Lite bites and cocktails were served to 100 guests followed by a dinner at the Esplanade on Worth Avenue, the Historical Society of Palm Beach County (HSPBC) announced a grand exhibition coming to the Richard and Pat Johnson Palm Beach County History Museum.
Rick Rose the Worth Avenue Association Historian spoke about the local history of the area. Greg Beletsky, the president of the Worth Avenue Association, thanked guests for attending and shared information about the Association and its partnership with HSPBC.
Notables included exhibition Guest Curator Cameron Silver, Exhibition Chair Sonja Stevens, Janet Himmel, Sarah Wetenhall, Krystian Von Speidel, Christine Schott and George Ledes, Sydney Sadick, Brooke Kosinski, Brooke Murray, Taylor Materio and Jeremy Johnson of the Historical Society of Palm Beach County.
Silver made the announcement on behalf of the Historical Society, that the museum would display fashion history in Endless Summer: Palm Beach Resort Wear from November 2023 through May 2024. Resort wear evolved as a type of fashion after Henry Flagler’s railroad started bringing visitors to the subtropical South Florida climate in 1894. As Palm Beach County grew into a popular resort destination, the heavy winter clothes of northern travelers became untenable. Resort fashion emerged as Palm Beach Style.
Endless Summer will feature artifacts and photographs from throughout the 20th century, including the work of famous designers and those they dressed, including Palm Beach society, European royals, and pop culture icons. A new lecture series called “In Conversation With …” will expand on the subject with icons from the fashion industry.
Sponsors for Thursday’s cocktail hour included Capehart Photography, Esplanade Palm Beach, Gunster, Kilo Content, Maxwell’s Plum, Meyers Lucas Real Estate, and The Scout Guide Palm Beach.
The dinner was presented by Chairs Cameron Silver, Stacey Leuliette, and Grace Knowlton Hyde. Contributions from Stubbs & Wootton, Lilly Pulitzer, Renny & Reed, Joey Wölffer, Island Kitchen catering, and Atlas Event Rental helped make the event exceptional.
Dress Description: Gold and Black dress designed by Baroness Lilliana Caprara ca.1970s, Velvet purple dress by Arnold Scaasi ca. 1980s, Ram-head patterned dress designed by Lilly Pulitzer ca.1960s, Couture mauve dress designed by Vera Wang, Purple and Gold Paisley brocade skirt and blouse with embroidered gold vest Designed by Adolfo, worn and donated by iconic philanthropist Jean Tailer ca.1990s.
The Historical Society of Palm Beach County is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to collect, preserve, and share the rich history and cultural heritage of Palm Beach County. The HSPBC maintains a large archive on the history of Palm Beach County, Florida, and the Caribbean. Through its archives, which includes four million photographic images, plus maps, newspapers, journals, periodicals, architectural drawings, and research files, the Society maintains an active research facility and documents the people and events that have shaped Palm Beach County. In addition, the multiple education programs and initiatives of the Society in schools and communities are of primary importance to our vision of building an understanding and appreciation of local history in our children.
After the Historical Society was formed in 1937, West Palm Beach attorney A. Stanley Bussey donated a vintage black-and-white photograph of an island street scene to the newly established Society, the first gift to what would become a remarkable collection of artifacts and documents representing the cultures and communities, failures and successes of life in Palm Beach County.
The creation of the Richard and Pat Johnson Palm Beach County History Museum in 2008 finally allowed the collection to fully serve its critical purpose: to share and showcase the rich history of Palm Beach County and the larger context of Florida’s heritage dating back at least 12,000 years.
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