Death & Dresses
Corvallis Museum Seeks Vendors for September Farewell Event
For an evening this September, the Corvallis Museum is inviting the community to embrace the strange, the beautiful, and the macabre.
On Thursday, September 17, from 4 to 7 p.m., the museum (411 SW 2nd St) will host the final MUSE event for its acclaimed exhibition, “Death Becomes Her: Women’s Mourning Dress, 1860–1919.”
The evening will mark the exhibit’s closing with themed activities, refreshments, and a themed marketplace.
The Benton County Historical Society is now accepting applications for vendors to participate in its Market of the Strange. Organizers are looking for artists, collectors, authors, antique dealers, and makers whose work fits the event’s eerie atmosphere.
They are specifically looking for gothic-inspired artwork, Victorian-style creations, unusual antiques, handcrafted jewelry, dark florals, oddities, books, or other curiosities. The museum hopes to assemble a marketplace that complements the exhibition’s theme.
Rather than focusing on death itself, “Death Becomes Her” explores how people in the Victorian era honored loved ones through clothing, jewelry, etiquette, and ritual. Women followed carefully observed customs that dictated what they wore, how long they wore it, and which fabrics and accessories were appropriate during different stages of grief.
The exhibit was created through a partnership between the Benton County Historical Society and Oregon State University’s Historic Textile and Apparel Collection, bringing together original garments and artifacts that offer a deeper look into how previous generations expressed remembrance and loss.
After several months on display, the exhibition is preparing for its final curtain call. The September 17 MUSE event offers a last opportunity to step into a world where history, fashion, and folklore meet.
Vendor applications are currently open, with submissions due September 1. The application can be found here. Admission to the closing event is free, and attendees are encouraged to come dressed in their finest black attire.
More on the current exhibit can be found here.
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This article was written by K. Hewlitt at The Corvallis Inquirer. Feel free to send us your stories or articles to publish at: editor@corvallisnow.com
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