Destination Vermont

VERMONT

DESTINATION VERMONT

P

ulitzer- and Nobel-prize-winning author Pearl S. Buck once noted about her adopted state, “Vermont is a jewel state, small but precious.” And it’s true, especially if you enjoy art. Rumor has it that the Green Mountain State has almost as many art galleries as towns. Artists abound here, inspired by the landscape, with its mountains, lakes, spectacular fall foliage and bucolic farms. Galleries and museums offer a range of artistic experiences, from traditional to contemporary, from paintings and photography to folk art and sculpture. It’s indeed a jewel waiting to be discovered.

Start your art tour in Brattleboro, in the southeast corner of the state. The quaint town has a thriving arts and cultural scene thanks in large part to the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center.

A non-collecting contemporary art venue, the museum features six exhibits, one in each of its galleries. “We try to strike a balance showcasing our region’s artistic talent,” says director Danny Lichtenfeld. Among the exhibitions continuing through June 16 are Sandy Sokoloff: Emanation featuring the Vermont artist’s large-scale, vibrantly hued paintings; Amy Bennett: Nuclear Family, paintings based on 3D models created by the artist; and Glasstastic 2019, a show of glass sculptures by New England artists, inspired by drawings submitted by 1200 children (the drawings are shown alongside the sculpture).

A short walk from the museum is Mitchell • Giddings Fine Arts, a gallery owned by artists Petria Mitchell and Jim Giddings.

Showing innovative works by mid-career and established artists, the gallery’s schedule includes, through June 9, a solo show of watercolors by David Rohn. “Most of the paintings are still lifes and they’re very large—up to seven feet long,” says Giddings. “He rebelled against the art world’s expectations of abstract paintings he did in the ‘70s. Now he paints what he sees—he calls it ‘stalking still life’.”

Opening June 15 is an exhibition of large-scale woodblock prints by New Hampshire artist Lyell Castonguay, featuring avian subjects and “weird creations from his fertile imagination,” says Giddings. Castonguay is also the founder of Big Ink, a travelling project that he takes around the country, encouraging students and interested artists to try large-scale woodblock printing.

50 Art New England

|

May/June 2019

|

Southern Vermont Arts Center Campus.

A little further down Main Street is Vermont Artisan Designs, a fine art and contemporary American craft gallery that’s showcased the work of several hundred New England artists for 40 years. In 11 galleries on two floors are paintings, sculpture and handmade crafts, including glass, jewelry, pottery, wrought iron, fiber art, lamps and furniture. This May, the gallery participates in Vermont’s Open Studio weekend May 25–26, featuring landscapes in oil by Claire Payne, who’s based in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, as well as interiors and landscapes by Carol Gobin, whose paintings reflect her interest in architecture and historical homes. In June, the gallery features contemporary paintings and sports portraits by painter Dane Tilghman as well as landscapes by Woody Jackson. The gallery is also a stop on Brattleboro’s First Friday Gallery Walk.

Wind your way west along Route 9 (also known as the Molly Stark Byway), past the famous three-state-overlook at Hogback Mountain, through the Green Mountain National Forest, to the town of Bennington,

Celebrating 40 Years!

named one of the “Top 40 Most Vibrant Arts Communities in America” by the National Center for Arts Research. An anchor of the artistic community is the Bennington Museum, which has the largest public collections of 19thcentury Bennington pottery and paintings by American folk artist Grandma Moses. Presented together this summer are two shows examining Modernism: Color / Gesture: Early Works by Emily Mason, opening May 11, features early works on paper by the abstract artist, who attended Bennington College; and Color Fields: 1960s Bennington Modernism, opening June 29, focusing on pioneering artists in Color Field-based sculpture and painting, including Pat Adams, Helen Frankenthaler and Jules Olitski. Up Home: HandColored Photographs by Susanne and Neil Rappaport, continuing through June 11, is an intriguing look at one family’s life, captured in the 1980s by photographer Neil Rappaport (his wife Susanne hand-colored the photographs).

