Enchanted World of Dollhouse Castle Created by Children’s Book Author and Illustrator Cynthia von Buhler
For Immediate Release - July 4, 2009
NASSAU COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART
Enchanted World of Dollhouse Castle Created by Children’s Book Author and Illustrator Cynthia von Buhler
In NCMA’s MiniArtMuseum for Children - September 20, 2009 through January 3, 2010
Come to the Party!
Book Signing and Exhibition Party on Sunday, October 4, 2009 at 2 pm
Free with Museum Admission, All Welcome
Nassau County Museum of Art’s (NCMA) MiniArtMuseum for Children takes on the fascination of a dollhouse castle with Cynthia von Buhler’s But Who Will Bell The Cats?, opening on September 7 and remaining on view through January 3. The exhibition is based on von Buhler’s new book of the same name which debuts in September. In But Who Will Bell The Cats? the famed author/illustrator creates an enchanted upstairs/downstairs world to show her viewers and readers the rewards of determination, bravery, and creativity—and remind them of the uncomplicated power of kindness.
Children and their families are invited to a party on Sunday, Oct 4 (at 2 pm) to celebrate the publication of the book and the opening of the exhibition. Von Buhler will be on hand to sign copies of her book (available for purchase at the museum book store). No reservations are needed for the party and there is no fee beyond museum admission. For further information about the book, log onto www.butwhowillbellthecats.com.
There will also be a Dollhouse Diorama and Paper Doll Workshop on Saturday, November 4, 2009, at 2 PM.
Come learn to how to make a dollhouse room from a shoe box. Cynthia von Buhler’s characters and castle rooms will be available as pre-printed full-color sheets for children to cut out and make into their own dollhouse diorama. Please bring a standard shoe box with you to the workshop. The author/illustrator will also be signing books which are for sale in the museum store. One lucky child at the event will win a handmade belled cat collar.
Fee: $10 per child includes all the supplies (except for the standard shoebox each child needs to bring), please R.S.V.P. to the museum by calling (516) 484-9337 X26, this event is limited to 25 children.
In addition to having written and illustrated the story, von Buhler was the painter, sculptor, interior decorator, mason, gardener, and plumber of the sets. The rooms were built by hand from wood. The stone walls were formed from plaster. The floors are handmade from inlaid wood, mother-of-pearl and plaster. The characters were painted in oils on gessoed paper, then cut out and placed in the sets.
Cynthia von Buhler’s work has been compared to a trip down an ornate rabbit hole. She is an internationally known and award-winning artist whose three-dimensional works have been displayed in galleries and museums around the world, and in books, magazines, and newspapers. She shares her home with her husband, eight cats, one dog, seven doves, and an unknown number of mice living below the floorboards. Her book, The Cat Who Wouldn’t Come Inside, was the inspiration for a previous exhibition at the MiniArtMuseum. The book and its characters will be featured in the exhibition opening on September 20.
The MiniArtMuseum is open Tuesday-Sunday, 12-4:30 pm.
Nassau County Museum of Art is located at One Museum Drive (just off Northern Boulevard, Route 25A, two traffic lights west of Glen Cove Rd.) in Roslyn Harbor. Hours for the main museum building, the Arnold & Joan Saltzman Fine Art Building, are 11 am to 4:45 pm Tuesday through Sunday. Docent-led tours of the main gallery exhibitions are offered each day at 2 pm. On Sunday afternoons the museum offers supervised art activities for children and their families and family tours of the exhibitions. Exhibition tours and Family Sundays at the Museum are free with museum admission. Admission to the main building is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors (62+) and $4 for children; it includes admission to the MiniArtsMuseum for Children; The MiniArtMuseum is open 12-4:30 pm Tuesday through Sunday; admission to just the MiniArtMuseum is $5 adults, $4 seniors, students and children ages 4-12. Members are always admitted free. There is a $2 parking fee on weekends (members free). The Museum Shop in the main building and the gift shop in the MiniArtMuseum are open all museum hours.
Call (516) 484-9337 for current exhibitions, events, days/times and directions or log onto nassaumuseum.org.
Nassau County Museum of Art is chartered and accredited under the laws of New York State as a not-for-profit private educational institution and museum. It is operated by a privately elected board of trustees which is responsible for its governance. The museum is funded through income derived from admissions, parking, membership, special events and private and corporate donations as well as federal and state grants.
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Media/Photo Contact: Doris Meadows, (516) 609-9696, dorismeadows@optonline.net
Public Information: Nassau County Museum of Art, (516) 484-9337, nassaumuseum.org
