Mercer Mills Inc is located in Christiana, PA along the Octorara Creek. It is a private collection owned and maintained by Chester Marron containing room after room FULL of paintings, drawings, prints, and sculptures by various Pennsylvania impressionists, as well as endless other great things tucked in every nook and cranny. The collection has a particular focus on works created in Yellow Springs at PAFA's country school. It also houses Chets extensive collection of instruments which he plays and restores.
Dorcas Kunzie Weidner is the late wife of Chet, and was a student at the PAFA Country School. The beginnings of this collection were saved by Dorcas and her former husband, Roswell Weidner, who was also a former student and then Professor at both the Country School and PAFA's Center City location.
After the Country School closed its doors in 1952, Dorcas and Roswell moved out to Mercer Mills, and brought the start of their collection with them. Since then, Chet has been steadily adding to it; to the point that it has become certainly the most comprehensive collection from the PAFA Country School, as well as of the Chester County impressionists.
We here at Project Portal took a trip out to the Mill during the weekend residency to check it all out! The paintings from the PAFA school served as our "portal" into the past and gave us a visual base and understanding of part of the history of Historic Yellow Springs; from which we could begin our own project.
Below are just a few photos to give you a sense, or perhaps a reminder of the place! We will be including a selection of works from Chet's collection in the exhibition on November 1st.
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