylvania. His paintings depict not only stunning local natural beauty, but vividly document the historic landscape.
Library Exhibit
Recipes from the Archives
Curated by Allen Viehmeyer
Through May 1, 2010
When people talk about recipes today, they are normally talking about preparing food. But, one hundred years and more ago, people collected recipes for all sorts of daily needs: human medicine, animal medicine, ink, paint, varnish, dye, beer, cider, etc. Visitors will find an exhibit of such recipes from our archive collections in the Library Hallway Cases.
Fraktur Gallery
Fraktur Motifs in Clay and Wool;
Through April 24, 2010
An exhibit of hooked rugs inspired by fraktur and organized by hooked rug artist Susan Feller of West Virginia, complemented by red ware pottery from the Heritage Center collection and private collections.
Local History Gallery
Contemporary Folk Art In Private Collections
Through March 31, 2010
Contemporary Folk Art in Private Collections is a charming assemblage of contemporary folk art reflecting how 20th and 21st century artisans have incorporated traditional motifs and methods into their work. You'll see examples by David Ellinger, Ned Folts, and more.
Art Gallery
Rock On: Native American Artifacts and Collectors from the Upper Perkiomen Valley
October 15, 2009, through March 15, 2010
Making a collection of Native American artifacts "talk" to visitors when so little is known is a tall order for any museum. The recent Heritage Center acquisition of a new collection of lifelong artifact hunter John Maute of Pennsburg, however, has made our job a little easier. Maute provided locations where he found the majority of his collection—an exciting addition to our knowledge of where Native Americans spent time when in the Upper Perkiomen Valley. Visitors will have a chance to view this great local collection in the context of a map of the Green Lane reservoir area to help further understanding the area's geography and Native American presence. We'll also be featuring artifacts from our permanent collection discovered throughout the twentieth century by local collectors Lamar Mumbauer, William Schultz, and others.
Meeting Room Gallery
The Place I Keep: a Collection of Poems and Pictures by Julie Longacre
November 29, 2009 through March 10, 2010
View current exhibition information.
Local History Gallery
Christmas Putz
November 28, 2009, through February 29, 2010
Visit the First Floor Galleries and take a look at the Heritage Center's own Christmas Putz.
Library Exhibit
Maps from the Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center
Curated by Hunt Schenkel and Rebecca Lawrence
November 2009 through January 31, 2010
From panoramic, bird's-eye, to topographic and more, the Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center's archive contains many views of the world. Of particular note, maps depicting cities important to the European and American Schwenkfelders are on display. Seventeenth century maps of the medieval cities of Ulm, Breslau, Allgäu, important to Caspar Schwenckfeld and European Schwenkfelders, are on display next to a case containing maps made and used by American Schwenkfelders. Visitors to our gallery are invited to share with us where they have traveled as well as complete a travelogue.
Fraktur Gallery
My Own Fairy Tale Exhibit by Stacy Clark
Companion Exhibit: My Own Fairy Tale Works of Student Literary and Visual Arts
November 29, 2008 through July 31, 2010
My Own Fairy Tale: Works by Stacy Clark features new work by the artist Stacy Clark. Clark’s individual hand sewn, painted, and stuffed figures are inspired by nursery rhymes, folklore, and fairy tales. The square gallery depicts four seasons: spring, summer, autumn, and winter; each corner features between 8-16 different characters from mythology, nursery rhymes, and folklore.