It’s Stickley Season

Gustav Stickley's log home is located at Craftsman Farms in Parsippany.

Craftsman Farms in Parsippany is the site of Stickley’s log home, where he raised his children and shaped the concept of a lifestyle in harmony with nature. A yearlong celebration marking the centennial of the home begins this fall.

In building the home, Gustav Stickley was quoted as saying, “I can think of no creative work that is so absorbingly delightful as this creation of a home to live in for the rest of one’s life.” Now it is open to the public, offering guided tours, scholarly lectures, and educational programs for children or simply a peaceful spot for a picnic on the lush grounds. It welcomes 10,000 visitors a year. “Craftsman Farms is a place that resonates in the heart,” says executive director Heather Stivison of the Stickley Museum. “Many of our visitors refer to their trips here as ‘pilgrimages.’ This is not because they revere Gustav Stickley, but because the setting itself offers them an opportunity for reverie and reflection, and a chance to gather their thoughts and feel a sense of wholeness.”

To kick off the anniversary, Craftsman Farms is hosting a gala on October 16 at Mountain Lakes Club in Mountain Lakes. The weekend will also include lectures and museum tours. The events, open to the public and sponsored in part by Bograd’s Fine Furniture, one of the state’s major Stickley dealers, will raise much-needed funds to continue the restoration of Craftsman Farms. For more information, call 973-540-0311, or visit stickleymuseum.org.

The Newark Museum is also marking the Stickley centennial by hosting the world premiere of the exhibition, “Gustav Stickley and the American Arts & Crafts Movement.”

The exhibition will focus on Stickley’s work from 1900 through 1913, including furniture, lighting, textiles, and architectural plans, much of it from private collections. The exhibit will open September 15 and run through January 2, 2011. It then travels to Dallas and on to San Diego.

For more information and for a complete guide to programs and special tours, visit newarkmuseum.org/Stickley.html. Several programs are by pre-registration only. Call 973-596-6613 for details.

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