MIDDLEBURY — The National Museum of the Morgan Horse, located on Main Street in Middlebury, has a new exhibit on display. The exhibit, “Jeanne Mellin Herrick: American Morgan Master,” focuses on the life’s work of one of the Morgan horse community’s most inspiring advocates. The exhibit opening and reception will be on Friday, May 20, from 5:30 until 8 p.m.
The exhibit features the art and words of Jeanne Mellin Herrick, a well-known person in the international Morgan community, who has been active as a noted breeder, trainer, artist, and writer. Her book, “The Complete Morgan Horse,” tells the history of the Morgan horse and can be found in public libraries and personal collections throughout the Morgan world. The exhibit features many original paintings, drawings and other works of art by Jeanne Mellin Herrick as well as artifacts relating to the history of the breed.
The opening of the exhibit is also a chance for the public to see some major changes at the museum. The museum is newly painted with a movie-viewing area, a research center and a standard Morgan stallion mural on the wall. In the theater area, interviews with Jeanne Mellin Herrick will be played as well as images of Mellin paintings that Morgan owners from the United States, Canada and England had commissioned will be displayed.
The exhibit opening and reception will be on Friday, May 20, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Admission is free and all are welcome. Museum Director Amy Mincher is looking forward to the evening, saying, “We hope that the reception will be an opportunity for those who knew Jeanne Mellin Herrick and admired her work to share memories and introduce new people to her art.”
The National Museum of the Morgan Horse is located at 34 Main St. in Middlebury. It is open Tuesdays through Fridays from 1 to 5 p.m. and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Saturdays. The exhibit will run through December 2016. More information can be found on the museum’s website, www.morganhorse.com/museum, or the museum’s Facebook page. Contact the museum at 802-388-1639 or [email protected] with any questions.