34th Annual Miniature & Dollhouse Show

November 22, 2009 —February 28, 2010




The Historical Society of Rockland County proudly announced the return of the ever-popular Annual Miniature and Dollhouse Show on Sunday, November 22, 2009 for the 34th year with its exhibition titled: A Serendipity!

Serendipity is defined as the effect by which one accidentally discovers something fortunate, especially while looking for something entirely unrelated. Boys and girls, along with adults, were invited to come find their serendipitous moment as they explored two galleries of miniatures, dollhouses, room boxes and many other treats.

This year's exhibition showcased the work of miniature artists Sandra Mirque and Susan Farnik. Both of these creative ladies have exhibited at the HSRC in prior years and we were very proud to have them back. Sandra, originally from Rockland County, now resides in Orange County, NY, while Susan is a Rockland resident. Sandra's work shows her sense of humor. Her room boxes tell a story with every little detail and are very appealing to those of  us who are young at heart. Susan's work shows an incredible attention to detail and is simply beautiful.

As part of this exhibition's curator's serendipity, we were very proud to have many other talented contributors to this highly anticipated show, including well-known Rockland artists:
- ceramic artist Rosemary Aiello
- sculptor Ruth Geneslaw
- children's book illustrator & author Elizabeth Sayles
- the beautiful quilts made by Mary Jane Sexton

also
- a photograph by Hudson Valley photographer George Potanovic, Jr.
- miniaturist Carolyn McErlean
- miniaturist Zsuzsa Neff
- miniature rugs by Adele Marino
- glass artist Stephanie Maddelena
- ceramic artist Cathy McErlean-Goddard
- mosaic artist Mary Kramer
- the "N" gadge trains and buildings from the collection of the Reverend Warren R. Brandt, including a couple of miniature Rockland buildings -- can you pick them out from the photos we have in the exhibit?

and regional contributors:
- miniaturist Gladys Vasquez
- miniaturist Georgiana Angilieri
- historic restoration professional Gary Dinnebiel, of Yankee Construction, Mountainville, NY, who is exhibiting a model of a c.1500s sailing vessel
- miniaturist Tamara Greeman
- dollhouse creator Hallie Horning
- a glass mosaic bird house created by Christopher Brazil

We were also pleased to present the work of Dunham Studios who exhibited a detailed small-scale train set. Dunham Studios is well-known for the fantastic trains and landscapes created for and exhibited at Citi Corps in New York City during the holiday season.

We also had pieces from the Historical Society of Rockland County's own collection -- a pair of German antique dolls with hand-made clothing which were exhibited at the Smithsonian in 1917, and an antique set of Richters Anchor Blocks.

The Curator for the annual miniature and dollhouse exhibition is the HSRC's own Joanne Potanovic.

Sunday admission (only) includes tours of the 1832 Jacob Blauvelt House.

Half-price admission for groups of ten or more is by reservation only.

This exhibition ran through Sunday, February 28, 2010.

This exhibition was open on Friday (11.27), Saturday (11.28) and Sunday (11.29) from noon to 4:00 p.m.

A great gift giving idea which also supports your historical society...
Stop by the Museum Shop and purchase unique gift items, including jewelry made by John Blauvelt Gibbons (a long-time HSRC docent who was one of the last persons born and raised in the HSRC's historic Jacob Blauvelt House), books illustrated by Elizabeth Sayles, Rockland County notecards by photographer George Potanovic, Jr., hand-made miniature glass cakes & vases by Stephanie Maddelena, miniature paintings and more! We also have a Book Shop full of interesting Rockland books and reproductions of Rockland maps.

Remember... all purchases support the Historical Society of Rockland County.

We are alive with history at the Historical Society of Rockland County -- thank you for supporting us!

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