Since opening its doors at the corner of Airport Road and Highway 89 in 1994, the Dufferin County Museum and Archives has received more than 15,000 donations.

Some of these objects demonstrate the skills and ingenuity of our early furniture makers and potters; others the artistic abilities of local quilt makers and dressmakers. Donors have presented us with a variety of items that tell lesser known stories: relics from train wrecks; advertising from forgotten stores or businesses.

The theme for this anniversary exhibit of the Dufferin County Museum and Archives reflects experience as a museum during the past 15 years. It's Glitz, Kitsch, Funky and Fun! It is the unusual ... the simple ... the colourful ... the countless representations of the past: each tells a story without labels or words.

Artifacts specifically chosen for this exhibit are items that are unusual and unique. Many have never been used in an exhibit due to their unusual nature or inability to fit into a theme. We have putty pots made of bits of broken china and quilts made in patterns that are unique in form colour choice.

There are funny pictures of kids doing crazy things and portraits of ancestors with faces like apple dolls. Some items are purely sentimental and may re-awaken a tender memory for the viewer. And some objects are pure kitsch, the remains of Dufferin's pursuit of pop culture in a given era. They range from cupie dolls and swagger sticks to lava lamps and Chalet glass, with a whole array of tacky souvenirs in between.

All the donations are linked in some way to the people of Dufferin County, past and present. Each tells a story of a person or a place. Often items are donated to represent the people who owned them. But, the story may not always be what is expected.

Glitz, Kitsch, Funky and Fun opened Sunday, July 12, and will be on display for the remainder of 2009.