July 15, 2010
Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex in Moundsville will celebrate the exhibit Women of Design: Embassies, Mansions and Stately Homes – Pat Bibbee and Vivien Woofter with a reception on Tuesday, July 20, at 6 p.m. in the Delf Norona Museum. The designers and Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith of the West Virginia Division of Culture and History will be on hand to make remarks and greet visitors. The exhibit and reception are free and the public is invited to attend.
Bibbee and Woofter are two of West Virginia’s foremost interior designers. The exhibit showcases some of their more prominent design experiences through photographs; text and graphics panels; rug, drapery fabric and wallpaper samples; books; collectibles; and more.
The two women collaborated on renovations to The Blaney House, home of the president of West Virginia University in Morgantown and the West Virginia Governor’s Mansion in Charleston, both of which are highlighted in the exhibit.
Bibbee has been designing homes and commercial spaces for more than 25 years. She served on the Interiors Committee for the Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences and decorated the Donor’s Lounge for the facility. She also has done substantial work for several country clubs, including Edgewood Country Club in Charleston and the Athletic Club in New Jersey.
Bibbee’s work has been featured in Southern Living, the HGTV program Homes Across America, Leading Residential Interior Designers, Visions of Design, and the book Decorating with Southern Living.
Woofter, a native of Weston, is the U. S. Department of State’s Heritage Conservation Officer for the Residential Design Cultural Heritage Office of the Overseas Buildings Operations. She created the Department’s initial program for Cultural Assets and Culturally Significant Buildings abroad. Prior to 2004, Woofter was the Director of the Interior and Furnishings Division where she directed a staff of more than 50 professionals and had the responsibility for design, restoration and refurbishing the interiors in the Ambassador’s residence in Paris, London, Buenos Aires as well as the restoration of the George C. Marshall Center in the Hotel de Talleyrand in Paris.
Woofter, a native of Weston, is the U. S. Department of State’s Heritage Conservation Officer for the Residential Design Cultural Heritage Office of the Overseas Buildings Operations. She created the Department’s initial program for Cultural Assets and Culturally Significant Buildings abroad. Prior to 2004, Woofter was the Director of the Interior and Furnishings Division where she directed a staff of more than 50 professionals and had the responsibility for design, restoration and refurbishing the interiors in the Ambassador’s residence in Paris, London, Buenos Aires as well as the restoration of the George C. Marshall Center in the Hotel de Talleyrand in Paris.
Woofter’s earlier work included design installations in U. S. government office buildings in Lisbon, Kuala Lumpur, and Riyadh, among others.
The exhibition has text and graphic panels of the George C. Marshall Center explaining paint, carpentry and gold leaf repair work done on the facility. Woofter has provided books of buildings she has worked on like the Bosch Palace in Argentina. In addition, many collectibles from her travels are on display including kohl pots and a brass charcoal warmer from Turkey, tapestry cord used in the Lisbon Embassy and a brass water pitcher from Nepal, among others.
There also are numerous photographs of work accomplished at the Blaney House and the Governor’s Mansion. In addition, carpet, wallpaper, fabric and 100 percent wool loop samples used in the Governor’s Mansion can be seen.
For more information about the reception for the exhibit Women of Design: Embassies, Mansions and Stately Homes–Pat Bibbee and Vivien Woofter, contact Andrea Keller, cultural program coordinator at Grave Creek Mound, at (304) 843-4128 or e-mail her at [email protected]. Indicate in the message if you are interested in receiving notification of other upcoming programs at the mound.
Operated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex features the largest conical burial mound in the New World which ranks as one of the largest earthen mortuary mounds anywhere in the world. A massive undertaking, construction of the mound by the Adena people took place in successive stages from 250-150 B.C. and required the movement of 57,000 tons of earth, approximately three million individual basket loads.
Exhibits and displays in the Delf Norona Museum interpret what is known about the lives of these prehistoric people and the construction of the mound. The complex also has a new wing which houses the West Virginia Archaeological Research and Curation Facility, as well as a study room for researchers and a library. Contact the complex for information regarding group registration and detailed driving directions. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. It is closed on Mondays. Access to the mound and gift shop closes 30 minutes before the museum.
A new outdoor exhibit, The Interpretive Garden, was recently planted and features crops grown by Native Americans based on archaeological evidence. Visitors can also see three traveling exhibits on display, Marble King: the World’s Finest Marbles; Homer Laughlin China Company; and Ladies Fashion Dolls of the Nineteenth Century by Pete Ballard.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History, an agency of the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts, brings together the state’s past, present and future through programs and services in the areas of archives and history, the arts, historic preservation and museums. Its administrative offices are located at the Culture Center in the State Capitol Complex in Charleston, which also houses the state archives and state museum. The Culture Center is West Virginia’s official showcase for the arts. The agency also operates a network of museums and historic sites across the state. For more information about the Division’s programs, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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