Saturday, June 30, 2012

PRESS RELEASE: North Chittenden Women's Art Collective at Jackson Gallery at Town Hall Theater in Middlebury


 

White on White with Touches of Color
June 29 - August 13
Artists' Reception Friday, July 13 from 5 - 7 pm is followed by a gallery talk at 7pm.

Jackson Gallery at Town Hall Theater, Middlebury

The exhibit features paintings, monoprints and fiber art by members of The North Chittenden Women's Art Collective, including Althea Bilodeau,  Bonnie Baird, M. Elizabeth H. Holland, Gabrielle McDermit, Jeannie Podolak, and Kathryn Milillo  - a group of emerging women artists from Rutland County who have actively collaborated to strengthen and support their artwork. 

The Artists' Reception Friday, July 13 from 5 - 7 pm is followed by a gallery talk at 7pm. The one hour talk is part of the Speaker Series "Vermont Women in the Arts" presented by the Middlebury Studio School and funded by a grant from the Vermont Committee of the National Museum of Women in the Arts. The artists will discuss how the women's art collective works for them as a group and impacts their individual artistic journey.

The Jackson Gallery is located at 68 South Pleasant Street, Middlebury. Hours are noon - 5 pm Monday - Saturday, and one hour before each THT performance.

Images: Bonnie Baird ,Twin Elm Series IV -  From Where I Am; M. Elizabeth H. Holland, Would You Like a Bite

PRESS RELEASE: Aaron Stein Exhibits at Vintage Inspired Lifestyle Marketplace in Burlington


Vintage Inspired Lifestyle Marketplace on Flynn Avenue in Burlington is pleased to announce an exhibition entitled Junkyard Treasure in July 2012 of work from Vermont artist Aaron Stein, who creates assemblages from found objects. The exhibition opens with a reception on First Friday, July 6th from 5-8pm, and runs through the month of July. Vintage Inspired is located at 180 Flynn Avenue, and is open Tuesday – Saturday from 10am to 5pm, Sunday from 12pm to 4pm and closed Mondays.

Vermont artist Aaron Stein is a passionate motor-head struggling to accept that the "Golden Age of the Automobile" has past. To Stein, that alluring golden age viewed through a rear view mirror informs his current work, which incorporates found objects such as toys, tarnished chrome, cast iron, rust, and vintage license plates to tell stories, depicting the impact car culture has on contemporary life.

Stein draws inspiration from the Surrealist and Dada movements- particularly Marcel Duchamp, the organized chaos of Edward Klineholtz, Robert Rauschenberg, Arman, and his favorite artist, Joesph Cornell. In an artist statement, Stein states, “they have all shown me how to tell my stories using provocative assemblages. I feel compelled to produce my work, almost like an obsession. My constructs are created from common objects that combine to express a very personal view. Having worked in many mediums, and enjoyed each one, I feel fortunate to have discovered the freedom of assemblages and constructions. Drawing, painting, sculpting, collecting found objects, photography, wood and metal working, buying toys, wrecking toys- all are now part of my creative process. All my glass, plywood, metal, and most other materials I have scavenged because it is important to me to reuse material wherever possible.”

Aaron has exhibited his work all over the region, and regularly sells his assemblages at local art and craft shows, including the Burlington City Arts Artist Market on Saturdays in City Hall Park. Find more information about the artist’s work at www.revivalstudio.com/.

Images: 59 Heavy Metal, 6" x 12" x 3", cast iron, 2012; Any time now, 15" x 18" x 4", working turntable, paint, toy car, 2000 & 2012

CALL TO ARTISTS: $100 Art Sale at Local 64 in Montpelier

$100 Art Sale

For one day this summer Local 64 will be transformed into an art bazaar. Your works in any media, all formats, made available for $100 or less. Participation is super easy; here are the details: For $25 you can have a 3 x 4 foot space available (yes, you can purchase more than one space!); For $50 you can have a 2x3 foot table top and 3x4 foot space. You pack your area to the gills with as much great art as you think you can sell for less than $100. We’ll help with marketing and refreshments. If you have some great art that you want to part with, sign up! More details at: http://local64.com/100dollarart

Sale takes place on Saturday, August 25, 2012 • 10:00am to 5:00pm


Local 64 is a coworking space for creative professionals in downtown Montpelier, Vermont. Our goal is to help tech, arts, entrepreneurial, and community oriented people find each other, work together, generate new ideas, and share those ideas with the larger community.

Image: Local 64 in its first month, with works by Amy Brandt and Rachel Sophrin on the walls.

PRESS RELEASE: Dottie Ferone & Judy Pagnucco at The Gallery at Equinox Village in Manchester Center


Dottie Ferone & Judy Pagnucco


Long-time friends Dottie Ferone (painter) and Judy Pagnucco (sculptor) will exhibit together at The Gallery at Equinox Village in July. Their work celebrates the natural world, light, and things they find beautiful.

