Historic City Hall Arts and Cultural Center will host an opening reception for two new art exhibitions on Friday, July 13 from 5:30-8 PM. The event is open to the public with free admission and refreshments will be served. “Childhood Classics: 100 Years of Children’s Book Illustration” and “Andrew Wyeth Collection” will both hang through September 15.

Children’s books are created to educate and entertain young readers – to start them off on a lifetime of reading enrichment and enjoyment. They are also historical touchstones, reflecting and visualizing the history and the values of the era they are written in. “Childhood Classics” presents the illustrations and the illustrators that brought these stories to life.

With over 140 original works included from over 75 books, the exhibition explores the history of children’s books from the turn of the century pen and ink Mother Goose art of Sarah Noble Ives, to the most popular works of today including the digital creations of Mo Willems. The exhibition features the original art of Dr. Seuss, the iconic Wild Things of Maurice Sendak and the perennial heroism of Garth Williams’ Stuart Little. Among the many classic illustrators featured are Rosemary Wells, Richard Scarry, Chris Van Allsburg and Hilary Knight. Fondly remembered characters of literature include Babar, Eloise, Madeline, the Cat in the Hat and Dick & Jane. Extensive wall labels illuminate the works.

CHILDHOOD CLASSICS was curated by Lois Sarkisian and Lee Cohen, the co-founders of Every Picture Tells A Story, an innovative and influential gallery of original art from children’s books in Los Angeles. The exhibition was organized by Landau Traveling Exhibitions in association with Art Kandy.

Also opening is an exhibition consisting of seven collotypes by Andrew Wyeth (1917-2009), one of the best-known U.S. artists of the middle 20th century. Wyeth was a visual artist, primarily a realist painter, working predominantly in a regionalist style. His favorite subjects were the land and people around him, both around his hometown of Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, and his summer home in Midcoast Maine.

While visiting the center, don’t miss “Shoreline Symphony” on view through August 18. Historic City Hall is open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is free, but donations are gladly accepted. Charlestown Farmers’ Market is open on Bilbo Street behind the center every Saturday 8 a.m.-noon. For more information, please call 491-9147 or visit www.cityoflakecharles.com.