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“Sights, Smells, Sounds and Stories: Holidays with the Melchers” Specialty Tours
Daily in December
Tours run on the hour, starting at 10:30 am

Gari Melchers Home and Studio at Belmont will offer daily “Sights, Smells, Sounds and Stories:  Holidays with the Melchers” 30-minute guided tours of the lavishly decorated Georgian house thoughout December.  Tours run on the hour, starting at 10:30 am.  The museum is open daily from 10 am to 5 pm.  “Holidays with the Melchers” tours are included in the regular admission price of $10/adults, $9/seniors, and $5/students.

            Using selections from American artist Gari Melchers (1860-1932) and his wife Corinne’s diaries and letters, personal recipes and Christmas cards, photographs, and other archival material, docents will bring holidays at Belmont to life.  Guest participation is encouraged by engaging all the senses. 

            Corinne Melchers poignantly described in a letter to her mother a grand 1921 New Year’s Day afternoon tea and dance she and Gari hosted at Belmont.  Lively dance music was provided by three uniformed members of the Quantico Marine Corps band and Corinne thought that “little Francis Goolrick, aged seven, and Miss Ellen O’Bannon, aged 78, were those who enjoyed themselves the most.”  Fredericksburg’s Daily Star newspaper described the event as “one of the most delightful informal social functions held in this section in recent years, and worthy of the best and oldest days of ‘Ole Virginia’”

For more information, contact Education Coordinator Michelle Dolby at 540-654-1851.

Friends of Belmont Shopping Day
December 6, 10 am – 5 p.m.

A benefit of membership, this special day offers Friends of Belmont discounts on all their purchases by playing the Belmont Trivia Quiz.  Knowing the right answer can earn a member up to 50% off the retail price. Become a Friend today and join in the fun.

Holiday Open House
Sunday, December 14, 10-5 pm

Bring your family and friends to this annual Belmont event. Fresh outdoor wreaths and garland by Town and Country Garden Club plus lavish interior decorations set a festive mood for the season. Musical entertainment in the Studio Pavilion begins in the afternoon.

1 pm - Spotsylvania Middle School Bulldog Quartet
2:30 pm - Fredericksburg Chamber Chorale
4 pm - The Fredericksburg Academy Upper School Chorus

Free admission. For more information, contact Special Events Coordinator Betsy Labar at 540-654-1848.

MELCHERS MASTERPIECE

Read The Free Lance-Star article on The Sermon.

The Sermon, considered the most critically acclaimed painting by American artist Gari Melchers (1860-1932), has been placed on extended loan to Gari Melchers Home and Studio at Belmont.

Visitors can view The Sermon, on loan from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, until September 30, 2009, along with studies from the Belmont collection.

View the Family Activity Guide (PDF) for The Sermon.

Free Monthly Woodland Walks

Gari Melchers Home and Studio at Belmont will offer free guided nature tours every last Sunday of the month (except December).  Tours will start at the Museum Shop promptly at 2 pm.

Members of the Central Rappahannock Chapter of the Virginia Master Naturalist program will lead tours of the woods and fields at Belmont. The walk will cover about one mile of trails and will touch on the historic ruins that illustrate Belmont’s past.  Volunteer guides will also discuss the progress of the woods from pasture land to impenetrable wilderness to the maturing woodlands seen today.

Belmont’s trails cover steep and rough terrain and may be muddy at times, so sturdy footwear is recommended. Tours will take place in rain, snow or shine. No reservations are necessary. For more information contact Beate Jensen at 540-654-1839.

News

November 17 Man Achieves Royalty

November 15 At Gari Melchers Home and Studio, See and Compare How Other Famous Artists Worked from Warhol to Calder, in Studio

September 25 At Belmont, Smithsonian's Artists in Their Studio's Exhibit Depicts Genius at Work

July 31 Enjoy this 'Walk on the Wild Side' Explore Art, Gardens at Belmont

July 28 'Walk on the Wild Side'

February 10 Master Naturalists help blaze trails at Belmont in The Free Lance-Star

January 18 Get to Know the 'King of Illustrators' in The Free Lance-Star

December 15 Free Lance-Star's Town & County article: An Artistic Holiday

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