June 2025 Victoria Mansion Newsletter
Click HERE to Read the Newsletter! In this newsletter: Free Admission for Juneteenth Forward Facing Campaign Brownstone Brews and Bites Thanks to our Portland High School Volunteers Intern Update A Fond Farewell
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April 2024 Newsletter: Opening Weekend Textiles Exhibit & More
Our April 2024 newsletter is live! Follow the link to read about our Celebration of National Textiles Day, updates about the Preservation Trades Workshop, and a preview of 2024 events.
Sugar and Spice, and All That’s Nice: ‘Reproof’, by Edward Russell Thaxter
Nineteenth-century American artists looked to Europe as the center of culture. The painters flocked to Paris, while the sculptors migrated to Florence and Rome, where they could obtain the marble, the mentors, and the ancient models they required to fashion their neo-classical compositions. These expatriate artists chose “ ideal’ subjects—themes from literature, mythology, and history,” as most worthy of their endeavors. Their studios were destinations for Americans on the Grand Tour, and often they made multiple versions of a piece to sell.
A Windfall of New Collections Items on Long-Term Loan
Pudgy, Pouty Putti
By VM Guide Charisse Gendron In early 1998, Victoria Mansion started preparations for an exciting project: the reconstruction of its large stained-glass skylight, which had been shattered in a storm sixty years before. Surviving pieces were salvaged at the time, but only one clue remained to the overall…
A Mostly Mozart Opera at the Mansion Recap
We welcomed nearly 70 guests at our annual Opera at the Mansion joint benefit with Opera Maine on July 16. Guests enjoyed a mostly Mozart program highlighting Opera Maine’s production of The Marriage of Figaro along with libations and hors d’oeuvres from exclusive Mansion caterers Blue Elephant Events & Catering. Proceeds from the event benefited Victoria…
Victoria Mansion Christmas Gala 2017 Recap
On Wednesday, November 29, 2017, the Mansion welcomed over 200 people to our annual Christmas Gala. Guests enjoyed signature drinks, fabulous hors d’oeuvres, and viewed the incredible decorations by our talented designers for this year’s theme of ‘Christmas in the City by the Sea.’ One of our biggest…
2nd Annual Mourning at the Mansion
Our second annual “Mourning in the Mansion,” once again captivated crowds with a themed tour about Victorian death practices accompanied by excerpts from Portland Ballet’s production The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. The event combined historical information on traditional mourning customs of the nineteenth century, as well as details about…
Parlor Passementerie on Display Under the Staircase
Visitors to the Mansion are now enjoying an exhibit recently installed by Curator Arlene Palmer Schwind in a new lighted case under the stairs in the back of the stair hall. It features the dazzling silk passementerie (trimmings) that originally embellished the window hangings in the Parlor. Believed…
New Air Handling System Uses Old Duct-work
This spring, Victoria Mansion is taking a great step forward in improving the care of our collections and the comfort of our visitors. Contractors are now hard at work in the basement putting the finishing touches on an air handling system. This system is at once state-of-the-art and…