Notice any of the exhibition banners at the Bennington Museum? Chances are they were produced by GVH Studio, Inc., a large-format

S P E C I A L

A D V E R T I S I N G

S E C T I O N

VERMONT graphic fabricator a short walk away from the museum. A part of the community for 12 years, the studio produces exhibit graphics, banners and signage for a variety of art museums, galleries and cultural organizations in and around Bennington but also further afield in the central Berkshires. “I spend a good deal of my time traveling throughout the region,” says owner Greg Van Houten. “Some days I’ll be in five different galleries or museums, with world-renowned art. It’s fun to see our work next to art you’d see in an art history class.”

Hop on Route 7 north for the 30-minute drive to Manchester, a year-round outdoor destination.

Culture abounds, too. Sitting on 100 wooded acres at the foot of the Taconic Mountains, is the Southern Vermont Arts Center. Founded in 1922,

this busy venue, open year-round, offers rotating fine art exhibitions, a large outdoor sculpture park, acres of hiking trails and art classes for all ages. In the center’s Wilson Museum, from May 11 to June 23, is Unusual Threads: Stitching Together the Future of Fashion, exploring sustainability within the haute couture fashion industry. “It’s a real conversation starter about sustainability and what designers are doing to recycle textiles in the fashion space,” says gallery director Anna-Maria Hand. Included in the show are evocative pieces

by Manhattan designers Natalia Martinez Sagan and Terry Singh, Albany, NY, designer Anna Polesny, and more. Other exhibitions include wildlife-themed paintings by members of the Vermont Watercolor Society from May 18 to June 30 as well as solo shows in the Yester House

Gallery, beginning May 25, by a variety of artists, including sculptor Ruck Goldreyer, crochet artist Susan White, and painter Lynn Pratt.

Continue north on Route 7 to The Carving Studio & Sculpture Center (CSSC), located in a former marble quarry in West Rutland. Visitors can explore the studio’s on-site sculpture garden, set among the former manufacturing facilities of the Vermont Marble Company. A nonprofit organization, the CSSC hosts its annual members’ exhibition June 8 to July 14. Also on view is Ladies-in-Waiting, paintings by Rita Fuchsberg that explore the experiences of women on death row.

Workshops and residencies offer hands-on experience shaping sculpture from various materials— including stone, wood, bronze, clay, steel, glass an more—using a variety of techniques.

LESLIE FRY SCULPTURE GARDEN By appointment | Winooski, VT LESLIEFRY.COM

MITCHELL • GIDDINGS

AMY BENNETT NUCLEAR FAMILY March 9−June 16, 2019

Composing Form on view June 22 - August 24, 2019

E x h i b i t i o n s E d u c a t i o n C o m m u n i t y Open daily 11-5 • Closed Tuesdays

www.brattleboromuseum.org

S P E C I A L

A D V E R T I S I N G

S E C T I O N

helenday.com | Stowe, VT | 802.253.8358 Gallery hours: Tue-Sat 10am - 5pm Cristina Córdova, “Cabeza IV,” 2018. Ceramic. Image courtesy of the artist and Ferrin Contemporary

May/June 2019

2019_Destination_Vermont_ANEad.indd 1

51 | Art New England 4/12/19

4:11 PM

VERMONT An hour east of Rutland, follow Route 4 past the ski town of Killington and turn north on scenic Route 100 to the small town of Rochester and the BigTown Gallery. This vibrant gallery offers a range of visual, literary and performing arts, and exhibitions. Running May 8 to June 23 in the Main Gallery is Grasp the Sparrow’s Tail, a reference to artist Cathy Cone’s tai chi practice. Cone’s photography is related to her own personal environment, says gallery director Anni Mackay. “It has an alchemical quality to it,” she says. Featured in the Center Gallery during the same time period is Pilgrimage, the first-ever gallery show

by Jason Horwitz, whose works on paper mix watercolor and enamel, even glitter. “He’s a seeker and his imagery reflects his religious

Peter Miller’s Photo Salon and Gallery

journey,” says Mackay. Sculptures and drypoint prints by Paul Bowen are featured May 15 through June 16 in the Projects Gallery. In the same gallery, opening June 19, are paintings

by Rob Fish.

