News Archives 2007 - October

"Chesapeake Icons"
Exhibition Opens at CBMM

ST. MICHAELS, MD—Blue crabs, oysters, skipjacks, lighthouses, and waterfowl. These images have become symbols of the Chesapeake Bay. How these Chesapeake icons have evolved and ways they have been portrayed is the theme of a new exhibition at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. "Chesapeake Icons" opened on October 6 on the second floor of the Museum's Steamboat Building.

Used by artists, writers, and salesmen of all types, these five representations of the Bay make up much of the collection of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. This exhibition will showcase a number of iconic artifacts-from oyster cans and seafood marketing materials to fine art and models of skipjacks.

The idea for the exhibit began with a discussion on what was in the Museum's collection that visitors could not see, according to Curator of Exhibitions Lindsley Rice.

"The first thing that came to mind was our collection of oyster cans," says Rice. "We thought about how oysters have been packaged and marketed, how oysters have come to be a symbol for the Chesapeake, and we expanded that idea, to 'what are other symbols of the Bay?'"

The final five icons came from discussions with historians, stakeholders, residents, and other groups and individuals, and themes that were represented in CBMM's collection. But the exhibition is more than a showcase for the Museum's collection.

"We have also worked with individuals and other organizations, so that there are many objects and works of art that you can only see at the Museum in this exhibit," says Rice.

The exhibit includes artwork by John Moll and John Barber, decoys by the Ward Brothers and Rich Smoker, sculpture by Bart Walter and Dave Gentry and quilts by Sally Dillon and Janet Hale and Eileen Doughty, among many others.

The "Icons" exhibition will feature special programming as well as gallery talks in the exhibit. For well over a hundred years, the oyster has served as the defining seafood industry of the Chesapeake Bay. In gallery talks on October 27 and 28, November 17, and December 8, from 1:30 - 2:00 p.m., learn how the oyster, as an iconic image, has been used as a successful marketing and advertising tool. Museum educators will discuss how our extensive collection of oyster cans illustrates the large number of businesses once active in this region and how they have helped shaped the way people identify the area.

The “Chesapeake Icons” exhibition and related programming are funded in part by grants from Choptank Electric Trust, John Ben Snow Memorial Trust, and Maryland Historical Trust. The exhibit will be on display through mid-June of 2008. For more information about “Chesapeake Icons” or related programs, please contact the Museum at 410-745-2916.

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