The magic of the holiday season has returned to the Brandywine Museum of Art with the opening of the Brandywine Railroad. For more than 50 years, the iconic O-gauge model train display has been a cherished holiday tradition for generations of museum visitors. On view from Nov. 18 through Jan. 7, 2024, the Brandywine Railroad features trains running on 2,000 feet of track and includes more than 1,000 pieces, such as locomotives, passenger and freight trains, and trolleys that pass through a small village, a farm, factories, a drive-in movie theater and even a carnival. Interactive components are incorporated into the display, operated by buttons and foot pedals that allow for further engagement. Also on view is a Victorian-era dollhouse, which features 11 rooms filled with hundreds of miniature objects that will delight visitors of all ages. In addition to the Brandywine Railroad, museum goers of all ages can immerse themselves in the colorful and lively works featured in Rooted: Family and Nature in Contemporary Childrens Book Illustration. On view through Feb. 28, 2024, this special exhibition explores the enduring bonds of nature and family through a selection of more than 75 original artworks created with a variety of media for eight illustrated childrens books. The artists represented in this major presentation are Micha Archer, Sophie Blackall, Cozbi A. Cabrera, Joe Cepeda, Devon Holzwarth, Juana Martinez-Neal, Frank Morrison, and Qing Zhuang. Also on view is Abstract Flash: Unseen Andrew Wyeth, which features 37 never-before-seen watercolors that highlight Andrew Wyeths surprising interest in the abstract art of his contemporaries and the roots of his own practice in abstract methods. Adding to the holiday festivities, the Brandywines whimsical critter ornaments will once again adorn the trees in the museums atrium. Each year since 1971, these distinctive ornaments have been carefully handcrafted by a dedicated group of volunteers using only natural materials such as teasel, pinecones, acorns, eggshells, flowers and seed pods. Thousands of classic Critter favorites and fanciful new creations will be available for purchase during the annual Holiday Critter Sale, held offsite this year at the nearby Chadds Ford Historical Society from Nov. 30 to Dec. 3. A smaller selection of critter ornaments are also available for purchase online and can be shipped across the country by visiting www.brandywine.org/critters. Beginning Friday, Nov. 24, through Jan. 7, 2024, the museum will be open seven days a week for extended holiday hours, from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (closing early at 1 p.m. on Christmas Eve and closed on Christmas day). Support for the Brandywine Railroad is provided by The Davenport Family Foundation Fund for Exhibitions, Chase, and James S. Herr Family Foundation. The museum is located on Route 1 in Chadds Ford, Pa. For more information, call 610-388-2700 or visit www.brandywine.org/museum.