Holland Museum Focus Gallery
January 27 - August 5, 2012

"Wish You Were Here:
Selections from the Mike Van Ark Postcard Collection"

American postcards were created as an easier way to send quick notes and were printed only by the U.S. Postal Service, until May, 1898. The first postcards were called “private mailing cards” and cost one penny to send. The sender’s message was written over the image itself because writing was not permitted by law on the address side. The first souvenir postcard was created in 1893 to advertise the World’s Fair in Chicago. Postcards are now one of the most collected items, along with coins and postage stamps.

Mike Van Ark began collecting in the 1970s, by adding to his mother’s collection. After attending shows in Michigan and Chicago, Mike’s collection soon reached 5,000 cards. Within recent years, Mike sold his collection of South Haven, Grand Haven, Saugatuck/Douglas, New Richmond, Fennville, Allegan, and Hamilton images.

Mike’s collection, featured in this exhibition, begins in the year 1900 and includes images of the city of Holland, around the north and south side of Lake Macatawa (Black Lake), and the Lakeshore.

Holland Museum Wichers Gallery
February 24 - September 2, 2012

"Before the Festival:
The Improbable Journey of Holland's Favorite Flower"

If someone asked you to name something Dutch, you might be quick to say tulips. What could be more Dutch? Well, you would be wrong! Although commonly associated with the Netherlands, the tulip actually originated from areas around the Black Sea, such as Turkey and Iran, and didn’t make it to the Netherlands until the late 16th century. “Before the Festival: The Improbable Journey of Holland’s Favorite Flower” will explore the origins of the tulip, when it arrived in the Netherlands, and eventually Holland, Michigan, and how it became the Dutch icon as we know it today.