“Lifting the Curtain” series: Curators’ insights into Preservation Society of Newport collections

This winter and spring, members of The Preservation Society of Newport County curatorial staff and resident scholars will share their expertise in a series of limited programs called “Lifting the Curtain: Behind the Scenes of Museum Work.”

These programs, continuing through April, offer exclusive opportunities to see and learn about the work that happens behind the scenes at the Newport Mansions, including curatorial, conservation, preservation, historical research and interpretation. Most take the form of a limited, specialized tour or a close look at objects in the museum’s collections.

A complete listing can be seen at www.newportmansions.org/events/lifting-the-curtain.

Many of these programs are very limited in attendance and some already have sold out – make plans and buy your tickets, now.

The series also includes two traditional lectures to be given live at Rosecliff and via Zoom video conference:

• Thursday, February 6, 6 p.m.: “Chief Curator’s Choice” with Leslie B. Jones, Preservation Society Director of Museum Affairs and Chief Curator. Leslie Jones oversees the Preservation Society’s curatorial and conservation efforts, which encompass a wide range of activities at the Newport Mansions house museums and beyond. The subject of her lecture will be a surprise, but it will tie into the larger theme of this winter’s programming, which provides a glimpse at the ongoing work taking place to preserve these historic properties.

• Thursday, March 27, 6 p.m.: “Newport through a New Lens: Treasures of Photography at the Preservation Society” with Dr. Nicole Williams, Curator of Collections. The Preservation Society holds an extraordinary archive of Gilded Age photographs encompassing portraits of celebrities and families, transporting foreign views, and images of Newport landmarks. Dr. Williams will explore how the pioneer photographers who created these images pushed the limits of the medium, often blurring the line between truth and artifice.

The Preservation Society of Newport County, Rhode Island, is a nonprofit organization accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. It is dedicated to preserving and interpreting the area’s historic architecture, landscapes, decorative arts and social history. Its 11 historic properties – seven of them National Historic Landmarks – span more than 250 years of American architectural and social development.

For more information, please visit www.NewportMansions.org.