Continue north on Route 100 then take a scenic drive through the mountains on Route 125 to the quaint college town of Middlebury.

Downtown is the Edgewater Gallery, with two locations: Edgewater Gallery on the Green and Edgewater Gallery at the Falls, in Frog Hollow Alley. In the Gallery on the Green, during May, is Kathryn Milillo: As It Were. Milillo is a popular Vermont landscape painter, says gallery manager Theresa Harris. “She paints clean landscapes and barns, she’s a beloved artist from around the area,” Harris says. Rural Vermont is also the

focus of the gallery’s June show, The Enduring Landscape, by photographer Jim Westphalen and featuring his summer-themed landscapes and barnscapes. New Hampshire block print artist Matt Brown is the focus of the May show, Working with Wood and Water, at the Gallery at the Falls. Using Japanese printing techniques with water, Brown’s prints are “ethereal and interesting,” says Harris. In June, the location hosts Natural Grace, with floral still life oil paintings by Jill Matthews and abstract landscapes by painter Hannah Bureau.

Drive north out of Middlebury to Vergennes, the state’s oldest city. Located in the charming downtown, steps from pretty Otter Creek, is Northern Daughters. Owners Justine Jackson and Sophie Pickens opened the gallery in 2016.

JUNE 22– OCTOBER 20, 2019

An intimate gallery of large color and black and white prints, a library of select coffee table publications, and Peter’s collection of his awardwinning books.

Featuring photographs

and paintings from over four decades of the

renowed artist’s work.

shelburnemuseum.org

Located at 20 Crossroad, two houses south of Ben & Jerry’s, on Route 100.

10% off off purchases at the gallery Call for an appointment: 802.272.8851 email: peter@petermillerphotography.com www.petermillerphotography.com.

52 Art New England

|

May/June 2019

|

William Wegman, Handstanding (detail), 2011. Pigment print, 22 x 17 in.

Courtesy of the artist and Sperone, Westwater, New York.

Celebrating 40 Years!

WILLIAM WEGMAN Outside In S P E C I A L

A D V E R T I S I N G

S E C T I O N

VERMONT During May and June, the gallery features New Growth, a show that “celebrates the stunning change of season in Vermont,” says Jackson.

“It’s important to us to let our artists follow their own instincts and see what comes, not dictate their direction or ask them to recreate pieces that worked in the past. It also acknowledges the ways artists are pushing the boundaries of their work, reaching past a familiar place or comfort zone.” Participating artists include Anne Cady, Julia Jensen, Bonnie Baird, Pamela Smith, Susanne Strater and Hannah Secord Wade, representing a variety of styles and mediums.

In July, the gallery features the abstract paintings of Rose Umerlik.

A short drive north on Route 7 is the Shelburne Museum, an eclectic art, historic and cultural museum with 39 exhibition buildings that’s open year-round. Opening June 22 is William Wegman: Outside In, a 40-year retrospective of the artist’s fascination with the natural world, featuring photographs of his beloved Weimaraner dogs as well as drawings, portfolio pages from a recent book and postcard paintings. “We’re thrilled with this show because his work touches people in so many ways,” says marketing and communications manager Geeda Searfoorce. “This show features different aspects of his work and he’ll attend the public opening on June 22.”

Continuing through August is Harold Weston: Freedom in the Wilds, featuring works by the modernist painter and social activist who was dubbed “the Thoreau of the Adirondacks.”

Summer events include a classic auto festival June 15 and 16.

Just up the street from the Shelburne Museum is Furchgott Sourdiffe, owned by Joan Furchgott and Brad Sourdiffe. Housed in a colorful Victorian house, the gallery has been in business for 28 years. In addition to their eclectic group of artists, the gallery features a show this summer of impressionist landscapes and still lifes by Vermont painter Elizabeth Allen. There’s also an annual group show happening June 14 through July 23, featuring up to 17 artists. Later in the summer, the gallery features abstract landscapes in oil

by Bonnie Acker. “We’re the oldest commercial gallery in Chittenden County,” says Furchgott (Sourdiffe does custom framing and restoration).

