Contact:
Dan Carpenter
(325) 673-4587
Marketing@thegracemuseum.org

New Grace Main Gallery exhibition highlights apron traditions

ABILENE, TX (October 1, 2008) – The Grace Museum invites you to share a few apron memories while viewing Apron  Chronicles: A Patchwork of American Recollections, on display in the Main Gallery beginning Tuesday.

This unique nationwide traveling exhibition is comprised of photographs, stories and 200 vintage aprons.

Prompted by project writer and apron curator EllynAnne Geisel, the contributors to Apron Chronicles recall people who wore aprons and what they represented to families; recall events when aprons were worn; reflect recipes, values and traditions from gentler, less complicated times; express the bond between parents and children; represent survival, friendship, opportunity; challenge, and modern perspective. 

“The stories represented are powerful and poignant, exploring the people behind the aprons and giving life to the fabrics and the exhibition,” said Judy Deaton, Grace Curator of Art & Exhibits.

While Geisel is the voice behind the exhibit, award-winning photographer Kristina Loggia has preserved the storytellers' images in a style that complements the unadorned honesty of their recollections.

“Like the oral histories, the portraits' strength is their directness and lack of pretension,” added Deaton. “The photographs of the authors of the accompanying apron stories bring the personal narratives to life and invite the viewers to add their own memories to the list of apron chronicles. The exhibition acts as a vehicle, providing prompts that will have visitors recalling and sharing their own apron recollections.”

In conjunction with the opening of the exhibition, EllynAnne Geisel will be in Abilene for several events. She will do a presentation and book signing at Royal Estates of Abilene on Monday; a presentation and book signing at the Los Aficionados luncheon on Tuesday; and will give a gallery talk at a members-only opening reception Tuesday evening at The Grace, in addition to numerous media appearances.

Apron Chronicles is generously sponsored the Abilene Cultural Affairs Council, Associated Publishing, Brian Etchison, in honor of Amy Etchison, First Financial Trust & Asset Management Company, N.A., and an anonymous donor. The exhibition was also made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The exhibition Apron Chronicles is toured by The Women’s Museum: An Institute for the Future, Dallas, Texas.

The Grace Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; and from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. every Thursday. Admission is free Thursday evening after 5 p.m.

For more information, call 325-673-4587.

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The Grace Museum's exhibitions and educational programs are supported in part by grants from the Texas Commission on the Arts, the Abilene Cultural Affairs Council, the City of Abilene, Taylor County, and the Downtown Revitalization Program of the Tax Increment Finance District. The Grace Museum is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Built in 1909, The Hotel Grace served as a rest stop for railway travelers. The mission-style building was renovated and re-opened in 1992 as The Grace Cultural Center. The Grace Museum , a non-profit organization, now serves as a home to a Children's Museum, History Museum , and Art Museum. At 55,000 sq. ft., The Grace Museum is the 10th largest general museum in Texas . The Grace Museum is the cornerstone of cultural arts and education in West Texas .