Lightner Museum in St. Augustine announces new exhibitions to celebrate 75th anniversary
In celebration of the Lightner Museum’s 75th anniversary of its founding, and the 135th anniversary of its iconic St. Augustine building, some new exhibitions will be coming to town.
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Throughout 2023, the museum’s diamond anniversary celebration will feature a series of new exhibitions, events, and opportunities to connect with art, history, culture, and community.
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Opening on Feb. 2, the Lightner Museum presents three new exhibitions, Ride On! Historic Bicycles from the Collection of Keith Pariani, 75 for 75: Lightner Museum Diamond Anniversary Exhibition, and St. Augustine Through the Lens of William Henry Jackson.
St. Augustine residents and Lightner Museum members can preview the exhibitions at a Community Open House on Feb. 2 from 6 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.
Ride On! Historic Bicycles from the Collection of Keith Pariani: Feb. 2, 2023 – Sept. 30, 2023. In the 1890s the bicycle took over the hearts and minds of Americans. By the early twentieth century, almost 300 bicycle manufacturing firms were established in the US. Drawn from the private collection of St. Augustine bicycle aficionado Keith Pariani, Ride On! presents the American bicycle as an object of beauty and engineering ingenuity, featuring important innovations in bicycle design from the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries.
75 for 75: Lightner Museum Diamond Anniversary Exhibition: Feb. 2, 2023 – Feb. 16, 2024. Founded in 1948 as the Lightner Museum of Hobbies, the Lightner Museum has its origins in the hobby boom that swept America in the early twentieth century. At the heart of the museum’s offerings are its compelling collections. From lamps by Louis Comfort Tiffany and exquisite shells and geological specimens from around the world, to porcelain produced at Sèvres and Victorian mechanical musical instruments, the museum’s collections are rich, eclectic, and always engaging. In celebration of the museum’s 75th anniversary, 75 for 75 features a selection of artwork and objects from the museum’s permanent collection.
Read: Lighthouse 5K, Fun Run and Night Fest set for February
St. Augustine Through the Lens of William Henry Jackson: New permanent exhibition. In the decades following the Civil War, the photographer William Henry Jackson (1843-1942) played a major role in shaping public perception of the American landscape. In the 1890s, Jackson was commissioned by Henry Flagler’s East Coast Railroad to produce a set of images to promote St. Augustine as a tourist destination. Today, Jackson’s photographs remain a remarkable record of turn-of-the century life in this historic city, offering a striking portrait of Gilded Age St. Augustine.
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Community Open House: Feb. 2, 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Free to museum members and residents of St. Augustine. Enjoy the museum’s new exhibitions, visit our Museum Store, and enjoy the Radzinski Family Garden at this free Community Open House. Lightner Museum Members are invited to an early preview of these exhibitions at 5:15 p.m.
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