Wilderstein Preservation features vintage fashion in May and June

Wilderstein Preservation, SENYLRC's newest member, is showcasing vintage fashion in it's first-ever museum-style costume exhibition during May and June at the Wilderstein Historic Site in Rhinebeck overlooking the Hudson River. "Out of the Closet, Outside the Box, Down from the Attic" presents highlights drawn from Wilderstein's 1,200+ piece costume and textile collection. Visitors to the mansion will see each of the rooms on the first floor transformed into a reflection of life at the house during different periods of the Suckley family's tenure.   Image by Angelika Rinnhofer

Two years in the making, this fascinating exhibition drew upon the expertise of board members Conrad Hanson and Palma Driscoll, and local designers Michael Boris and Joel Lasher. The four, each well-known in the fashion industry, with mannequins loaned from the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum and local sponsors have created a not-to-be-missed event. A Madame Vionnet blue velvet opera cape is featured in the library along with fur-trimmed capes and elegant gowns as the ladies prepare for the opera. The dining room hosts a gaggle of flappers from the 1920s dancing to hot jazz on the phonograph while celebrating New Year's Eve, while 19th century maidens read love letters and gossip in the white and gold salon clothed in spectacular Victorian and Edwardian gowns. The mansion's parlor brings the exhibition into the 20th Century as a group of 1940s women listen to one of their neighbor Franklin Roosevelt's "Fireside Chats" on the radio while dressed smartly in wartime era suits. Displayed in the library is a range of accessories worn by the family. Wilderstein's collection contains an abundance of hats in every conceivable style, scarves, shawls that range from the sheer and iridescent to the richly embroidered, and gloves, gloves, gloves from wrist length to those extending up the shoulder.

This is a wonderful opportunity to see why Wilderstein and its collections were selected as a pilot project for SENYLRC's digital initiative, Hudson River Valley Heritage. Collections which include 20,000 photographs, books, letters, and much more are being catalogued, preserved, conserved, photographed, and many, also digitized, by volunteers under the direction of Curator Duane Watson. While the board formally approved Wilderstein's membership application at its April meeting, some 100 World War I items already reside as digital images on the HVH website. "Out of the Closet. Outside the Box. Down from the Attic" is open Thursdays to Sundays, from noon until 4 PM through June 30.

Wilderstein Preservation is a non-for-profit educational institution founded by Miss Margaret L.Suckley in 1980. The mission of the organizations is to preserve and interpret the architecture, interior design, collections, landscape, and natural open space of this unique historic landmark. The 40-acre site features a Queen Anne style Victorian mansion, carriage house and outbuildings designed by Poughkeepsie's Arnout Cannon Jr. as well as a romantic landscape designed by Calvert Vaux. Listed on the Register of Historic Places, this estate is a major feature of the Hudson River National Landmark District and a Hudson River dedicated Greenway Site with walking trails throughout the property.

By Patricia Carroll-Mathes, Hospital Library Program Manager

Southeastern News Online is published by SENYLRC staff.