“We’re a gallery that artists really appreciate because of the quality of the work shown. Our

S P E C I A L

A D V E R T I S I N G

S E C T I O N

shows aren’t predictable, either. We show a lot of abstraction and things in between.”

It’s only ten short miles to Vermont’s largest city, Burlington. Perched on the shores of Lake Champlain, the city is one of New England’s liveliest cultural centers, with museums, galleries, live music and theater, shops, restaurants and much more—in other words, a perfect place to spend the night. The 124-room Hotel Vermont, located midway between the busy Church Street Marketplace downtown and the city waterfront, has a modern vibe that’s also very Vermont.

Unique touches include natural wood decorative finishes, furnishings and fine art created by local artisans, in-room beauty products from a local company, and three of Burlington’s top restaurants—Juniper at Hotel Vermont, Bleu

Northeast Seafood and Hen of the Wood—all within steps of the front door.

Awake refreshed and ready to pick up your art journey. Just across the Winooski River from Burlington is the historic mill town of Winooski.

Tucked away behind hedges, next to her studio, is the otherworldly sculpture garden created by artist and sculptor Leslie Fry. Inspired by the intersection of the natural and man-made worlds, Fry’s paintings and sculpture have been exhibited around the world. Her sculpture garden, open by appointment, has been what Fry calls a work in progress. “The sculptures are hybrid forms of plants, human body and architecture, they’re integrated into the landscaping,” she says. “Our environment and connection with the natural world are important themes in my work.”

EDGEWATER GALLERY Vermont • Boston • Montana

99 North Main St • Rochester, VT 05767 • bigtowngallery.com

FURCHGOTT SOURDIFFE

contemporar y & traditional fine ar t established & emerging ar tists from vermont & beyond Elizabeth Allen, Clouds Over Button Bay

86 Falls Road, Shelburne, VT 802.985.3848 • fsgallery.com

May/June 2019

| Art New England 53

VERMONT Visitors can glimpse Fry’s works-in-progress, which include two-dimensional pieces and interior sculptures, in her studio, which is also open by appointment.

Off Interstate 89, about 30 minutes southeast of Winooski and up the Green Mountain Byway (Route 100) is Peter Miller Photography, next to the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream plant in Waterbury.

Miller, an 85-year-old photojournalist, is known for his evocative black-and-white photos of Vermonters, published in six books by his imprint, Silver Print Press. His gallery was recently expanded to include a space featuring large-size photographs and never-before-displayed prints, depicting half a century of Vermont’s rural culture, including Vermont people and landscapes as well as views of France, the American Plains,

nature and animals. “I’m basically a journalist and documentarian, not a fine art photographer,” says Miller. “But people really like my black-andwhite photography.” While in the gallery, you can browse Miller’s photo archive on a 56-inch flat screen monitor, thumb through his personal collection of photography books, and discuss photography with Miller himself.

Continue along the scenic Green Mountain Byway to Stowe, a ski town with an artistic flair. The Helen Day Art Center has been a cultural center of the community since 1981, exhibiting the work of artists from around the world and offering art classes to students of all ages. Housed on the second floor of a late 19th-century building, above the Stowe Free Library, the Center reopens May 1 after several

months of renovations. The annual student art show opens May 1, featuring the works of K–12 students from area schools. From June 22 through August 24, the Center features three new exhibitions: Dusty Boynton: Reliefs, the first show of her whimsical reliefs—painted and cut figures on wood; Suzy Spence: On the Hunt, curated by Amy Rahn, and featuring figurative paintings with conceptual undertones about relationships and feminism by Suzy Spence; and Composing Form, a group exhibition of contemporary ceramics by artists Robin Best, Cristina Córdova, Sin-Ying Ho, Sergei Isupov, Kadri Pärnamets, Thara Thacker and Jerilyn Virden.

A mile up Mountain Road is the West Branch Gallery and Sculpture Park, an

experience a great selection of quality New England artists

6 Elm Street, Woodstock, Vermont 05091 / 802.457.2012 / www.woodstockgalleryVT.com

Fine Display Graphics

Robert J. O’Brien, AWS, NWS, Hollyhocks, watercolor.

