Patchwork: Connecticut Artists Consider 250
In June 2026, the Florence Griswold Museum will mount a juried exhibition of contemporary art to celebrate the 250th birthday of the United States of America. Museums and cultural institutions across the nation are marking this anniversary in myriad ways. As the historic home of the Lyme Art Colony (1900–1937), the Museum will highlight its legacy of supporting contemporary artists by inviting today’s Connecticut-based artists to submit work that addresses themes of American identity and history over the country’s past 250 years. How do Connecticut artists represent, contribute to, define, and reconsider American identity and history?
This exhibition aligns with the themes established by the CT Commission for America 250. Artists submitting to Patchwork are encouraged to consult the America 250 CT Planning Guide for ideas and resources about how the work they submit to the exhibition relates to the themes of the United States’ Semiquincentennial.
CT Commission Themes include:
- Telling Inclusive Stories
- Share stories that represent all of Connecticut’s people, past and present
- Power of Place
- Consider how places are uniquely shaped by their communities, natural environment, and institutions
- Doing History
- Consider how Connecticut’s people, sites, and events are remembered
- For the Common Good
- Consider ideas about community building, democracy, and civic engagement
A touchpoint of Patchwork will be the Museum’s Bicentennial Quilt. Crafted by Old Lyme quiltmakers in 1976, it features 24 patchwork blocks illustrating historic events, houses, key landmarks, and rural subjects in Lyme and Old Lyme. The quilt serves as an inspiration and metaphor for how history is patched together, preserved, and reinterpreted by each generation. Patchwork offers an opportunity for today’s Connecticut artists to contribute their unique perspectives, which may include mending historic absences or patching wounds created by collective challenges. Art offers a vehicle for creative expression and helps viewers process emotions and understand history differently. The goal of this exhibition is to create community by bringing Connecticut artists together under these common themes. Together their work will showcase the richness of Connecticut art in 2026 by reflecting on its history as well as looking to its future.
The exhibition will be juried by Jenny Parsons, Senior Curator; Amy Kurtz Lansing, Curator; and David D.J. Rau, Senior Director of Education and Visitor Engagement, at the Florence Griswold Museum.
Please see the Guidelines to submit artwork. Submissions will be accepted through April 26, 2026.
Sylvia Harding, Mary Connors, Josephine Brown, Ann Traver, Johanna Kooij, Winifred Laubach, Mary Gordon, Ruby McClernon, Margaret Smith, Dorothy Smith, and Joy Malloy, Bicentennial Quilt, 1976. Cotton and dacron, 86 x 60 in. Florence Griswold Museum, Gift of the makers, 1989.4
