SYMPOSIA

The Decorative Arts Trust develops biannual symposia that combine lectures by leading decorative arts experts with behind-the-scenes tours of noteworthy museums and historic sites and special visits to private collections. Symposia are held throughout the country to take advantage of appealing destinations where we can learn about important decorative and fine arts, architecture, and history. We work with our Board of Governors, local members, and colleagues in the field to pull together the engaging and enjoyable itineraries that have been a hallmark of the Trust since our inception in 1977. Symposia are open to all members, and graduate students and young professionals are invited to apply for scholarships to attend. Join today! 

2012

Furniture, Rooms and Houses: American Elegance in Newport
Newport, RI

Historic, Preserved and Refined: Charleston Furniture, Architecture and Interiors
Charleston, SC

2011

Long Island: From Early Settlement to Gold Coast
Long Island, NY

Texas: Early Decorative Arts & Later Legendary Collections
Houston, TX

2010

The Elegance of the Hudson River Valley
Rhinebeck, NY

The Treasures of Historic Portsmouth
Portsmouth, NH

2009

Winterthur Museum: The Great American Collection
Wilmington, DE

Jefferson’s Monticello and Madison’s Montpelier
Charlottesville, VA

2008

The Washington’s World: Mount Vernon
Alexandria, VA

Santa Fe and the Arts of Historic New Mexico
Santa Fe, NM

2007

Pittsburgh: Decorative Arts and Architecture from George Washington to Fallingwater
Pittsburgh, PA

Virginia: The First 200 Years
Williamsburg, VA

2006

Mr. Franklin and His Philadelphia
Philadelphia, PA

The Berkshires: Retreat and Escape
Stockbridge, MA

2005

The Best of Baltimore: Formal and Fancy
Baltimore, MD

Northern California’s Art and Architecture
San Francisco, CA

2004

The Art and Architecture of Tennessee
Nashville, TN

All About Boston
Boston, MA

2003

The Arts of France and America Compared
New Orleans, LA

Island Economy, Architecture and Decorative Arts
Nantucket, MA

2002

The Rich Collections of Yale University
New Haven, CT

Milwaukee’s Outstanding Collections
Milwaukee, WI

2001

Tidewater Virginia: Norfolk and the Old Princess Anne County
Norfolk, VA

The Decorative Arts of Lancaster County
Lancaster, PA

2000

Coastal North Carolina: A Grand Variety of Style
New Bern, NC

Annapolis Decorative Arts, Interiors Landscape: New Research and Discoveries
Annapolis, MD

1999

The Image of Early 19th-Century America: Interiors and Expressions
Cooperstown, NY

Treasures of Los Angeles: The Getty, The Huntington, The California Experience
Los Angeles, CA

1998

Collections Study: Furniture, Ceramics and Silver at Historic Deerfield
Deerfield, MA

Capital Collecting
Washington, DC

1997

Furniture in Context
Newport, Rl

Behind the Changing Scene: Objects and Interiors in a New Light
Williamsburg, VA

1996

Celebrating Cleveland, 1796-1996
Cleveland, OH

Charleston: Apex of the 18th Century
Charleston, SC

1995

Treasures in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, PA

New England Collectors: Their Collections, Houses, and Influence
Danvers, MA

1994

Bermuda: Island Life and Maritime Affluence, 1609-1860
Hamilton, Bermuda

Museum of the Americas
Dallas, TX

1993

The Worlds of Thomas Jefferson: the Art of Living
Charlottesville, VA

Seeing Things Differently
Wilmington, DE

1992

Combing the South: News and Reviews
Winston-Salem, NC

Exploring the Masterworks of New Hampshire
Portsmouth, NH

1991

Savannah and the South
Savannah, GA

Decorative Arts of the Southwest
Santa Fe, NM

1990

French and German Threads Through St. Louis and the River Valley
St. Louis, MO

The Connecticut River Valley: Important Collections and New Studies
Hartford, CT

1989

Virginia Through the Ages
Richmond, VA

Salem: a Hub of American China Trade
Salem, MA

1988

The French Influence in American Decorative Arts
New Orleans, LA

The Arts of Hudson River Valley
Tarrytown, NY

1987

Boston Style in the Nineteenth Century
Boston, MA

Washington’s House: Fleshing Out the Legend
Alexandria, VA

1986

Philadelphia Decorative Arts—1750-1850
Philadelphia, PA

Folk Art in the Decorative Arts
Louisville, KY

1985

Images of a Young Nation: A Survey of American Art
Tuscaloosa, AL

Mr. Jefferson and the Arts
Charlottesville, VA

1984

Elegant America
Palm Beach, FL

Consider the Art of Collecting
Atlanta, GA

1983

Across the Sea: English Ceramics and the American Response
Charleston, SC

Across the Threshold: New Approaches to Historic Interiors
Fredericksburg, VA

1982

American Decorative Arts: Revisions and Reverberations
Houston, TX

The China Trade: Currents and Cross-Currents of Taste
Lexington, VA

1981

Decorative Arts of Maryland
Baltimore, MD

Regional Characteristics in American Furniture
Camden, SC

1980

Southern Decorative Arts
Winston-Salem, NC

1979

Regional Characteristics of American Furniture in Colonial America, 1700-1775
Lexington, KY

Decorative Arts of Ohio
Cincinnati, OH

Southern Decorative Arts
Winston-Salem, NC

1978

Maryland Decorative Arts
Princess Anne, MD

Furniture of Federal America
New Harmony, IN

Mr. Jefferson and the Arts
Philadelphia, PA