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Docent Spotlight: Debby Rockwood

4/21/2021

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Walking through the hallways of the Reese-Peters House, Debby Rockwood often imagines the previous families who called the historic structure “home.”

While her imagination paints vivid pictures in her mind, many of these images are also based on stories that have been passed down generation after generation in her husband’s family. Her husband’s ancestors once owned the home and eventually donated it to the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio, she says.

“Ever since I married my husband, I’ve heard stories about how they were contributors to the community and this house was always full,” she said

The home has come to mean a great deal to her, Rockwood says, spurring decades of volunteerism as a docent where she has continued to pass down the stories of those who once lived in the Reese-Peters House to visitors.

“When I am in here, I think about them walking around in the rooms,” she said. “My mother-in-law would come over here and say, ‘He sat over there,’ meaning her grandfather. So it means a lot to me.” 

As a long-time docent, Rockwood has experienced many of the permanent and revolving exhibits at the center first-hand. Among her favorites are the “Paramount Pictures” exhibitions that celebrate fashion, movies and television. 

A new exhibition curated by Lancaster native Randall Thropp, “Distinctly Paramount: Fashion & Costume from the Paramount Pictures Archive,” is set to open June 5 this year. 

Rockwood says her interest in design dates back to her childhood. “Back when I was a young girl, a lot of girls and some boys made their own clothes,” she said. “My sisters and I made our own clothes, so we have always been interested in construction and how things are put together.”

As a docent, Rockwood says she also enjoys greeting guests, discovering their hometowns and answering their questions. 

“It’s important that people who come from out of town realize this is their Decorative Arts Center, too,” she says.

Rockwood says she believes her husband’s ancestors would want it that way, as well.

“I think they would have been so proud of what this has become,” she says. “It’s an amazing thing that we can provide this education.”
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'Rocketman' Relics on Display in Lower Gallery

4/19/2021

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Have you ever watched a film and marveled at the historical accuracy of the set, props and costumes? Conversely, have you ever gasped in horror at a missed detail or historically inaccurate costume? Those examples highlight why mood boards are important to the film’s designers. 

Costume designers use mood boards for information and inspiration, to help capture the “mood” of a scene and ensure its historical accuracy. 
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Visit DACO beginning May 5 to see how mood boards help inform the costume design process with a new pop-up exhibition in our Lower Gallery featuring costumes and mood boards from the Elton John biopic, Rocketman.
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Thropp Explores Fashion as Costume in New DACO Exhibition

4/19/2021

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Deep in the open stock of the Paramount costume archives is a special costume area called “The Gold Cage.” That’s where designer duds that didn’t make the film go to wait for the possibility of an appearance in a different film. Clothing ends up there for many reasons⸺maybe it didn’t photograph well, it wasn’t needed or the scene was cut in which the clothing was worn. 

That’s when DACO Curator and Paramount Films Archivist Randall Thropp got to thinking. 

“I was in the Gold Cage flipping through to see what we had,” he says. “I realized that nobody gets to enjoy these really high-end designer pieces, and we’ve never showcased this stuff before--it’s just being recycled,” he says. “I started pulling pieces out and realized it all would make a great exhibition.”

That exhibition, Distinctly Paramount: Fashion & Costume, opens at the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio on June 5. From May 5 to June 5, visitors can view a pop-up exhibition featuring mood boards and costumes from the film Rocketman.

To Thropp, fashion and costume are a bit like the chicken or the egg. Which came first? We know that fashion imitates costume, and vice versa. It can be hard to separate the two. 

“This exhibition is really a marriage of fashion and costume,” he says. “We see fashion as costume and we showcase some really nice designers, and some that people would not normally see.”

The range of designs span the 1920s to 2020. 

When pressed to give his favorite costume from the exhibition, Thropp can’t name just one. “One of my favorite pieces is a blouse by Stella McCartney. It’s just beautifully done. And of course the pieces done for The Alienist (television series).”

Thropp says that he hopes the exhibition brings new visitors to DACO. “Get out with your masks on and visit the gem of Central Ohio,” he says.

