Exhibit presents artifacts from six Anabaptist collections

March 2, 2015

Bambo Craft 1st Anniversary — Doug Hostetter, who donated Vietnam peace posters to the MHL collection, is shown with Vietnamese refugees who were members of the Bamboo Crafts project that he organized during his voluntary service in Tam Ky, Vietnam, 1966-69. The sign reads: “The Vietnam Christian Service Bamboo Cooperative First Anniversary.” (Photo contributed)

Art exhibit: “Collections in the Collection: Mennonite, Amish, Hutterite”
Reception date and time: Sunday, March 15, 3-5 p.m. (exhibit open March 15 through July 30, 2015)
Location: Goshen College’s Harold and Wilma Good Library Gallery
Cost: Free and open to the public
Sponsor: The Mennonite-Amish Museum Committee of Goshen College

A new exhibit, “Collections in the Collection: Mennonite, Amish, Hutterite,” will open at Goshen College with a public reception in the Library Gallery on March 15 from 3-5 p.m. The exhibit will continue through July 30, 2015.

Six collectors, whose objects are a significant part of the 3,000 museum items in the Mennonite Historical Library collection at Goshen College, are represented in the exhibit by items selected from their varied collections.

This exhibit recognizes the six major donors by clustering representative gifts from each of them. The donors include:

Doug Hostetter, now Mennonite Central Committee’s representative to the United Nations in New York City, whose collection includes posters and other items related to his work in and for Vietnam from 1966 to 1969.

Tom Conrad, Columbus, Ohio, who gathered a large collection of handmade objects, including many decorated towels, from Amish homes in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

Evangeline Matthies Neuschwander, who saved handicrafts made by Mennonite refugees in Holland after World War II, including in their re-settlements in Paraguay and Brazil.

Audrey Steiner Kelly of Toledo, Ohio, who collected Pennsylvania-German furniture and other handicrafts, remembering her beloved grandmother Luginbuhl of Bluffton, Ohio.

Angela Steffke of Michigan, who travelled to Hutterite communities in the western United States and Canada, collecting textiles, toys and other items representing Hutterites today.

Ray and Romaine Sala, natives of Somerset County, Pennsylvania, who became dealers in antiques, with a special interest in Amish and Mennonite items from their home area.

The items they collected yield insights into the identity and values of each collector.

The exhibit is dedicated to these generous people, with thanks for their interest in Anabaptist history and culture and in Goshen College.

Faye Pottinger, of Goshen, curated the exhibit. The exhibit is sponsored by the Mennonite-Amish Museum Committee. The exhibit is open during library hours, which vary throughout the school year. See the Good Library website for current hours.