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The online book Guide to the Winterthur Library: The Joseph Downs Collection and the Winterthur Archives provides detailed information about holdings in the Downs Collection and in the Winterthur Archives, as well as a comprehensive index of names, places, and subjects.
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Object depicts racial massacre in the Reconstruction Era.
Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library has acquired the recently discovered Liberty Monument, a unique 150-year-old stoneware masterwork that dramatically depicts a racially motivated massacre in Colfax, Louisiana, in 1873.
Winterthur acquired the Liberty Monument during the Summer 2021 auction of American stoneware and redware pottery by Crocker Farm, which described it as “one of the greatest American ceramic discoveries to come to light in recent decades.” A consigner who lives near Boise, Idaho, discovered the monument.
The Liberty Monument was created by Wallace and Cornwall Kirkpatrick, owners of Anna Pottery in Anna, Illinois, from 1859 to 1896. The brothers were known to be socially progressive. Vocal about their views, they often commented caustically on events and politics through their work.
The primary scene depicted on the Liberty Monument is the massacre of Black citizens who acted against efforts to overturn the result of the 1872 gubernatorial election in Louisiana. The commentary touches on political scandal, the struggle of Black Americans for basic human rights, the cost of the American Civil War, and other themes. The figure of Lady Liberty crowning the monument gives the work its contemporary name. “The Colfax massacre has been largely ignored by mainstream history books,” notes Leslie Grigsby, senior curator of ceramics and glass at Winterthur.
“I am proud of Alexandra Deutsch, Leslie Grigsby, and our entire curatorial team for recognizing the potential presented by the monument,” said Chris Strand, Interim CEO. “By adding it to our collection, Winterthur will be able to unlock many other stories lying dormant within similar objects that we have collected over the years and give us opportunities to reach new audiences. I am happy that the Board and staff have supported this acquisition.”
“We are working to create a multivocal interpretation for this object by engaging with scholars, students, and others. We expect the interpretation of this complex object to evolve over time,” said Alexandra Deutsch, John L. and Marjorie P. McGraw Director of Collections. “We fully recognize the responsibility we have to depict the multilayered history this object represents.”
The scholars’ responses Winterthur has received, so far, have celebrated the acquisition.
“This is an important object through which we can help uncover more of the history of this understudied massacre. I grew up in Baton Rouge (just two hours from Colfax) and we did not talk about these kinds of traumatic historical episodes. The 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre sparked a conversation about the history of racial violence in this country. Winterthur too can contribute to these much-needed conversations.”
—Dr. Jonathan Michael Square, Assistant Professor of Black Visual Culture at Parsons School of Design and Fellow in History of Art and Visual Culture at the Costume Institute at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Square runs the digital humanities platform “Fashioning the Self in Slavery and Freedom.”
After further research and cleaning in Winterthur’s conservation labs, the Liberty Monument will be placed on display in Winterthur’s galleries.
ABOUT WINTERTHUR MUSEUM, GARDEN & LIBRARY
Winterthur is known worldwide for its preeminent collection of American decorative arts, naturalistic garden, and research library for the study of American art and material culture. It offers a variety of tours, exhibitions, programs, and activities throughout the year. Admission includes the Winterthur garden, galleries, and a museum tour (by reservation).
Winterthur, located on Route 52, six miles northwest of Wilmington, Delaware, and five miles south of U.S. Route 1, is closed on Mondays (except during Yuletide), Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Museum hours are 10:00 am–5:00 pm, Tuesday–Sunday. $20 for adults; $18 for students and seniors; $6 for ages 2–11. Memberships are available for free and discounted admission. Winterthur is committed to accessible programming for all. For information, including special services, call 800.448.3883, or visit winterthur.org.
Winterthur follows state and national protocols for the health and safety of all visitors and staff.
Contact: pressroom@winterhur.org
302.888.4803
Our online catalog contains more than 110,000 entries. They include bibliographic records for imprints, periodicals, manuscript and ephemera holdings, photographs, and archival resources.
Winterthur’s state-of-the-art Scientific Research & Analysis Laboratory is a research and teaching facility housed in the Department of Conservation. Scientific analysis of objects is carried out to answer questions about their condition, technology of manufacture, and history. Answers to these questions are critical for formulating appropriate conservation treatments.
One of only 18 similar museum labs in the country, the SRAL is equipped with instruments for materials characterization, with a focus on elemental and molecular analysis of cultural heritage materials. The laboratory also has portable equipment that can be used for scientific investigations in the Winterthur Museum and other heritage collections. Many types of analysis can be done non-destructively without taking a sample. In other cases, technology has advanced so that only a tiny sample is necessary.
