Art In Action — Jingle Rails
By DARLA MCCAMMON
Lakeland Art Association
Looking for some family fun this season? Only a two-hour drive to Indianapolis will take you to a fabulous and entertaining place — especially during the Christmas Season.
Located by the White River on West Washington Street you will find not one, but two museums joined at the hip.
Look for a herd of huge metal deer romping in a large area in front of an adobe colored brick building. Enter the underground parking garage. You will receive a free parking ticket once you’ve paid to enter the museums.
Both museums are interesting. One is a historical view of our state of Indiana, but for this trip you will want to spend most of your time in the one on the east end called The Eiteljorg.
Your children will find this museum fascinating.
There is a fully stocked gift shop chocked full of toys, games, puzzles, books about the museum, candy and more. You will want to wander through the Old West through the eyes of a myriad of artists, on the first floor.
Some of our Hudson River artists are exhibited there, especially Bierstadt who captured the beauty of our western grandeur in many of his large oil paintings. You will see valuable sculptures by artists Frederic Remington and Charles M. Russell.
This museum is dedicated to the American Indian and Western Art.
In the left wing, emerging artists and their work are exhibited. Much of these works are abstract and very contemporary.
Continue on to the right wing to another opening and find the “Jingle Rails” exhibit. (No additional charge to your main admission).
Enter under a 7-foot tall miniature railroad trestle to an enormous fairyland of miniature trains — all of them running, through tunnels, over bridges, around real waterfalls, across trestles, through a covered bridge, climbing a mountain to a ski-lift, circling under hot air balloons floating over it all.
Everything in this exhibit is made with natural materials, from acorn caps, to real twig trestles, to seeds and pods. There are depictions of places like Yosemite, Mount Rushmore and more.
On the second floor, you will find a winding path to follow that is all about the life and history of our American Indiana heritage. There are interactive exhibits along the way for children. They can learn how to wrap an infant in a cradle board, how a tipi can be erected and was the first mobile home. They will see games, and you will enjoy pottery, basketry, weaving, silver and turquoise jewelry exhibits and much more.
The museum is open all year, but the Jingle Rails exhibit will only be available until Jan. 2 or 3.
Upcoming and Current Events:
- Ann Peperak Exhibit will be ending soon. Visit it now at Warsaw City Hall Gallery. Free admission daily 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. week days.
- Christmas Boutique now open at Lakeland Art Gallery, 107 Main St., Pierceton, 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. Several great workshops are available for adults and kids. Call (574) 594-9950 for information.
- Latte Lounge Coffee shop in downtown Warsaw will be hosting a “Caffeine and Canvas” evening on Dec. 6 for a reasonable cost and promises to be a fun evening for all who attend.
Questions about items in this column can be directed to Darla McCammon at [email protected].