Sacred Arts Festival at Glencairn Museum

Experience religious art in the making at Glencairn Museum, 1001 Cathedral Road, Bryn Athyn 19009, during its annual Sacred Arts Festival on Sunday, April 28, from 1:00 till 5:00pm. The festival features an array of demonstrations throughout the afternoon, from glassblowing and icon writing to solo-voice music and the creation of a sand mandala, that give visitors a unique view of many beautiful expressions of faith from various cultures.

This event is also a rare opportunity—one of only two such events each year—to experience the Museum’s vast collection of religious art and artifacts and the castle itself while touring its many galleries and public spaces. Visitors are invited to explore at their leisure, room by room, and to take in the exciting view from Glencairn’s tower or relax in the event’s Castle Café.

Visitors can also watch the documentary “Myths and Legends: Pennsylvania Dutch Hex Signs,” that is related to Glencairn’s current exhibition featuring Pennsylvania Dutch barn stars (or hex signs). It is shown in the video viewing room just off the Great Hall, close to all the activity.

Admission is $10 adults, $8 seniors/students with I.D., FREE for Museum members and children 3 and under. It includes all festival demonstrations and access to the galleries and the tower as well as the Museum’s cell-phone audio tour of the collections.

This year’s Sacred Arts Festival includes these demonstrations:

• Glassblowing with Jason Klein
• Metal forging with Warren Holzman
• Stained glass painting with J. Kenneth Leap
• Sand mandala completion and dismantling with Losang Samten
• Icon writing with Susan Kelly vonMedicus
• Solo-voice music with Les Canards Chantants
• Stone carving with Jens Langlotz
• Replica Gutenberg-era printing press with Kirsten Gyllenhaal
• Dance by inFlux Dance Company of Bryn Athyn College
• Barn Star (or hex sign) painting with Patrick Donmoyer and Eric Claypoole

Of special interest

• The Tibetan Buddhist sand mandala returns to Glencairn, created over 5 days and ritually dismantled late Sunday afternoon by The Venerable Lama Losang Samten.
• Glassblowing is demonstrated again this festival by Historical Glassworks’ Jason Klein, who is working to bring medieval skills back to life while researching the centuries’ old striated ruby red glass that Bryn Athyn artisans famously recreated in the early 20th century.
• Metal worker Warren Holzman, among the inspiring and skilled artisans who teach building arts techniques for Bryn Athyn College’s nationally esteemed degreed program, returns to show visitors just how he and others have forged the metal elements that grace Bryn Athyn Cathedral, Glencairn and other renowned structures. His body of knowledge about metal, forging and the art of this particular craft is extensive and enthusiastically shared.
• Bringing barn star painting back for the second year are Patrick Donmoyer—guest curator of the Museum’s current exhibition, Hex Signs: Sacred and Celestial Symbolism in Pennsylvania Dutch Barn Stars—and Eric Claypoole, the region’s foremost barn star painter. A second-generation painter throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania with nearly 100 barns painted throughout his career, Eric’s first-hand accounts and down-to-earth stories shed light on this folk tradition from a creative perspective. During the festival, an informative 50-minute video, “Myths and Legends: Pennsylvania Dutch Hex Signs,” will be shown in the video room just off the Great Hall.

For information on visiting during Losang Samten’s sand mandala demonstration 1-4:30 daily April 24-27 prior to the April 28 Sacred Arts Festival, please call the Museum at 267.502.2990.

Please note: During the festival, the elevator stops only at the 1st and 5th floors and the Tower. Please use the stairs while exploring Glencairn Museum’s galleries on all other floors.

No strollers or backpack-style baby carriers allowed in the Museum and no wheelchairs permitted beyond the first floor.

Photography for private use is permitted. No drones, flash, tripods, selfie-sticks or videography.

For more information, visit www.glencairnmuseum.org or call 267.502.2990.