GRAND RAPIDS -- More than 70 dolls and puppets from 30 countries were given to young Caroline Kennedy, beginning in 1961 when her family entered the White House through 1963 when tragedy ended their brief residency. Foreign dignitaries and first ladies – including Italy's Prime Minister Amintore Fanfani, the Ivory Coast's President Houphouet-Boigny, India's Indira Gandhi, Monaco's Princess Grace, and France's Madame de Gaulle – presented dolls to the First Daughter as state gifts. Other dolls in the collection were gifts from foreign citizens. On loan from the John F. Kennedy Library.  

Musings
June 19 through August 31, 2009

GRAND RAPIDS -- The word musing is based on the noun muse, meaning the goddess of art in Greek mythology, one of the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, goddess of memory. The Muses inspire and preside over the creative arts. On display beginning June 19, 2009 at the Gerald R. Ford Museum is a collection of art quilts created by members of the Studio Art Quilts Association or "SAQA." Included are 29 art quilts from across the United States. The SAQA is a non profit organization whose mission is to promote the art quilt through education , exhibitions, professional development and documentation. The organization was founded in 1989 by a group of fifty artists and now has over two thousand members. Sandra Sider, a contemporary quilt artist, critic and independent curator was the sole juror for Musings. In the past, Ms. Sider was the sole juror for numerous other SAQA quilt shows. She teaches art history and is a regular contributor to Fiberarts Magazine and other trade journals.