Amish quilts focus of April Durnbaugh Lectures

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Janneken Smucker, history professor at West Chester University and author of numerous works on Amish quilts.

ELIZABETHTOWN, PA (02/25/2014)(readMedia)-- Amish quilts, simultaneously viewed as "America's first abstract art" and as souvenirs for "Amish country" tourists is the topic of the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies' annual Durnbaugh Lectures taking place Thursday, April 3, and Friday, April 4, at Elizabethtown College. Janneken Smucker, history professor at West Chester University and author of numerous works on Amish quilts including "Amish Quilts: Crafting an American Icon," is this year's lecturer.

The lectures are preceded by the annual Young Center banquet at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 3, in Elizabethtown College's Susquehanna Room. The banquet, $20, is open to the public. Reservations, required by March 20, can be made by calling the Young Center at 717-361-1470 or visiting www.etown.edu/youngctr/events.

The Durnbaugh Lecture, "Abstract Art or Country Craft? The Quilts of the Amish," in which Smucker explores the paradoxical meanings of quilts, a material manifestation of Amish culture, will be held at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 3, next to the College at Elizabethtown Church of the Brethren, 777 S. Mount Joy St.. The lecture is free, and does not require reservations.

Smucker continues the exploration of quilts Friday, April 4 during the Durnbaugh Seminar: "Cloth, Commerce, and Collecting." In this hands-on, participatory session, taking place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the KAV at Elizabethtown College, attendees hone their skills in identifying characteristics of Amish quilts, consider the relationship of these objects to consumer culture and analyze material culture, including quilt-related objects made for the consumer market.

Cost of the seminar and lunch is $10. To register, contact the Young Center at 717-361-1470 or register online at www.etown.edu/youngctr/events. Reservation deadline is March 20.

The Durnbaugh Lectures, established in 1993, are funded by an endowment created to honor the work of Don and Hedda Durnbaugh, two of the original Young Center fellows. Each year the lectureship brings a noted scholar to campus to present research related to Anabaptist and Pietist groups.

An internationally recognized scholarly research institute, the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies at Elizabethtown College conducts and promotes research about and interprets the life, faith and culture of Anabaptists and Pietists through public lectures, resources, exhibits and conferences. The Center is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies: www.etown.edu/centers/young-center

Read about additional events at Elizabethtown College.

Elizabethtown College, located in historic Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, is a private coed institution offering more than four dozen liberal arts, fine and performing arts, science and engineering, business, communications and education degrees. Learn more: http://www.etown.edu/about/

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