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DACO Receives Grant to Digitize Family Archives

4/19/2021

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​A new collection of artifacts will offer a glimpse into what life was like for an influential Lancaster family over the course of a century. 

Thanks to a new grant, this collection of prized family archives will be preserved and available to all for generations to come.

In March, the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio received a $7,735 grant from the Ohio History Fund to support the digitization of the Peters-Whiley family archives. Caroline Rockwood’s family, who are descendents of the Peters family, gifted this comprehensive collection of memorabilia that spanned from the 1880s to 1990s to DACO in the summer of 2020.

“This has been a family who saved just about everything and after my grandmother died, the sorted papers and pictures went to the Ohio Historical Society to be catalogued,” Mitchell said.

The collection includes hundreds of documents⸺from photos to letters, telegrams and bills, she says. 

There’s even a receipt for 6,600 feet of telephone cable, and an annual phone bill for $60. “They represent a picture of life at a certain time,” said Mitchell, whose grandfather, Phillip R. Peters, grew up in the Reese-Peters House. “This is like taking a microscope to history. You can put all these things together to get an understanding of what life was actually like.”

The collection originally belonged to Lancaster native Rockwood, whose ancestors had owned the Reese-Peters house. Rockwood passed away in 2020, and her daughter, Dodie Mitchell, recovered the collection in her mother’s basement. “She often expressed concern about what would happen to them. DACO as a repository would have pleased her,” said Mitchell.

Just as extraordinary has been the family’s collaboration to collect and preserve these artifacts, each telling its own story, over the course of multiple generations.

“Saving that and having it available for researchers and people interested, by ensuring it will be there for a while, is important to all of us,” Mitchell said. 

DACO Executive Director Jason Crabill says the Ohio History Fund grant will allow DACO to digitize at least some of the archives so that individuals all over the world can learn about life for one Southeast Ohio family over the course of a century.

“We are thrilled to be trusted with this piece of Lancaster’s history,” he said. “While we do not have the ability to store or display the archives, digitization will make them accessible to everyone in the world, ensuring that these artifacts are saved for posterity.” 

Once digitized, the collection will be freely available for researchers and the general public through a partnership with the Columbus Metropolitan Library. DACO expects the digitized materials to be available by next summer.
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“We are grateful that DACO has accepted the archives and very appreciative of Jason applying very quickly to get the grant,” Mitchell said. “It’s very important.” 

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Protocols to Keep DACO Visitors Safe

4/14/2021

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We are re-opening on May 5 with our pop-up exhibition featuring mood boards and costumes from the film Rocketman in our Lower Gallery. Distinctly Paramount: Fashion and Costume ​opens June 5. Please see our Re-Opening Plan below, so you know what you can expect before you visit. 

Open to the public on May 5, 2021
Temporary Hours: Wednesday – Friday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday & Sunday 1 to 4 p.m.

All visitors must call DACO at 740-681-1423 to make a reservation. Reservations are accepted on the half hour. Reservations are given on a first-come, first-served basis.

Requirements for Entry:
• If you are experiencing signs of illness, cough, difficulty breathing, fever etc., or have had contact with a person with COVID-­19, please do not enter the Museum at this time.
• Face masks are required during your visit to the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio. Thank you for helping protect our visitors, volunteers, and staff! 
• If there are guests in the lobby, please wait before entering.
• Number of guests inside the Museum, at any one time, is limited. You may be asked to wait before entering the lobby.
• We ask that you observe social distancing (six feet apart) while in the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio.

Lobby Precautions:
• There is a 30” tall plexi-guard on the Greeter Desk.
• Limited elevator usage to one person/party at a time.

Visitor Traffic Flow:
• Guests will enter though Lobby doors as usual.
• Greeter will instruct guests briefly about procedures.

Museum Shop Precautions:
• Limited number of guests allowed.
• Hand sanitizer will be available near the Shop door.
• Plexi-barrier is in place at the checkout.
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    The Staff of the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio contribute to this blog.

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Decorative Arts Center of Ohio
145 E. Main St.
Lancaster, Ohio 43130
Phone: 740-681-1423