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 omphalos 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, [...]
Behind the Image: Mr. Libby’s Special Delivery
The very first delivery of cargo by air to Portland, Maine in July of 1926 included some unexpected freight: a shipment of high-end dresses from New York City for the J.R. Libby Department Store. Though the store's founder and namesake-- and second owner of the Mansion-- J.R. Libby had passed away in 1917, his son [...]
A Windfall of New Collections Items on Long-Term Loan
On July 24, the Mansion welcomed Libby descendant Mary Marcell--and with her came some precious cargo indeed. Mary arrived with four wine glasses, four cordial glasses, two pot de crème, and a soup bowl, all original to the Morse table service. She also brought a needlepoint sampler, silver nut dish, silver hand mirror and powder [...]
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 composition: a roundel bearing a winged putto [...]
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 Mansion's education and restoration programming and Opera [...]
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 fundraisers of the year, the Gala raised [...]
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 to have been made in Paris, these [...]
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 the several deaths and funerals that took [...]
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 low-tech. It will monitor the temperature and [...]