Gallery Opening Event: Thursday, July 19, 2012, 5:30 p.m.
The exhibit will be open until August 13.

PRESS RELEASE: New Exhibits at BCA Center in Burlington


David Stromeyer - Equilibrium: Career Retrospective



Vermont-based artist David Stromeyer's monumental-scale sculptural works twist, bend, fold and flow. In this exhibition Stromeyer, a nationally acclaimed creator of outdoor sculpture, transforms Burlington's City Hall Park into an outdoor sculpture environment. Along with dramatic steel sculptures from his 200-acre sculpture park and studio in Enosburg, Vermont this exhibition will feature a retrospective of his 40-year career on the first floor of The BCA Center.



Emergence: 
Champlain College MFA Class of 2012
June 29 - September 29, 2012
BCA Center, Second Floor

This exhibition will celebrate the art of the first graduating class of Champlain College's Emergent Media MFA program. Featuring innovative digital projects alongside traditional media, the exhibition will focus on art at the intersection of the Internet, mobile networks and other crossroads of human interaction in this new digital age.

Artists include: Jeremy Smith, Stephen Keetle, Kevin Murakami, David Stiller, Hilary Hess, Jacob Neville, Tara Gordon, Coberlin Brownell, Christina Rosalie.

CHANGES: Carving Studio and Sculpture Center Reports Death of Keiko Van Guilder

 From the Carving Studio and Sculpture Center:

We mourn the passing of our beloved friend Keiko Van Guilder on Sunday, June 24. Keiko became involved with the Carving Studio and Sculpture Center in 1998 as translator for Japanese Artist in Residence Masaharu Suzuki. She was thrilled to share her skills as an Ikebana master and taught a series of inspirational classes here. She generously opened her home to individual workshop participants, as well as artists visiting from Peru, Kenya and Japan, for several years. Our love and support go out to Keiko's family in their time of loss.

Cards and letters of condolence may be sent to the family at 109 Whipple Hollow Road, West Rutland, VT 05777. The Carving Studio and Sculpture Center will celebrate her life at the opening reception for the Emerging Sculptors Exhibition on Friday, July 16 at 6 PM.

CALL TO ARTISTS: Public Art Installation in Bennington

The Vermont Arts Council has announced an opportunity for artists interested in creating public art at the Courthouse and State Office Buildings in Bennington, Vermont to submit their qualifications for consideration. The invitation is open to visual artists as well as craft and design artists (or artist teams) in all media who are currently legal residents of Vermont; Bennington county artists are encouraged to apply. The selected Lead Artist will be awarded a $5,000 planning and design contract, then, $35,000 will be available for the fabrication and installation of identified aesthetic treatments. Applications are to be submitted by Thursday, July 12 2012 by way of http://vac.slideroom.com. There is no submission fee. The awardee will be selected by a committee.

The selection committee is looking for ideas that reflect one or more of the following qualities and characteristics: a spirit of community, cooperation, collaboration and service; a sense of justice and equity; a sensitivity to the environment and nature; or transformations and new beginnings. “The areas outside and nearest the main entrance are especially suitable for public art,” explained Michele Bailey, the Director of the Council’s granting program. “There is also an opportunity to relate artwork at the main entrance with artistic enhancements near the exterior rear employee entrance. Of course, treatment in other public spaces near the building would also be given consideration.”

The Vermont Art in State Buildings Act (No. 267 of 1988) was passed by the State Legislature, with strong support from Vermont artists, communities, and businesses, in recognition of and in answer to the need to encourage the work of Vermont artists to enhance and preserve our cultural environment and to provide artistic enrichment for Vermont citizens and visitors. Since 1988, more than two dozen projects in different locations around the state have contributed to artistic environments of distinction that provide enjoyment to and are a source of pride for all Vermonters.   

To learn more about the Art in State Buildings program or to ask questions about the project and the selection process visit http://www.vermontartscouncil.org/  or contact Michele Bailey at mbailey@vermontartscouncil.org

PRESS RELEASE: 75 Year Retrospective Exhibit of D’Ann Calhoun Fago at Studio Place Arts (SPA) in Barre


A retrospective of D’Ann Calhoun Fago’s artistic lifetime, spanning 75 years, will be exhibited in the third floor gallery at Studio Place Arts (SPA) from July 17 to September 8, 2012.  The show includes 29 watercolor, ink, graphite, and oil works on paper or board, beginning in 1936 and including a recent drawing that D’Ann made for her son, John, during the winter of 2012. 

D’Ann’s subjects during the early phase of her artistic career, in the 1930’s, provide a rare glimpse of the people who lived in rural Kentucky where she grew up.  Her paintings and drawings from this period depict men and women struggling amidst economic and social hardships; they are knowing portraits.

Using forceful black ink lines, D’Ann captured 3 spirited men in Kentucky Brothel (1936), one emptying a bottle of hooch into his mouth, another gesturing with his clenched fist in the air, while one man watches. She used short, quick strokes of her black ink pen to capture the raucous mood of the room.

