The year 2026 marks the 100th anniversary of Wharton Esherick breaking ground on his 1926 studio, a singular building at the core of WEM’s campus today. WEM looks both forward and back to mark this momentous occasion, exploring how the organization will evolve to ensure Esherick’s legacy remains relevant, while keeping his life and philosophy as our guiding north star. Two exciting developments welcome us into the new year: a new staff member (me!) and an award for the new publication The Crafted World of Wharton Esherick.
First, hello! I am Jenna Gilley, WEM’s new Manager of Visitor Experience & Interpretation. That’s a fancy way of saying I will likely be the first face you see in our Visitor Center and your enthusiastic tour guide. I will be working with WEM’s team to develop and manage an array of tours to ensure visitors have a fresh, personal experience every time they visit. I come to WEM with a background in interpretation and accessibility, previously serving as Associate Curator of Exhibitions at the Fort Wayne Museum of Art in my home state of Indiana. Most recently, I graduated with a MS Arts Administration degree from Drexel University. My cheesy loves: cats (specifically mine), Samoa Girl Scout Cookies, and a quality vintage find. More seriously, I love celebrating craft and craftspeople, and am honored to be a part of WEM’s truly magical space.
The other exciting development centers around The Crafted World of Wharton Esherick. This publication was produced in conjunction with the major travelling exhibition which opened at the Brandywine Museum of Art in fall of 2024 before heading to the Chazen in Madison, WI and the Taft Museum of Art in Cincinnati, OH. Published by Rizzol, the book was designed to serve as both an exhibition catalog and a stand-alone text featuring new scholarship in a series of essays alongside stunning photography by renowned architectural photographer Joshua McHugh.
We are delighted to share that the publication was awarded an honorable mention for the Charles F. Montgomery Prize from the Decorative Arts Society. This prestigious honor is given to the year’s most distinguished publication contributing to the study of American decorative arts published in the English language by a North American scholar(s) in the previous year. These opening paragraphs of an essay co-authored by Holly Gore and Emily Zilber offer just a taste of the captivating and thoughtful writing that garnered such recognition.
Built into the steep south-facing slope of Valley Forge Mountain in Pennsylvania, the Wharton Esherick Studio is a total work of art. The handcrafted building was the home, workspace, and forty-year project of Wharton Esherick (1887–1970), an artistic polymath best known for his Modernist furniture and sculpture. The architect Anne Tyng, a frequent visitor to the Studio in the mid-1950s, remembered it as a place where art was integrated with everyday life. There, art dwelt in the smooth workings of a carved wood door latch; it resided in Esherick’s movements in opening the door when he welcomed her in for dinner; and it slid along the sculpted contours of the serving bowls that he set on the table. “Even the food,” Tyng recollected, “worked with all the forms he’d done.”
Self-expression is at the heart of the Esherick Studio. From its walls and roofline to tiny details of light pulls and drawer dividers, the building beckons visitors to share in the artist’s humanity: his life stories, intellectual appetites, sense of humor, love of barns and sailboats, and understanding of sculpture as something far more expansive than a category of rarified, nonfunctional objects…
WEM would like to thank Taft Museum of Art Associate Curator Ann Glasscock, design historian Colin Fanning, design and culture writer Sarah Archer, as well as our own Emily Zilber and Holly Gore who served as contributing authors. The addition of Joshua McHugh’s stunning photographs perfectly capture the discernable warmth, texture, and color of Esherick’s studio. To pick up your own copy, visit our Visitor Center during regular tour hours once we reopen on March 1, or if you simply can’t wait, purchase it on our website.
Spring is a time of renewal. We have been hard at work resetting our spaces and preparing a robust portfolio of programs and tours to welcome (or welcome back) visitors to WEM in a couple short months. As we grow in staff and size, especially with our recent partnership with the Margaret Esherick House, we look forward to our ambitious dreams becoming reality. I hope you will join us for a groundbreaking year!
Post written by Manager of Visitor Experience & Interpretation, Jenna Gilley
January 2026