Christmas Market to debut at Marilyn Horne Museum

The Marilyn Horne Museum and Exhibit Center will present a Christmas Market artisan vendor fair on Dec. 9 as part of Bradford's “Old Fashioned Christmas” celebration.

Artists and vendors will come from around Western Pennsylvania and New York and include several Bradford-based artisans.

The Christmas Market will include watercolor paintings, glass mosaics, children's books, handcrafted jewelry, Ukrainian Easter eggs, and a unique selection of gifts for men.

Intermittently, from noon until 4 p.m., members of the Pitt-Bradford Vocal Arts Ensemble will perform traditional Christmas carols on the Grand Staircase in the main lobby.

Among those with wares at the market will be award-winning children's book author Mary Moodey. Moodey is based in Erie and works with her son Sam, who illustrates the books. Titles include “Sheldon and the Hot-Nosed Husky,” “When the Camel Sneezed” and “Goin' Explorin'.”

Online Bradford-based retailer Gatsby and Bootlegger will offer clever products for the “urban woodsman,” including Sasquatch-themed items, Jackalope socks, aftershaves, and beard balms.

Other Bradford artists participating in the market are Shandra Wilson, who creates traditional Ukrainian Easter eggs with a modern design, and Tara Munch, who uses a spinning wheel to produce hand-spun and dyed yarns.

Two-dimensional artists include Amy Hahn from the Erie area, who creates mosaic paintings made of glass; award-winning watercolor artist, Jessie Vaughn; and acrylic artist Samantha Aldrich from Randolph, New York.

Also featured at the market will be Artist Donna Wilson offering her unique handcrafted wire jewelry.

“This was one of the first projects I began working on when I arrived in Bradford,” said museum manager, Matthew Hileman. “I want the museum to be part of the downtown experience and a place where our community can gather for special things like this.”

To mark the occasion, The Marilyn Horne Museum Café will offer a special selection of Christmas-themed treats, and shoppers will also have an opportunity to purchase unique items from the museum's newly grand opened gift shop.

The Christmas Market opens to the public at 9 a.m. and will close at 5 p.m. Free parking is available in the Marilyn Horne Hall parking lot and guests can enter from either side of the building. The lobby of Marilyn Horne Hall features an Art-Deco themed Christmas display that will remain on view until early January.

For more information on the museum or market, contact Hileman at hileman@pitt.edu or 814-362-7990.