THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2024 – THURSDAY, MAY 22, 2025

​​Ships of the Sea will unveil Sea of Ink: Savannah Maritime Tattoos, an extraordinary exhibit showcasing the art and cultural significance of tattoos. Featuring more than a dozen Savannah-area tattoo artists and over 30 maritime tattoo collectors, Sea of Ink highlights tattoos as a meaningful art form and cultural movement.

With one-third of American adults having at least one tattoo, this visual language is rich for exploration. Sea of Ink presents the tattoo not just as body art, but as a powerful instrument for storytelling. Tattoos tell stories that often are deeply meaningful to the collector, and are a result of an artistic understanding between the tattoo creator and the collector.​​

Experience the Exhibit:

• Cultural Insight: Explore tattooing as a visual language and art form.

• Artistic Appreciation: Admire the intricate designs and craftsmanship.

• Stories: Learn about Savannah’s history of maritime tattooing.

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Exhibit Elements:

Savannah-based photographers Thomas Sanders and Mike Schalk bring the exhibit to life:

• Thomas Sanders photographs tattoo collectors, showcasing their maritime tattoos.

• Mike Schalk captures tattoo artists in their creative environments.

‘Venice and the Ottoman Empire’ brings more than 100 artworks from Venice’s largest and oldest museums to Telfair for a rare glimpse into this intriguing center of exchange. It features paintings, costume, textiles, leatherwork, metalwork, and ceramics from the 15th through 18th centuries that are not often exhibited outside of Italy, including works recovered from a shipwreck. Visitors also will learn about how these historical designs inspired 20th-century textile and fashion designer Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo to create the luminous fabrics that are still manufactured in Venice and prized by connoisseurs today.

Drawn from Telfair Museums’ permanent collection, Primary: Artists Working in Red, Yellow, and Blue explores how artists have utilized primary colors in adventurous ways to elicit brilliant experiences. Featuring works by Roy Lichtenstein, Ellsworth Kelly, and Joan Miró, these energetic and dynamic compositions introduce viewers to the expansive possibilities of a simple palette.

‘Tideland’ is an exhibition of black and white photographs by Savannah-based photographer Parker Stewart (b. 1992). Taken between 2020 and 2024, these evocative photographs document the coast of Georgia by transporting the viewer into the visceral and primordial atmosphere of the barrier islands and inland waterways.

“Old Chan Magic: Chinese Roots, Southern Branches,” a new exhibit curated by Davenport House Museum Executive Director Danielle Hodes and featuring a wide range of historic photography, will open at Historic Savannah Foundation’s Murray C. Perlman and Wayne C. Spear Preservation Center, located at 323 E. Broughton St., on Thursday, January 16 and run through May 2025.

The exhibit shares the fascinating story of the Chan family who lived in the iconic 1820 home when it operated as a tenement in the early 20th century, before the Davenport House was saved from demolition and renovated as a 19th-century house museum. “Old Chan Magic: Chinese Roots, Southern Branches” expands the narrative at the Davenport House, marking the first exhibition that has focused on the period in the 20th century when the home operated as a tenement building.

“Old Chan Magic” will explore the life and legacy of the Chan family in Savannah in the early 1900s. This exhibition features rare photographs and stories that reveal the daily lives of the Chan family, their business endeavors and their experience as part of a growing Chinese-American community in the South in the early 20th century. Through these images, visitors will discover a unique perspective on the intersection of Chinese heritage and Southern identity during a pivotal time in Savannah’s history.

In 1889, Robert Chung Chan became one of Savannah’s first Chinese immigrants. Robert and his wife, Annie, lived in the Davenport House from 1901 to 1902 while operating a Chinese laundry in what is now the Historic Kennedy Pharmacy. Their story embodies the broader experience of early Chinese immigrants in America while uniquely reflecting Savannah’s cultural landscape, shaped in large part by Robert’s leadership, influence, and social connections.

The “Old Chan Magic: Chinese Roots, Southern Branches” exhibit will be on display from January 16 through May 2025. The exhibit is free and open to the public. To learn more, please visit davenporthousemuseum.org.