New MESDA Exhibit Begins Oct. 1, Explores Georgia's Decorative Arts

September 22, 2009

Contact:                                                                    
Karen Jarvis or Jeanne Sturiale
Annese Public Relations, Inc.
336-722-1921

Winston-Salem, N.C. – The artistic legacy of Georgia, from the first settlement at Savannah to the eve of the Civil War, is showcased in a new exhibit beginning Thursday, Oct. 1, at the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts in Old Salem.  The exhibit, titled “A Land of Liberty and Plenty”: Georgia Decorative Arts, 1733 to 1860,” will be on view in MESDA’s G. Wilson Douglas, Jr. Exhibition Gallery.  The exhibit will close August 1, 2010.

Admission to “A Land of Liberty and Plenty” is free.  An expanded version of the exhibit will be online at www.MESDA.org.

“MESDA has Georgia on its mind,” said Robert Leath, the Vice President and Chief Curator.  “In May, the museum more than doubled its collection of Georgia-made objects.  I can’t think of a better way to debut these objects to the public than in a special exhibition highlighting the importance of Georgia and its decorative arts to the American South, and to MESDA.”

The exhibit is drawn almost exclusively from MESDA’s newly expanded collection of Georgia-made objects, many from the pioneering collection of the late Florence and Bill Griffin.  Among the objects featured are a table made by Salzburger settlers in Ebeneezer circa 1740, which is the earliest surviving piece of Georgia furniture; a sampler worked by Mary Smallwood, circa 1778, which is the earliest known piece of Georgia needlework; and a ceramic jar made by Andrew Duché, Georgia’s earliest potter, circa 1740.

Other objects to debut at the exhibit are a grain-painted corner cupboard made in Oglethorpe County and part of the original furnishings of the Dozier family’s c. 1840 White Oak Plantation; a small inlaid table made in the 1830s by Thomas J. Maxwell, a farmer-cabinetmaker in Elbert County; and a stunning watercolor of a painted bunting by English-born naturalist John Abbot (1751-1840).

“Georgia has always been an important part of the MESDA South,” Leath said. “With these acquisitions, MESDA has achieved a long-term goal of enhancing its representation of Georgia’s craftsmen in its collection.”
 
For more information, call the Visitor Center at Old Salem at 336-721-7350 or visit MESDA.org.

About MESDA

The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) is the preeminent center for researching, collecting, and exhibiting decorative arts made and used by those living and working in the early South. MESDA is one of three museums at Old Salem Museums & Gardens.  The Web site address is www.mesda.org.

About Old Salem

Old Salem Museums & Gardens is one of America’s most comprehensive history attractions. Its three museums — the Historic Town of Salem, the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) and The Toy Museum at Old Salem — engage visitors in an educational and memorable historical experience about those who lived and worked in the early South. The Web site address is www.oldsalem.org.