Fine Art & Contemporary Craft 106 Main St. Brattleboro, VT vtart.com 802-257-7044

54 Art New England

|

May/June 2019

|

Celebrating 40 Years!

S P E C I A L

A D V E R T I S I N G

S E C T I O N

VERMONT

S P E C I A L

A D V E R T I S I N G

S E C T I O N

• WORKSHOPS •

more “aren’t typically bucolic,” says Compton) with Chapla’s contemporary images of Vermont.

Be sure to venture upstairs, too, to browse vintage finds from Compton’s recent trips out West, including Navajo and Hopi jewelry, Pendleton blankets, even cowboy boots.

Venture two hours south, out of the Northeast Kingdom, to South Pomfret, in the Connecticut River Valley. Here, ArtisTree, a community arts center, offers all types of art experiences: visual art, theater and music as well as year-round classes, workshops, performances and events. From May 17 to June 1, ArtisTree features abstract paintings by Humberto Ramirez, a multimedia artist and curator who is a professor of art at Vermont’s Landmark College and the Vermont College

of Fine Arts. Ramirez’s paintings “are very vibrant and allude to nature,” says Marie Cole Cross, the gallery’s director of marketing and communications. Opening June 14 is TRIO: Exploring Dementia, an exhibit of pastels and watercolors by artist Betsy Goldsborough, all created during her battle with Alzheimer’s disease. After moving to Vermont, she joined painting classes at ArtisTree. “She was a professional artist and painted right up until two weeks before she passed away,” Cross notes.

From South Pomfret, it’s only a five-minute drive to the historic town of Woodstock, with its quaint town green, Colonial-era buildings and busy downtown. The Woodstock Gallery has been part of this pretty town’s business community for 25 years, highlighting the

• RESIDENCIES •

indoor/outdoor space showcasing contemporary sculpture and fine art in various media by emerging and mid-career artists. From May 4 to June 1, the gallery features contemplative, abstract paintings by artists Janis Pozzi Johnson and Charlie Bluett alongside ceramic artist Jennifer McCurdy’s sculptural, hand-thrown porcelain vessels in Biding: Exploration of Quiet Expectation.

Bluett’s paintings often reference the ebb and flow of life, says gallery director Stephanie Gueldner.

Johnson’s work is visual poetry, Gueldner notes, “a stunning accumulation of layers of oil paint applied over three to four months.” From June 8 to July 6, contemporary landscape paintings by Helen Shulman and Kevin Kearns are featured in With Insight/Within Sight. Take time to explore the large stone, steel and bronze sculptures in the outdoor sculpture park, adjacent to the gallery.

Return to Route 100 and continue north to the small town of Greensboro, on the aptly named Breezy Avenue, is the Miller’s Thumb Gallery.

Encompassing two floors of a former grist mill, not far from Caspian Lake, the gallery blends fine art and craft. You’ll discover a wide range of fine art, fashion and craft, from stone sculpture and handcrafted furniture to jewelry and homemade beeswax candles. “The gallery has really been embraced by the community,” says Vanessa Compton, who co-curates the gallery with director Anna Weisenfeld. “We love our artists.”

Beginning May 10, the gallery features art by many Vermont artists in Cumulus, two of whom are Ben Barnes and Robert Chapla, which contrasts Barnes’ work (his images of overgrown yards, Victorian homes, old cars and trucks, and

www.carvingstudio.org

May/June 2019

| Art New England 55

VERMONT work of more than 20 artists from New England and beyond. Starting this summer, the gallery presents colorful house paintings by Scott Tubby, a Rockport, MA-based painter and potter (he’s known for using a unique burnishing and saggar firing technique in his ethereal art pottery). Also shown at the gallery: Woody Jackson, creator of Vermont’s iconic cow paintings; Jeanne Amato, whose woodblock prints and solar plate etchings beautifully capture Vermont’s landscape and ever-changing seasons; witty sculpture made from recycled metal by Jean Pierre Schoss and colorful ceramics by Martha von Ammon.

Interested in a hands-on experience with art? An hour south of Woodstock, The Putney School, in Putney, is a progressive boarding school for arts-aware teens. Its summer Adult

Studio Week, part of its summer arts programming, attracts attendees from around the country.