The laboratory employs two conservation scientists who work closely with Winterthur curators and conservators, academic staff at the University of Delaware, Winterthur research fellows, research students, and students in the University of Delaware doctoral Program in Preservation Studies, the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, and Winterthur Program in American Material Culture. Amazing volunteers with extensive backgrounds in science aid in the work of the lab. The lab staff also teaches concepts about the interface of art and science to museum visitors of all ages.
Learn more about the condition, care, and recommended treatment for your antique!
As part of its mission of public service, the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation offers advice without charge at monthly Conservation Clinics.
Faculty, students, and Winterthur staff share their knowledge about caring for paintings, textiles, works of art on paper, books and archival documents, photographic materials, furniture, and decorative, archaeological, and ethnographic objects, works of art and archival material with collectors, curators, owners, caretakers, and scholars. Each appointment lasts 30 minutes.
Individuals and groups can schedule a one-hour tour of the Conservation Department on selected Wednesdays during the academic year. To reserve a space for you or your group or for more information, please call Visitor Services at 302.888.4600 x7029.
The online book Guide to the Winterthur Library: The Joseph Downs Collection and the Winterthur Archives provides detailed information about holdings in the Downs Collection and in the Winterthur Archives, as well as a comprehensive index of names, places, and subjects.
Download Formats:
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Arts and Crafts Movement
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Collectors and Collecting
Colonial Revival
Curators’ Papers
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Garden History and Design
Jewelry
Textile Production
“My favorite object, from a purely aesthetic point of view, is the couch in McIntire Bedroom,” says Amanda Hinckle, assistant director of major gifts. “It’s an 1805–1815 Grecian couch from Salem, Massachusetts. One end scrolls outward, while the other scrolls in, and the S-scrolled legs make the piece feel sumptuous. The carving along the crest and front seat rails with grapevines, laurel leaves, cornucopias, roses, and ears of wheat is truly beautiful. The gold silk lampas is warm and it shines in the daytime. When I enter its home in the McIntire bedroom, my eye is immediately drawn to it. I fantasize about reclining on this couch—though I absolutely would never do it!”
Grecian couch
1805–1815
Unknown maker
Explore our online collections of selected images of rare books, trade catalogs, manuscripts, ephemera, and photographs related to the study of art, decorative arts and design, everyday life in America, and Winterthur’s estate history.
A world-class collection of about 250,000 items, The John and Carolyn Grossman Collection of ephemera visually documents life in America from 1820 to 1920.
Ephemera describes printed materials that were never meant to last. It includes greeting cards, product labels, tickets, calendars, invitations, paper dolls, and more. The Grossman Collection features the finest examples of such beautiful and intricate pieces of paper.
Of particular interest are materials that document chromolithography, the first form of commercial color printing. From about 1840 to the 1930s, vibrant colors appeared on a vast array of materials, from paper “scrap” used for making scrapbooks to cigar box labels.
Among the treasures of the collection are the first commercially produced Christmas card, commissioned by English artist, designer, and author Sir Henry Cole in 1843; its accompanying printer’s proof in red ink; and an early American Christmas card from around 1850. In addition, John Grossman saved the archive of the George Schlegel Lithographic Company, a 19th and 20th century New York City business that specialized in cigar box label printing.
The Objects Conservation Lab is responsible for the care of more than 47,000 objects at Winterthur, including collection items in the house, galleries, and storage spaces, as well as exterior architectural elements and sculptures in the gardens and on the grounds. Objects vary in form, function, and complexity, from taxidermy birds to fully operational historic automobiles and everything in between.
Objects can be made of inorganic materials such as ceramics, glass, stone, and metal or they can be organic in nature, consisting of leather, ivory, bone, shell, horn, tortoiseshell, hair, feathers, plant materials, or plastic. Objects are often composite in construction, featuring several material types.
As diverse as the materials can be, the multilayered stories and values of an object can be even more so. What to one person may be a decorative basket displayed on a mantel may to another be the only surviving example of a rich cultural weaving tradition. Whenever possible, conservators seek input from various stakeholders to help guide treatment and preservation decisions in order to preserve both the tangible and intangible aspects of objects.
Image (left): Tin-glazed earthenware posset pot with missing spout, c. 1676, Winterthur Museum 2016.0034.015. Image (right): Lauren Fair performs annual maintenance to one of the iron lily sculptures in the Sundial Garden.
