December, 2019

These are the events for the selected month.

ArtSmart Mt. Airy

December 4, 2019 thru December 4, 2019
Time: 10:00 AM - 11:15 AM

Swanson Open Studio

December 8, 2019 thru December 8, 2019
Time: 12:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Danville Museum of Fine Art and History Presents: The Swanson Open Studio

LOOKING FOR THAT UNIQUE GIFT

Look no further

One of a kind, paintings, prints and ceramics: Demonstrations and Studio conversations

Free and Open to the Public

(DMFAH also has an audio tour for those who would like to tour the Danville Museum)

Date: Sunday December 8, 2019

Time: 12 noon - 5pm

Where: Danville Museum Annex: Swanson Studio

Ticket Price: Free Public event

About:

The “Deep Enders” and friends invite you to a day of art perusing and art collecting at the Danville Museum of Fine Art and History’s Annex: The Swanson Studio. This open studio event offers visitors, for a limited time, the opportunity to see the space of the working artist and to talk to the artists about their work and their professional practices. Within the duration of the open studio many of the artists taking part allow the public to access their private workspaces and portfolio flat- files. The Swanson Open Studio offers an unusual insight into the places and the ways in which artists work.

Participating Artists: Linda Gourley, Sandy Bash, Elsabé Dixon, Sam Kushner, Hollis Stauber, Jonothan Scollo, Harper Scollo.

Artist Demonstrations include:

Ceramic Wheel Demonstrations by Elsabé Dixon and Jonathan Scollo
Printmaking techniques of Collograph processes, Silk screening, and woodblock as well as monoprint processes. Ideas for making your own holiday cards will be shared by Linda Gourley.
Acrylic Paint demonstrations by Sam Kushner
Watercolor demonstrations by Elsabé Dixon, Hollis Stauber, Sam Kushner, and Sandy Bash.
Oil Painting demonstration by Hollis Stauber.

Join us for this glimpse into the Swanson Studio Artists’ practices, and be privy to art demonstrations that could inspire you. This would also be an opportunity to negotiate an opportunity for collecting art or obtaining a unique gift.

The History behind the Artist Open Studio

Ian Wallace writes in an article for Artspace, on June 11, 2014:

As the site where paintings are slathered and sculptures are wrought, the artist's studio is a locus of widespread fascination. It's also a very complicated place. As artists have evolved over the 20th century to embrace installation art, performance, relational aesthetics, and other site-specific approaches that necessarily occur outside of the studio—ushering in what has been called a "post-studio condition"—this onetime site of solitary creativity and material exploration has become a meeting place, where a visit with a curator or critic can turn into a professional negotiation, planning, and development. At the same time, art enthusiasts have an obsessive fascination with the mythology of the artist's studio, which is documented online and in programs like PBS's Art21 series with a relish that falls somewhere in between the reverent preservationism of a nature documentary and the romantic escapism of a spread in Vogue.

https://www.artspace.com/magazine/art_101/art_market/the-evolution-of-the-artists-studio-52374

Sutherlin Mansion Ginger Bread House Building

December 14, 2019

Sutherlin Mansion Gingerbread House

BUILDING

Edible Architecture: A Collaborative Workshop

20 tickets available for each session

Building Has Never Been So Delicious

Building Family togetherness with a little sweetness in the mortar and sugar in the bricks!!!

No Licking & No Fun (Just Kidding)

(DMFAH also has an audio tour for those who would like to tour the Danville Museum BEFORE you start the sticky process of building your gingerbread house)

Date: Saturday December 14

Time: Two Sessions

11am – 1pm

2pm – 4pm

Where: Museum Auditorium

Ticket Price: $15.00 Adult + child ($ 10 for Museum Members)

$5.00 for each extra Child (3- 11yrs)

SCAN QR CODE WITH YOUR PHONE CAMERA TO ORDER YOUR TICKETS OR CLICK THE LINK BELOW!

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sutherlin-mansion-gingerbread-house-building-tickets-80289326537

All children need to be accompanied by an adult, and the Gingerbread house building can be a collaborative effort (Or not. Sometimes a master builder just needs a little support for great creative projects). Each ticket will give you a plate with a graham cracker house that needs decorating. All tables will have green and white icing (for mortar and snow and trees) and miscellaneous holiday candy will be available to decorate. All proceeds will go toward the See and Do Children’s Room and education programming.

Gingerbread House Building Activity will take place in the Children’s See and Do Room at the Danville Museum of Fine Art and History, 975 Main Street, Danville, VA 24541

About: Building Family togetherness with a little sweetness in the mortar and sugar in the bricks!!! No Licking & No Fun (Just Kidding)

The Sutherlin Mansion offers family fun over the holidays, which might just be finger licking good. Join us in constructing gingerbread houses that can become great holiday decorations. Transport yourself and family members to a place and time when architecture knows no rules. Use your imagination to conjure up a holiday fantasy house, good enough to eat! With this beautiful gingerbread house, you can leave your cares behind and enjoy the Sutherlin Mansion’s historical setting in a kid-friendly way. Give yourself the time to indulge in sticky fun and let us clean up the kitchen!!! Great conversations with your young builders can be had while nibbling on sweet treats and sipping hot chocolate. This is the perfect mother-child/ Grandparent-grand child/ Big Brother and Sister and young sibling event for the busy holiday season.

