New lobby exhibit celebrates “things that aren’t there anymore”

Do you remember rocking at the Stone Balloon; enjoying a muskrat meal at The Wagon Wheel; or having a shopping spree at Wanamaker’s?  If you don’t the Delaware Public Archives does.
Starting in April 2024, the DPA will kick off a celebration and remembrance of things that aren’t there anymore with a new exhibit in their Lobby Galleries, “Memory Lane”.

The exhibit contains 75 rare newly digital and restored photos of things, events, and places in The First State that no longer exist including beloved businesses, restaurants, theaters, festivals, and parks. Visitors to the Lobby Galleries at the Archives can view a five-minute informative video, read additional interesting historical facts, and receive a free 16-page full-color booklet packed with photos and First State trivia.

“This new exhibit shares images of things like Gino’s Hamburgers, S & H Green Stamps, Wilmington Dry Goods, and the Delaware landmark, The Dinner Bell Inn,” said Stephen Marz, State Archivist and Delaware Public Archives Director. “For most of us longer-term Delawareans, these may be distant memories, but with this exhibit, we hope to trigger some long-forgotten fond memories with their nostalgic look at times gone by, and to share the stories of these “local legends” with our newer residents.”

This new “Memory Lane” exhibit is based on the extremely popular Delaware Public Archives social media feature of the same name found on the DPA’s Facebook and Instagram pages.

The Delaware Public Archives is located at 121 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Dover, DE 19901, and is open from 8:30 am – 4:30 pm.

To view/download a copy of the booklet, click here.

Find out more about the Delaware Public Archives here.

On view from September 2-23, 2022

Wilmington, Del. (August 24, 2022) – The Delaware Division of the Arts’ Mezzanine Gallery presents 2022 DDOA Individual Artist Fellow Kiara Florez’s exhibition, Inner Reflections, running September 2-23, 2022. Guests are invited to attend a Meet-the-Artist Reception on Friday, September 9, from 5:00-7:00 p.m.

Painter Kiara Florez was always involved in “artistic endeavors.” As a child she wanted to be a writer, “creating characters and worlds that didn’t exist” and writing stories while drawing her ideas. It was in high school – at age 16 – that Florez turned seriously to visual art. As she learned the fundamentals and explored a variety of media, she came to painting and discovered her style and artistic process. Her works, primarily paint on canvases, use acrylics to mix the primary colors together. She uses only one paintbrush as she lets the painting come to life through an intuitive process. “I often meditate to music or be surrounded by nature to find a visual for the messages and/or emotions I am trying to convey,” says Florez. “My progression of each work is loosely based on jumbles of my thoughts and feelings at the time, so there are moments where the painting can take an unexpected turn. In the end, there is always a personal and spiritual message within each work in this series.”

Based on intuition, her works begin with a faint idea of “how I want the painting to come to life.” But that process is often challenging. Since a work in progress can “change form and go in any direction it pleases,” it can require her to overpaint or even begin again. But while each work springs from a personal message, she leaves any “interpretation and analysis” up to her viewers and is especially gratified when her paintings “speak not just to the mind, but to the soul as well.”

A recent graduate of Delaware State University with a B.A. in studio art, Florez has already been seen in several exhibitions, was the Delaware winner of the 2017 Doodle4Google competition, and has had her work on view at the U.S. Capitol. Her imaginative paintings magically merge the figurative and the abstract, always informed by “nature, music, all forms of art, and dreams.”

The collection that garnered her the Division’s Fellowship is a series of acrylic paintings on canvas, colorful narratives that “explore spiritual thinking and imaginative worlds, using bold colors and wavy lines.” Both figural and abstract, her works are populated with exaggerated shapes in a vibrant color palette, a “loose interpretation of the human figure and nature” that carry Florez’ personal, spiritual messages.

Florez describes her inspiration as an artist: “This collection of paintings explores spiritual thinking and imaginative worlds, using bold colors and wavy lines to express those concepts. I let the colors connect with each other and let them dance across the canvas. The forms and shapes are highly exaggerated and appear in abstract form. Many of my works often human-like beings interacting with landscapes or other beings. The figures may not always have facial or a full body. They may be placed above a natural landscape, floating above mountains or standing tall in the sky. I create openly interpretive paintings for viewers even if there is a personal meaning behind it.” 

The Mezzanine Gallery, open weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., is located on the second floor of the Carvel State Office Building, 820 N. French Street, Wilmington.

Image: “Stuck in a Daze” (2021) Acrylic painting, 30x40in

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Contact: Andrew Truscott, Program Officer, Marketing and Communications

302-577-8280, andrew.truscott@delaware.gov

The Delaware Division of the Arts, a branch of the Delaware Department of State, is dedicated to cultivating and supporting the arts to enhance the quality of life for all Delawareans. Together with its advisory body, the Delaware State Arts Council, the Division administers grants and programs that support arts programming, educate the public, increase awareness of the arts, and integrate the arts into all facets of Delaware life. For more information about the Delaware Division of the Arts, visit arts.delaware.gov or call 302-577-8278.

Founded in 1937 as the Nassau Garden Committee, the 50-plus-member Sussex Gardeners brings together members of the community who have an interest in the fine art of gardening, landscape design, floral design and horticulture. The group’s community outreach includes programs in garden therapy, conservation and civic beautification.

