Welcome to The Hand Fan Museum
ABOVE: A painting, Lady Reading the Letters of Heloise and Abelard, c.1780, August Bernard d’Agacy (1756-1829)
current exhibit
Love is in the air
February- march | Exhibit Hours: Friday-Sunday, 12-5pm | Admission Free
Elegant and Expressive
Love Is in the Air explores the language of love through the elegant and expressive art of the fan. This exhibition features fans depicting the many guises of Cupid, specific wedding fans, and objects associated with courtship—including a French REBUS fan designed to convey hidden messages of affection.
A final section, Thwarted Love, reveals stories of passion and loss through fans inspired by enduring legends such as Cupid and Psyche, Fair Rosamond and Henry II, and Heloise and Abelard. Together, these works offer an intimate glimpse into how love—celebrated, coded, and sometimes denied—was expressed in the past.
ABOVE: Iconic Hand Fan Dress at The Hand Fan Museum
comming in march
A Little Tribute to Jane Austen in remembrance of her birthday, December 16, 1775
Below is a little snippet from a past exhibit honoring her and the fans she might have experienced.
* Lithography is a printing process that uses stones and/or metal discs to print each color separately.
Visit The Hand Fan Museum In Healdsburg CA
Every society has used a hand fan of some sort. From palm fronds to feathers-from beautifully painted works of art to jewel encrusted, gold plated objects of incredible value. Fans were used in fashion, religion, battle and ceremony. Why there is even a language devoted exclusively to the hand fan! Fans tell the stories and histories of the cultures and individuals who used them. Art, culture, geography and history - all in the palm of your hand.
The purpose of the Hand Fan Museum is to provide educational and cultural enrichment to the public by utilizing the hand fan as a vehicle for teaching history, art and geography, via publications, lectures and the establishment of a museum where actual hand fans from around the world will be exhibited.The Hand Fan Museum brings cultural and artistic history from around the world to Northern California. The museum is a jewel box-small in size but not in purpose. It is the first museum in the United States dedicated solely to hand fans and displays a permanent collection, as well as a rotating exhibit, that tell, often in beguiling detail, the stories of the cultures and individuals who used them. This endeavor is intended to be both educational and fun - bringing enjoyment to participants of all ages.
