For Immediate Release:
Oct. 29, 2024
Contact:
Marie Cheek
Community Relations Coordinator
Culture & Heritage Museums
www.chmuseums.org
803.909.7312 mcheek@chmuseums.org
Kickoff the Holiday season with the annual Vernon Grant card and ornament debut along with a new exhibit of Grant’s work at Museum of York County
ROCK HILL, S.C. – The 2024 Vernon Grant holiday card and ornament make their public debut and are presented to the Grant family at the Museum of York County on Thursday, Nov. 21 at 10 a.m. The annual event marks the 38th holiday ornament and the 46th consecutive edition of the holiday card produced by Culture & Heritage Museums. Available for purchase in the Museum Store, the limited-edition cards and gold-plated ornaments are sponsored by WRHI O-T-S Media Group and the Angel Foundation. The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served. The Museum Store is well-stocked with a festive array of Vernon Grant merchandise and a host of holiday gift-giving ideas.
Museum of York County’s new exhibit, “By the Light of the Moon” features Vernon Grant’s original gouache paintings along with vintage prints. “By the Light of the Moon” can be viewed during the museum’s normal hours of operation and is free with general admission.
WHAT: 2024 Vernon Grant Holiday Ornament and Card Debut
WHERE: Museum of York County, 4621 Mt. Gallant Road, Rock Hill, S.C. 29732
WHEN: Nov. 21 from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
SPECIAL EXHIBIT: Vernon Grant’s “By the Light of the Moon” opens Nov. 21 through Spring 2025
IMAGES: Embargo date – Nov. 21, 2024. Credit: Culture & Heritage Museums. Vernon Grant’s 2024 Holiday Ornament — “Santa’s Stunning Reflection” and Holiday Card — “A High Five from Santa” – for high resolution images, contact mcheek@chmuseums.org
See Museum of York County’s full calendar of programs, events, and planetarium shows on Culture & Heritage Museums’ website: chmuseums.org
About Vernon Grant:
Vernon Grant garnered international fame as the creator of Kellogg’s “Snap, Crackle, and Pop;” his holiday art has been reproduced on magazines covers and as Christmas cards for over 80 years with his first Santa Clause appearing on a magazine cover in 1932. Since 2006, Grant’s illustrations have been the inspiration for ChristmasVille, an award-winning regional festival that is celebrated annually in Vernon’s adopted hometown of Rock Hill. Grant’s last half of his life was spent in Rock Hill, where he was a celebrated civic leader who named, created, and promoted Glen-the-Frog, the mascot for the city’s annual Come-See-Me festival.
Culture & Heritage Museums are stewards of an extensive collection of Vernon Grant’s original artwork and regularly presents selective pieces in changing exhibits in the Museum of York County’s Vernon Grant Gallery. The interior story-book-come-to-life playscape of CHM’s Main Street Children’s Museum reflects the imagination and artistic style of Grant.
Museum of York County highlights the natural history of the Carolina Piedmont through award-winning exhibits, planetarium shows, and special programs. The major permanent exhibit “Ice Age Carolinas: Exploring Our Pleistocene Past” is a journey-back-in-time experience that features the strange, gigantic, and fantastic beasts that once roamed the Carolinas. The Naturalist Center, with over 2,500 natural history specimens, provides hands-on opportunities for self-guided discovery and educational programs. The Settlemyre Planetarium presents a changing array of full-dome digital planetarium shows. The Museum Store has a selection of local handmade pottery and goods, locally produced food products, and nature-themed gifts. Outside, the museum has a picnic facility and a three-quarter mile nature trail.
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