Participating artists from the “Art of Model Boat Building” exhibition will present detailed talks in the gallery during March. Free, all are welcome!

March 17, 6 pm: Ed Harrison, who is relatively new to model boats and also enjoys carving miniature ducks and geese and modeling railroad gardens and Ed Thieler, retired orthopedic surgeon born and raised in Philadelphia, who became intrigued with the waterman culture after moving to the Eastern Shore twenty years ago. Ed Thieler helped rebuild the oyster dredge boat skipjack Thomas Clyde and shared dock space with oyster shaft-tongers, and trotline crabbers. As a result of his interest and research, Ed’s model boat dioramas accurately depict the historical and cultural context of the Chesapeake Bay environment.

March 19, 3 pm: Web Lippert, who has been building model boats as a hobby for about 15 years, and filling them with hand-crafted “deck clutter” – baskets, nets, anchors and more that helps tell the story of how the boat is used, and Don Willey, who grew up in Dorchester County and began building in 1980. His first was the three masted schooner P. T. White, and since then Don has built over seven hundred boat models that are on display all around the world.

March 26, 3 pm:  Scott Todd, model yacht builder and fifth-generation Dorchester County waterman who works out of his 46′ deadrise called Endless Summer. Scott also owns and has restored the Skipjack Lady Katie, which was first launched in 1956. For many years Scott has made and raced East-Coast 12-Meter R/C sailboats, modeled after the real America’s Cup 12-Meter Race Yachts. He has collected hundreds of contemporary newspaper photos picturing the history of the America’s Cup.

A video journey by Jim Moses will be available for viewing all month. Jim started modeling in second or third grade, inspired by his accomplished model builder dad. Jim’s naval career put modeling on hold for twenty years until shore duty brought him to Washington, allowing day and weekend trips to the Shore that fired his course towards building working craft.