The 25th Annual Dutch Connection display opens at the George Eastman Museum on February 8
The yearly floral show will be on view through February 24
Every February for the past 25 years, the George Eastman Museum presents the Dutch Connection floral show to allow visitors to experience the types of flowers George Eastman enjoyed in and around his home and to fend off the Rochester winter doldrums. This year, the museum celebrates the 25th Annual Dutch Connection from Friday, February 8, through Sunday, February 24.
The 25th Annual Dutch Connection will be a welcome treat in the midst of winter, providing a glimpse of spring with thousands of tulips, hyacinths, daffodils, amaryllis, and freesias, in various vibrant shades filling the George Eastman’s historic mansion, including the front foyer, the first and second floors of the Conservatory, the Colonnade, and the Palm House. Tropical orchids courtesy of the Genesee Region Orchid Society will also be displayed throughout the mansion.
During his residency between 1905 and 1932, Eastman ordered tens of thousands of bulbs from Holland every year. The orders were mostly for tulips, narcissus, and hyacinths for indoor forcing, and tulips for the outside beds. Eastman’s annual bulb orders were inspired by a trip he made to Holland in 1890. He was impressed by the tulip fields he saw while bicycling through the countryside. The present-day display is based on Eastman's original orders placed with Dutch bulb companies. The cultivation process began last July, with more than 13,000 bulbs growing since October.
Enhance your Dutch Connection experience by arranging a group tour, learning more from a talk and tour with the museum’s landscape manager, or attending any of the following public programs offered during the two-week event. Back by popular demand, the museum is again offering a children’s bulb potting activity during winter recess from school, February 16–24, in the museum’s Curtis Theatre, included with museum admission. In addition, the museum has added a bulb planting evening event for adults, Blooms & Brews on February 16 in partnership with Lost Borough Brewery. The Eastman Museum offers private group tours of Dutch Connection during regular museum hours. To set up a tour or for more information, please contact Stacey VanDenburgh, guest services manager, at (585) 327-4838 or tours@eastman.org.
SPECIAL PROGRAMS
Dutch Connection Coffee Talks
Saturdays, February 9, 16, & 23, 9 a.m.
An in-depth look into the making of the 25th Annual Dutch Connection bulb display. Landscape Manager Dan Bellavia will discuss various aspects of making a large flower show happen and will give a guided tour of the display. Free to members; included with museum admission. Visitors should enter through the museum’s cafe entrance for the Coffee Talks.
Focus 45 Talk & Book Signing: The Photographer in the Garden
Saturday, February 9, 12 p.m.
Jamie M. Allen, Stephen B. and Janice G. Ashley Associate Curator, will discuss the relationships between photography, botanical images, and the cultivated landscape. After the talk, she will sign copies of her book The Photographer in the Garden (Aperture/George Eastman Museum, 2018). Free to members; incl. w/museum admission. Talk only: $6 general, $3 students.
Valentine’s Day Brunch & Film
Sunday, February 10
Brunch, 9:30 a.m., Potter Peristyle
Film Screening, 11:30 a.m., Dryden
Enjoy brunch in the Potter Peristyle, followed by a screening of On the Town (Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly, 1949). Tickets: $45 per person, includes brunch and film. Reservations required for brunch: (585) 327-4935. Film only tickets available for regular admission rates at the Dryden box office. Organized by the Eastman Museum Council. Proceeds benefit the George Eastman Museum.
Live Music Performances
Sundays, 3 p.m.
February 10: Five Point Performance Company
February 17: Train Quartet
February 24: Bernardo Marcondes, guitar
Just for Kids: Plant a Bulb
**Winter Break Week**
February 16–24, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
Drop in for this hands-on activity to learn about bulbs and how to plant them. Plant one of your own to take home and watch it bloom! Recommended for ages 12 & under (accompanied by an adult). Free to members; included with museum admission.
For the past 25 years, the museum’s Dutch Connection display has been made possible by generous support from Gerald P. and Karen S. Kral. Root cellar space provided by Monroe County Parks Department, and greenhouse space provided by Lucas Greenhouses.
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