This one-week residency, August 4 through 10, offers instruction to adult artists of all skills during seven workshops: blacksmithing, creative writing, metal jewelry, glass arts, fiber arts, painting, and, new this year, children’s book writing and illustration. It’s an opportunity to fully immerse yourself in creative pursuits. “The workshops are from 9 am to 4 pm but studios are open 24 hours so students can work at their own pace and produce as much as they want,” says Dan Folgar, summer admissions manager.

The school also hosts musicians from the Vermont Jazz Center at the same time, so students can enjoy jazz performances throughout the week.

Art New England - Exhibit Ad 032519.qxp_Layout 1 3/26/ A

HISTORY INNOVATION

A

75 Main Street 802-447-1571 Bennington, Vermont HISTORY INNOVATION

Finish your Vermont art tour by traveling west to South Newfane. This pretty area is home to the Rock River Artists, a collective of professional artists residing in and around the Rock River. Every summer, the 17 members of this talented group—representing a variety of disciplines including painting, pottery, printmaking, custom furniture, photography, textiles, collage, mosaics and ironwork—open their studios to the public for the Rock River Artists Tour. Founded by potter and painter Carol Ross and photographer Christine Triebert, the tour happens the third week of July (this year’s tour is July 20 and 21). “July is a prime time to be in Vermont,” says Triebert. “Many of the artists open their whole properties up for people to visit, so you can

HISTORY INNOVATION

Visit the studios, homes and gardens of 17 artists in the Rock River region of Southern Vermont

ART HISTORY INNOVATION

Fields of Change: 1960s Vermont June 29 November 3

Humberto Ramirez Opening reception May 17 at 5:30pm May 17 - June 1

Color Fields: 1960s Bennington Modernism June 29 December 30

Rock River Artists Tour

Sat + Sun July 20-21

rockriverartists.com 802-348-7440

CUMULUS On view May 10th–July 14th Opening Reception Friday, May 17th 4–6pm

ALSO ON VIEW

Contemporary and Outsider Art 20th Century Modernists Paintings by Grandma Moses Early Vermont History

TRIO: Exploring Dementia

56 Art New England

|

May/June 2019

|

.

Opening Reception Friday, May 17th 4–6pm

Opening reception June 14 at 5:30pm June 14 - July 6

MILLER’S THUMB GALLERY

Witness the transition of 3 artist's work as their dementia progressed.

Set in a historic grist mill by Caspian Lake

GREENSBORO, VERMONT

FINE ART . JEWELRY . VINTAGE FASHION CONTEMPORARY CRAFT

benningtonmuseum.org for full exhibition schedule Vietnam Moratorium Rally, 1969 (detail). Photograph by Greg Guma Paul Feeley (1910-1966). Untitled (Green Eye), 1962 (detail). Oil-based enamel on canvas, 48 x 60 inches. Private Collection

On view May 10th–July 14th

artistreevt.org | 2095 POMFRET RD, SO. POMFRET, VT

Celebrating 40 Years!

www.millersthumbgallery.com Open daily: 11am–5pm @millersthumbgallery Visit us: May 10–October 31

On view S P E C I A L

A D V E R T I S I N G

S E C T I O N

VERMONT see more than just art on the walls.” The tour starts at the Old Schoolhouse in South Newfane village, where 12 participating artists present a group show.

Vermont offers an abundance of art experiences for travelers willing to explore its quiet country landscapes, quaint towns, and scenic byways. Travel this small jewel of a state, discover what inspires its artists and artisans, and you’re likely to find something to inspire yourself, too.

—Debbie Kane

Summer daylilies at Shelburne Museum by Karen Pike. The Dentzel Carousel, a nearly 100-year-old gem in the museum’s collection, delights visitors looking for a whimsical ride in the warmer months.

HELEN SHULMAN

then check everything out

Burlington, VT - hotelvt.com

S P E C I A L

A D V E R T I S I N G

S E C T I O N

west branch galler y sculpture park f i ne contemp or a r y a r t & scul p tur e . sto we vermo nt

May/June 2019

| Art New England 57