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Free Sundays at the Museum

If you're looking for a place you can spend quality time with the family, look no further!

We are proud to open the Kemerer Museum of Decorative Arts to the public, free of charge. Enjoy a range of engaging programs and activities like Career Corner, the Family Room, and Museum Storytime which caters to many ages and promotes creativity and exploration. Discover our permanent collection on display with guided museum tours and see our seasonal exhibit.

Free Sundays at the Museum takes place at the Kemerer Museum of Decorative Arts, 427 North New Street, Bethlehem, PA 18018 and run from 1PM -4PM , every Sunday, January 13 through the end of October.

2018 Free Sunday Family Programs

1-4PM: Family Room Activities

Get crafty in the Family Room with fun rotating activities relating to our current exhibit. These hands-on crafts are a great way for children to be creative and learn a little history in the process. Many of our activities draw inspiration from those that were practiced by Moravian children in the colonial days - some of which are still practiced today! Each activity is presented in conjunction with an artifact from our collection, some from as early as the 1700s.

View the schedule below to see what activities are coming up.

1-4PM: Self-guided Exploration of Exhibition Sketched Out (first floor of museum)

  • Add to our community sketchbook and chalkboard wall
  • Visitors are invited to sit down at a recreation of local painter, Diane Hutchinson’s studio, featuring facsimile inspiration on the wall from the collection. They can draw on the rolled paper.
  • The framing station to the right is a chance to see how frames help to elevate and alter the work inside.

1-4PM: Guided Museum Tour & Scavenger Hunt

  • Leaves on the hour from the Museum Shop
  • Our docent will lead you through the various rooms of the Kemerer Museum of Decorative Arts telling the myriad stories behind the hundreds of artifacts found within.
  • Learn about the museum founder, Annie Kemerer, and her personal collection that started it all.
  • Children will delight in a kid-friendly artifact scavenger hunt that challenges to find specific artifacts in the rooms and teaches about each one!

1:30PM: Museum Storytime

Get your child engaged in the wonderful tales of our Museum Storytime. Volunteers read from books inspired by the artifacts in our collection. Every Sunday features a different book and a different artifact.

Once Upon a Treehouse Interactive Play Room

Provide by local company, Once Upon A Treehouse, this ‘kids only’ interactive room provides a place for kids to use their imagination, play dress up, and enjoy hands-on creative play, with beautiful handmade dollhouses!

Career Corner

Taking place throughout the year, this program brings professionals into the museum to present a children’s activity that demonstrates how they use design in their current job.

Check back for future Career Corner speaker dates!

Free Sundays Activities Schedule

Sunday, January 13

1 - 4PM: Kid's Crafts

  • Create your own sculpture incorporating the element of lines!
  • The elements of Art are often described as the "building blocks" that create a masterpiece! The Line is created when a single point moves in space. Lines can be horizontal, vertical, diagonal, or curved

1 - 3PM: Artist Demonstration

  • Discover the process of painting with pastels and see artist Jacqueline Meyerson in action!
  • Pastel is a colored drawing medium made from pure colored pigment with a binder mixed in the form of a stick.

Sunday, January 20

1 - 4PM: Kid's Crafts

  • Abstract art is art that does not attempt to represent an accurate depiction of a visual reality but instead uses shapes, colors, forms, and gestural marks to achieve its effect.
  • Make your own mini abstract art painting using Wilde Clouds by Karol Roberts (Gerlach), on display in our Sketched Out exhibit, for inspiration!

1 - 3PM: Artist Demonstration

  • Watch artist James DePietro paint in his favorite medium, using artifacts from the museum as his subject matter.

Sunday, January 27

1 - 4PM: Kid's Crafts

  • Decorate a picture frame to display your favorite photograph in!

1 - 3PM: Artist Demonstration

  • Learn the process of getting the perfect shot with Photographer Richard Begbie

Sunday, February 3

1 - 4PM: Kid's Activities & Artifact Show & Tell

  • Create your own mosaic of the Star of Bethlehem using the sketch of the Star of Bethlehem by historic artist Margaret Cantieni, on display as part of the Sketched Out exhibit.

1 - 3PM: Artist Demonstration

  • Mosaics and Mixed Media Artist Barbara Kozero makes amazing works of art! Come watch her process as she creates her art piece-by-piece!

Sunday, February 10

1 - 4PM: Kid's Crafts

  • Design a plate and create your own print!

1 - 3PM: Artist Demonstration

  • Learn the process of printmaking with Printmaker Pat Delluva
  • Fine art printmaking involves the creation of a master plate from which multiple images are made. The artist chooses the material of the plate (linoleum, styrofoam, metal, cardboard, or stone) and the plate is prepared by cutting, etching, or drawing an image onto it. Ink is applied and paper is pressed onto the plate either by hand or by way of a hand-run printing press. The finished print is pulled from the plate to present the artist's masterpiece!

Sunday, February 17

1 - 4PM: Kid's Crafts

  • Create your own knolling artwork or photograph using our items on display or bring a small collection from home.
  • Knolling is the process of arranging related objects in a parallel or 90-degree angles as a method of organization. Pattern Sketch with Steelworkers Tools by Joseph Cantieni is an example of this method on display in our Sketched Out exhibit.

Sunday, February 24

1 - 4PM: Kid's Crafts

  • Design and create your own paper version crazy quilt!
  • Crazy quilt is a genre of quilts popular in the late 19th century that used silk fabrics, were heavily embellished, and used a variety of embroidery stitches. They were not used as everyday bed coverings but were often displayed on sofas and pianos.

Free Sundays at the Museum programs are funded with support from the Jones Children Fund.

Thank you to our Free Sundays Sponsors

HBMS Free Sunday Sponsor Fig Bethlehem

HBMS Free Sundays Sponsor The Morning Call

HBMS Free Sunday Sponsor Altitude Marketing

In the News

Learn more about Free Sundays at the Museum in the news.

"Family fun that’s free — if that sounds good to you, you’ll want to head to Bethlehem’s Kemerer Museum of the Decorative Arts on Sunday afternoons...You’ll find a range of programs and activities that caters to many ages and promotes creativity and exploration." - Article by The Morning Call

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Kemerer Museum Site Rentals

For a special occasion amidst priceless works that celebrate the decorative arts, the Kemerer is a one-of-a-kind destination sure to fascinate your discerning guests!

Able to accommodate up to 100 people, the Kemerer Museum provides a unique venue for your special event. This location is perfect for cocktail parties, family reunions, corporate dinners, birthday parties, baby showers, and so much more.

Read More About Site Rentals for: The Kemerer Museum of Decorative Arts

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Historic Bethlehem Partnership, Inc. is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Registration and financial information about Historic Bethlehem Partnership, Inc. may be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of State by calling toll-free, within Pennsylvania, 1-800-732-0999, or on the web at www.dos.state.pa.us. Registration does not imply endorsement.