Tables will be set with holiday candy offering fun and sweetness to make the holidays less stressful.

The History behind Gingerbread Houses

Tori Avey states in her food blog for PBS that Gingerbread arrived in the New World with English colonists. She says the cookies were sometimes used to sway Virginia voters to favor one candidate over another. The first American cookbook, American Cookery by Amelia Simmons, has recipes for three types of gingerbread including the soft variety baked in loaves:

Soft gingerbread to be baked in pans.

No. 2. Rub three pounds of sugar, two pounds of butter, into four pounds of flour, add 20 eggs, 4 ounces ginger, 4 spoons rosewater, bake as No. 1.

This softer version of gingerbread was more common in America. George Washington’s mother, Mary Ball Washington, served her recipe for gingerbread to the Marquis de Lafayette when he visited her Fredericksburg, Virginia home. Since then it was known as Gingerbread Lafayette.

Gingerbread houses originated in Germany during the 16th century. The elaborate cookie-walled houses, decorated with foil in addition to gold leaf, became associated with Christmas tradition. Their popularity rose when the Brothers Grimm wrote the story of Hansel and Gretel, in which the main characters stumble upon a house made entirely of treats deep in the forest. It is unclear whether or not gingerbread houses were a result of the popular fairy tale, or vice versa.

Tori Avey is a food writer, recipe developer, and the creator of ToriAvey.com. She explores the story behind the food – why we eat what we eat, how the foods of different cultures have evolved, and how yesterday’s food can inspire us in the kitchen today. http://www.pbs.org/food/the-history-kitchen/history-gingerbread/

So if you are older, or quite young. This is an event for you where all can have fun. Rejuvenate and relax during the busy holiday season.

Sutherlin Mansion Holiday High Tea

December 14, 2019 thru December 14, 2019
Time: 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Sutherlin Mansion Holiday High Tea

40 tickets available for each session

Tea &Tour

(Tours of the Mansion will be available by docents before and after the tea. We also have an audio tour for those who would like to tour solo)

Date: Saturday December 14

Time: Two Sessions

11am – 1pm

2pm – 4pm

Where: Museum Auditorium

Ticket Price: $28.00 ($25 for Museum Members)

Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History

975 Main Street, Danville, VA 24541

SCAN QR CODE WITH YOUR PHONE CAMERA TO ORDER YOUR TICKETS OR CLICK THE LINK BELOW!

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sutherlin-mansion-holiday-high-tea-tickets-80281537239?aff=ebdssbdestsearch

About: Tea service at the Sutherlin Mansion transports you to a time when mid-day was meant for relaxing. In the midst of holiday madness, put on a beautiful hat, leave your cares behind and enjoy the Sutherlin Mansion’s historical setting and give yourself the time to indulge in a cup of tea, while nibbling on freshly baked scones, finger sandwiches and pastries. This is the perfect mother daughter/ Grandparent grand child/ Best Friend/ Corporate & Business getaway for the busy holiday season.

After being seated, guests will be greeted by three different flavored aromatic teapots and a three-tiered serving tray with delectable treats. Not only is this a great way for tea drinkers to enjoy a relaxed atmosphere, but it also offers a time to catch up with conversations and reconnect with friends, family and business colleagues in a different way.

The History behind High Tea

In an article written by Pamela Foster, a culinary business development executive, but also a culinary historian and author, she states:

“Traditionally, afternoon tea is served between 3p.m. and 6p.m. an ideal time for a break. The ritual of afternoon tea dates back to the 1800’s when Anna, the Seventh Duchess of Bedford, a close friend of Queen Victoria, is reputed to have complained of having a sinking feeling during late afternoon. Queen Victoria heard about her afternoon tea and it became a social event.”

Kerri Sholly, of the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, says that many mistakenly use the term ‘afternoon tea’ and ‘high tea’ interchangeably, assuming the latter refers to the status of those who partake. But, this is a mistake – high tea was served around 6 p.m. and usually consisted of a full dinner meal for commoners after they finished work for the day. The name ‘high tea’ was derived from the tables that were usually associated with this meal (often people stood for the meal). The elite usually took their tea at low tables found in elaborate parlors and sitting rooms. The traditional English afternoon tea is served on a three-tier stand. The top tier holds scones and seasonal breads, the middle, sandwiches and savories; the bottom sweets.

(Taken from an article written by Andrea Doyle/ December 01, 2015 for MEETING STATEGIES blog.) http://www.successfulmeetings.com/Strategy/Meeting-Strategies/Afternoon-Tea-Meetings-Networking/

So if you are highbrow, or lowbrow or just a tea lover. This is an event for you. Dress up or dress down but come and make time stand still - even if just for a short period of time. Rejuvenate and relax during the busy holiday season.

Contact Visitor Service Coordinator: cb@danvillemuseum.org for tickets