32nd ANNUAL ANTIQUES SHOW AT THE
BRANDYWINE RIVER MUSEUM
(March 2003, #010)

Thirty-two outstanding antique dealers from across the nation will be featured at the 32nd Annual Brandywine River Museum Antiques Show on Memorial Day weekend. Hosted by the Museum Volunteers and organized by Armacost Antiques Show, Ltd., the event presents a variety of American and English furniture, glass, metalware, ceramics, folk art, quilts, Oriental and European porcelain, and other fine collectibles.

The Antiques Show runs Saturday through Monday, May 24 to May 26, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $7 per person. All proceeds benefit the Brandywine River Museum Volunteers' Art Purchase Fund. Antiques are displayed in the Museum Courtyard, the second and third floor galleries, and the Museum Lecture Room.

New to the show this year are Erik Gronning Antiques from Shaftsbury, Vermont, specializing in authentic 18th and 19th century American furniture and decorative art, and Lovrinic Antiques LLC of Lambertville, New Jersey, featuring 18th and 19th century American furniture and related accessories. Returning exhibitors include Thomas and Julia Barringer from Stockton, New Jersey; David Morey of Thomaston, Maine; and Anthony S. Werneke from Pond Eddy, New York.

To complement the Antiques Show, the museum presents a special exhibition, The Art and Design of Antique Smoking Pipes. Continuing through July 27, this exhibition features approximately 80 outstanding European and American pipes of clay, porcelain, wood and meerschaum. Since the 16th century, tobacco use by Europeans and Americans has influenced politics, economics and popular culture. The importance of tobacco in western history is reflected in the astounding variety of means created for smoking, sniffing and storing its leaves. This exhibition focuses on extraordinary examples of smoking pipes that provided their owners with visual as well as smoking pleasure, and with prestige.

On Friday, May 23, a special preview party of the Antiques Show will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. Tickets are $100 per person ($50 tax deductible) in advance and at the door (cash, check or credit card accepted). The ticket price includes valet parking, cocktails, hors díoeuvres, music and show admission. Please call (610) 388-8318 for tickets.

On Saturday, May 24, Benjamin Rapaport will share his expertise of antique smoking pipes in an informal lecture and guided tour of the exhibition. The lecture will begin at 9:30 a.m., following a continental breakfast in the Museum Restaurant at 9 a.m. The price of the lecture, breakfast and admission to the Antiques Show is $20 per person. Please call (610) 388-8318 for tickets.

The Brandywine River Museum is located on U.S. Route 1 in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. The museum is open daily, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., except Christmas Day. Admission is $6 for adults; $3 for seniors and students; free for children under six and museum members. For more information, call (610) 388-2700

Photography available upon request.




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