U.S. National Sporting Library Announces Planning of Museum of Sporting
Art at Vine Hill, Virginia

The Board of Directors of the National Sporting Library has announced
plans to establish the Museum of Sporting Art at Vine Hill.  
Neighboring the Library, this museum will offer intellectually
stimulating exhibitions that complement its mission in preserving and
sharing the literature and art of horse and field sports. Sporting art -
a genre which has existed for centuries in many cultures including the
United States and Great Britain - has drawn increased attention from
museums, scholars, and collectors in recent years.

Vine Hill, a Federal brick structure built in 1804, served as the home
of the National Sporting Library and The Chronicle of the Horse for
forty years from 1959 until 1999. The Library acquired Vine Hill through
the bequest of the George L. Ohrstrom, Jr., who served as Chairman of
its Board of Directors until his death in 2005. Architect Hardee
Johnston of Scottsville, Va. has provided a feasibility study to convert
Vine Hill into a museum of fine art. Plans call for the construction of
a new entrance hall and increased exhibition space. A capital campaign
is underway to raise funds for construction and an ongoing operating
endowment. Construction is planned to commence in
2009 with the opening of the new building slated for late 2010.

The new Museum of Sporting Art at Vine Hill will be among the few
museums of art in the world committed to the visual culture of horse and
field sports. The museum 92s goal will be to raise awareness of the
importance of sporting art in the development of regional, national, and
international cultures over the last 400 years. The Board has named F.
Turner Reuter, Jr. of Middleburg as Curator of Fine Arts and Ingrid
Cartwright, Ph.D. of Remington, Va. as Curatorial Assistant. A
carefully-planned exhibition program will present the finest examples of
painting and sculpture relating to field sports accompanied by
catalogues researched from the Library 92s comprehensive  book and
manuscript collections. The museum will not only exhibit important and
dynamic works from its permanent holdings but also traveling and loan
shows from other noted institutions including the Yale Center for the
British Art in New Haven, Conn.; the National Museum of Racing and Hall
of Fame in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.; the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in
Richmond, Va.; and the Sir Alfred Munnings Museum in Dedham, England.
For more information on fundraising for the museum, contact Nancy
Parsons, President and CEO at 540-687-6542. For general information,
visit the Library 92s website at www.nsl.org.

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