Hagley Museum and Library, Wilmington, is partnering with Tsinghua University in Beijing to mount an exhibition in China in 2018.
The exhibition, featuring dozens of the museum’s nineteenth-century patent models, will travel to four cities in China beginning March 27.
“Spirit of Invention: Nineteenth-Century U.S. Patent Models from the Hagley Museum and Library” is an exhibition of American patent models that showcases stories of invention and chronicles the development of the U.S. patent and intellectual property system in the 1800s. The exhibition of patent models in China is expected to draw a projected audience of more than one million visitors.
“This exhibition and partnership between Hagley and Tsinghua University provides a unique opportunity to celebrate a shared interest in the importance of a robust intellectual property system,” said Delaware’s U.S. Senator Chris Coons. “Hagley is using this one-of-a-kind exhibition to encourage a constructive dialogue between the U.S. and China on the role of intellectual property in a modern economy.”
“Each patent model tells a story of ingenuity, invention, and the entrepreneurial spirit,” says David Cole, executive director of Hagley. Patent models, typically not exceeding 30 cm in any dimension, were often wrought by expert craftspeople with the goal of impressing Patent Office examiners. “This custom-crafted, one-of-a-kind patent models represented solutions to practical problems and were viewed as compelling works of art by the public in the nineteenth century.”
“Spirit of Invention” is comprised of 60 U.S. patent models, dating from 1836 to 1890. The models represent a broad spectrum of industries, consumer interests, and inventors.
Hagley and Tsinghua University will present “Spirit of Invention” at the following venues in China in 2018:
- Tsinghua University Art Museum, Beijing: March 27 – May 6
- Shenzhen Guan Shanyue: June 3 – June 28
- Shanghai Liu Haisu Art Museum: July 5 – August 8
- Wuhan Yangtze River Civilization Museum: August 15 – September 24
Hagley Museum and Library acknowledges the following sponsors of “Spirit of Invention” for their leadership and support of this historic exhibition: IDG Capital; The E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation; CSC; InterDigital; The Anne Carter and Walter R. Robins, Jr. Foundation; The Elmon B. Duff Charitable Lead Annuity Trust; and The Peachtree House Foundation.
Hagley will incorporate portions of the “Spirit of Invention” exhibition into a comprehensive exhibition slated to open in the museum’s Visitor Center in Wilmington, Delaware in 2020.