The Zwaanendael Museum was built in 1931 to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the state’s first European colony, Swanendael, established by the Dutch along Hoorn Kill (present-day Lewes-Rehoboth Canal) in 1631. Designed by E. William Martin (architect of Legislative Hall and the Hall of Records in Dover), the museum is modeled after the town hall in Hoorn, the Netherlands, and features a stepped facade gable with carved stonework and decorated shutters.

Museum exhibits and presentations provide a showcase for Lewes-area maritime, military and social history. Current exhibits include “Delaware Railroads: Elegant Travel and Timely Transport” which explores the history of rail travel and transport in the First State; and “A Seaborne Citizenry: The DeBraak and Its Atlantic World” which tells the story of His Majesty’s Sloop of War DeBraak, a British warship that sank off the Delaware coast on May 25, 1798.

The Zwaanendael Museum is open for free, 45-minute tours by reservation only from Wednesday through Saturday at 10 a.m., 11:15 a.m., 1:15 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. For additional information about visiting the museum, go to https://history.delaware.gov/p1-reopening-info or call 302-645-1148.

The Zwaanendael Museum is administered by the Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs, an agency of the State of Delaware. The division enhances Delaware’s quality of life by preserving the state’s unique historical heritage, fostering community stability and economic vitality and providing educational programs and assistance to the general public on Delaware history. The division’s diverse array of services includes operation of five museums which are accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, administration of the State Historic Preservation Office, conservation of the state’s archaeological and historic-objects collections, operation of a conference center and management of historic properties across the state. Primary funding for division programs and services is provided by annual appropriations from the Delaware General Assembly and grants from the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, a federal agency. However, the contents and opinions expressed in the division’s programs and services do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Department of the Interior.

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Contact:
Jim Yurasek
Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs
Phone: 302-608-5326
E-mail: Jim.Yurasek@delaware.gov
Web: http://history.delaware.gov

-All activities to be presented free via Zoom; registration required-

Reborn in the 1970s as a vehicle for humanities education, modern Chautauquas are organized around a core program in which re-enactors take on the personas of celebrated historical figures, educating and entertaining audiences as they bring the past to life. Modern Chautauquas have been presented annually in Delaware since 1999 featuring a wide variety of historical figures including Martin Luther King Jr.; Mark Twain; Woodrow Wilson; Teddy Roosevelt; Abraham Lincoln; Amelia Earhart; Dolley Madison; Eleanor Roosevelt; Edgar Allan Poe; the Lone Ranger; John Philip Sousa; and Delaware’s own Pvt. James Elbert, Maj. Allen McLane, F.O.C. Darley and Clifford Brown.

“Women’s Work: Campaigning for Social Change” is co-sponsored by the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs’ Zwaanendael and New Castle Court House museums, the Lewes Chamber of Commerce and the New Castle Historical Society. Partial funding is provided by a grant from Delaware Humanities, a state program of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

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Contact:
Jim Yurasek
Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs
Phone: 302-608-5326
E-mail: Jim.Yurasek@delaware.gov
Web: http://history.delaware.gov

(DOVER, Del.—June 1, 2020)—Delaware’s five state museums will begin reopening this week with self-guided tours that allow visitors to experience the history of the First State while continuing to take all recommended steps to safeguard public health.

In accordance with the Phase I reopening plans issued by Gov. John Carney, museums administered by the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs (HCA) will accept reservations for tours starting June 1, with the first set of tours scheduled for Friday through Sunday, June 5-7.

With museums across the state closed to the public in response to the coronavirus pandemic, HCA’s team of site managers and historical interpreters have spent the last several weeks retooling tour programming in anticipation of reopening. The new self-guided tours include all the engaging content visitors expect at one of Delaware’s nationally accredited state museums, presented in a way that allows for effective social distancing.

“We are very excited and proud to welcome the public back to Delaware’s historical sites in a safe and deliberate manner,” said Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs Director Tim Slavin. “Our team has worked hard to design an experience for visitors that connects them to the people, places and artifacts of our shared past, while respecting the demands of the present.”

Delaware’s state museums include the John Dickinson Plantation, the Old State House and the Johnson Victrola Museum in Dover, the Zwaanendael Museum in Lewes, and the New Castle Court House Museum.

Tours will take place at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and 1:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. on Sundays (except for the Johnson Victrola Museum.) To make a tour reservation, patrons must call the museum they wish to visit. Contact information is available here.

Self-guided tours will be 30 minutes in length and will include reference materials that can be accessed via smartphone or in single-use printed form. Due to space constraints, some museum areas will remain closed for the time being. Tour groups will be limited to four or six visitors, depending on the museum, and cloth face coverings must be worn at all times by staff, volunteers and patrons. All public museum areas will be cleaned between tour groups according to guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs is an agency of the State of Delaware. The division enhances Delaware’s quality of life by preserving the state’s unique historical heritage, fostering community stability and economic vitality and providing educational programs and assistance to the general public on Delaware history. The division’s diverse array of services includes operation of five museums which are accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, administration of the State Historic Preservation Office, conservation of the state’s archaeological and historic-objects collections, operation of a conference center and management of historic properties across the state. Primary funding for division programs and services is provided by annual appropriations from the Delaware General Assembly and grants from the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, a federal agency. However, the contents and opinions expressed in the division’s programs and services do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Department of the Interior.