Saturday, October 17, 2026
Since 1951, Winterthur has inspired visitors and scholars alike. This symposium is celebration of founder Henry Francis du Pont’s enduring legacy in American material culture and horticulture. After morning lectures about current and future research initiatives, have a choose-your-adventure experience (10 available) in the museum, garden, or library. A bagged lunch with special Winterthur cookie is included with registration. Member-exclusive registration available from July 13–26. General registration available starting July 27.
Agenda
9:00–9:30 am
Registration, Visitor Center
9:30–10:00 am
A Winterthur Welcome, Copeland Lecture Hall
Chris Strand, Charles F. Montgomery Director and CEO
10:00–10:45 am
Panel Discussion | Looking to 2101: Advancing Winterthur’s Mission
- Alexandra Deutsch, John L. and Marjorie P. McGraw Director of Collections
- Linda Eirhart, Alice Cary Brown Director of Garden
- Rosie Grayburn, Scientist and Head of Scientific Research and Analysis Laboratory, Department of Conservation, and WUDPAC Affiliated Associate Professor
- Brandy Watts, Director of Library
10:45–11:15 am
Winterthur Trivia
Tyler Johnson, Assistant Manager, Estate Programs
11:15 am–12:15 pm
Spotlight on Scholarship | How Big Ideas Are Becoming Reality at Winterthur | Case Studies
- Catharine Dann Roeber, Director of Academic Affairs and Brock W. Jobe Associate Professor, Decorative Arts and Material Culture
- Michael Kalmbach, artist, educator, and author of The Wondrous Winterthur Walking Cure: 75 Haiku & Mandalas, 2024–2026
- Jackie Killian, Assistant Director of Academic Programs
- Reggie Lynch, Director of Interpretation and Engagement
- Nicole Schmid, Delaware Master Naturalist and Administrative Assistant, Garden Department
12:15–1:30 pm
Midday Break. Enjoy any of the following:
- Lunch – pick up your pre-ordered selection and 75th anniversary cookie in the Visitor Center Café. (Please check your name badge for a reminder of which bagged lunch you selected.)
- Enjoy your lunch at the community table, on the patio, or in the garden
- Shop in the Museum Store, located in the Cottage
- Take a self-paced tour of the house (Tours begin at the Conservatory.)
- Take a walk or hike in the fall garden (maps available at registration table)
- Explore What’s Up Pop Ups in the Galleries Reception Area:
Foundation for Advancement in Conservation (FAIC) Oral History Project
Molly Mapstone, Project Assistant, Library
Winterthur Portfolio
Kate Budzyn, Editor
Winterthur Institute
Stephenie Bailey, Manager of Continuing Education and Winterthur Institute
Research Fellowship Program
Academic Programs staff
Garden Projects Galore
Garden staff
An Architectural Model: New Research on the Legacy of Port Royal
Greg Landrey, Senior Furniture Conservator Emeritus
1:30–2:30 pm
Experiential Session (First Rotation)
Pre-registration required. Please check your nametag for a reminder of which session you selected.
2:30–3:30 pm
Experiential Session (Second Rotation)
Pre-registration required. Please check your nametag for a reminder of which session you selected.
Experiential Session Menu
True Blue 75
The Winterthur Library is chock full of incredible visual resources, from ornament books to drawings to photographs. In this workshop in the Library Reading Room, view some lesser-seen materials from our special collections and the Winterthur Archives, and make your own library-inspired cyanotype (indoors— no sun required!).
Allie Alvis, Special Collections Curator and Jennifer Vess, Archivist
Look and Learn, a show-and-tell with Winterthur specialists from the museum and library
- Kedra Kearis, Associate Curator of Art and Visual Culture
- Alex May, Research and Publications Associate
- Matthew F. Monk, Linda Eaton Associate Curator of Textiles
- Kori Newboles, Special Collections Cataloguer
- Luke Pecoraro, Curator of Ceramics and Glass
- Ann Wagner, Curator of Decorative Arts
Objects Up Close: Seeing Ivory Memorandum Books in a New Light
Sarah Lavin, Fellow in the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, Class of 2027, and Esme Krohn, Graduate of the Winterthur Program in American Material Culture, Class of 2026
Guided house tour to see spaces that highlight architecture and objects with connections to the African American experience
Meet in Montgomery Room
Tyler Horne, Tour Programs Assistant, and Madelyn Alvarino, Guide
Guided tour of Challenging Masterpieces: Art and Identity in American Furniture, exploring the evolving legacy of American furniture
Josh Lane, Curator of Furniture and curator of Challenging Masterpieces
Lecture: “H . F. du Pont as a ‘Great Artist’”
Learn how Henry Francis du Pont reshaped meanings and narratives of American history and material culture studies, which inspired his wife, Ruth Wales du Pont, to call him a “great artist.”.
Molly Mapstone, Project Assistant, Library
Stories from the Object Files: Visit to the Registration Office
Beth Parker Miller, Head of Registration
Walking Tour: Highlights of Garden Ornament Restoration Project
Learn how Winterthur’s team of conservators and staff work together to care for more than 400 unique garden objects—from protecting historical lead sculptures from hungry squirrels to restoring and preserving these outdoor treasures
Lauren Fair, Objects Conservator and Assistant Director of Conservation
Workshop: Daffodils for Days
Explore the history, significance, and future of this extraordinary collection through archival letters, images, maps, and stories.
Linda Eirhart, Alice Cary Brown Director of Garden and Lori Schnick, Associate Curator, Plant Records & GIS
Tree Walk
Experience how Winterthur’s arborists steward H. F. du Pont’s legacy of preservation, while responding to environmental and ecological challenges to estate trees like beech leaf disease and dogwood anthracnose.
Allison Edmonds, Arborist Supervisor
4:00 pm
Happy Hour at Wilmington Brew Works