At a later date using similar dark ink lines, D’Ann drew a group of glass jars standing in rows in Canning Jars on Pantry Shelf (1976), in which the carefully placed jars rest on the corner shelf, next to other containers waiting to be filled.  The jars could be filled with sweet Southern peaches or spicy tomato sauce; these details are unclear while the order and comfort of country living is in full view.

D’Ann’s paintings in oils and watercolors include portraits, rural garden settings, and ordered domesticity.  An early portrait, Man on Porch, Hazard, Kentucky, (oil, 1938) shows an older, suspendered man, resting on a rustic, wooden bench with his arms crossed.  His facial expression suggests a brief rest after a hard day’s work, after many days of many years of hard work.  His face reveals satisfaction.

D’Ann painted portraits of her neighbors while living in New York.  She used brown, earthy tones and broad strokes of her watercolor brushes to capture a sturdy, working woman Bronx Portrait (1967), in a brown dotted dress pausing by the door with a fresh up-do, possibly in her Sunday’s best.  Another coffee-toned painting from the same period, Bronx Couple (1967) shows a woman wearing a plain kerchief while speaking to a man. The massive man looks away, appearing to be lost in remote thoughts.

The 75 year retrospective or D’Ann Calhoun Fago’s work shows a variety of people, places and everyday objects with arresting authenticity.  Meet D’Ann at the opening reception at SPA on Friday, July 20 (6-8 PM).

Background:  Born Dorothy Ann Calhoun in Lexington, Kentucky in 1917, with art training from the University of Kentucky, and an MFA from Columbia University, D’Ann studied under modernist painter Edward Fisk.  She hop-scotched from Kentucky to New York City, to an artist colony in upstate New York, and then settled in Bethel, Vermont with her late husband Vincent Fago, former editor of Marvel Comics.  D’Ann strongly believes in art as a tool for social change; early in her career, she worked extensively with rural people in Georgia via the Meader pottery family.  Later, as a back-to-the-land artist, D’Ann used her keen management and warm interpersonal skills in her role as Director of the Vermont Art and Crafts Service during the 1960s and 70s.  She is broadly acknowledged as a founder of Vermont’s crafts movement.  Funding for the Vermont Art and Crafts Service was abruptly severed in 1977, and afterwards, D’Ann settled into pursuing her own artwork.  D’Ann recently participated in the Hale Street Gang: Portraits in Writing project, and she works often in her rural studio in Bethel with sweeping views of her gardens and local mountains.


Images: D’Ann Fago in her studio; Canning Jars on Pantry Shelf, ink, c. 1976; Man on Porch, Hazard, Kentucky, oil on board, c. 1938. Photos of the artist and her artwork are by Jack Rowell.

PRESS RELEASE: Vermont Watercolor Society Annual Juried Awards Exhibition at The Chaffee Art Center in Rutland

The Chaffee Art Center is hosting the 2012 Annual Vermont Watercolor Society Awards Exhibition. The exhibition will open on July 13 and run through August 18, 2012 with a reception on Saturday, July 28, from 4-7 pm. The reception will feature music, hors d'oeuvres, and wine. The 2012 awards juror is Stephen Quiller. On Saturday July 14, from 2-4 pm, there will be a watercolor demonstration by Peter Huntoon, a Vermont Watercolor Society Member, and Chaffee Juried Member. Entrance to the Chaffee Art Center, opening receptions, and demonstrations is free, donations are always appreciated.

Image: Pawlet Church, Peter Huntoon

PRESS RELEASE: Eby, Gruhler and Stark at White Water Gallery in East Hardwick

White Water Gallery, at 5 River Street in East Hardwick, Presents:

Directions: Line, Space and Color,  Recent work by Lois Eby, Paul Gruhler, and Kathy Stark.   Opening reception on July 15, 5 - 7 p.m

The exhibit runs July 15 - August 19. Gallery hours are every Sunday from 11AM - 3PM or by appointment at 802-563-2037

Friday, June 29, 2012

Press Release: Bryan Memorial Gallery features pastels, Jeffersonville



THE PASTELISTS
In its Main Gallery
July 13 – September 3, 2012
Opening Reception:  Sunday, July 15

Bryan Memorial Gallery presents THE PASTELISTS, a juried exhibition in its Main Gallery, Friday, July 13 – Monday, September 3, 2012.  This exhibition features 80 by 42 artists working in the pastel medium.  
All artists in this exhibition are members of Bryan Memorial Gallery, and their work was selected for the exhibit by a jury of artists all of whom work in pastel.  

Often relegated as a “minor artist’s tool,” there has been a renaissance of interest in pastel artworks in recent years.  With exhibitions, magazines, competitions and collections abounding nationwide, the pastel medium has come into its own in the 21st century.  With the recent record-breaking auction of an iconic work by Edvard Munch, The Scream, a pastel, for $120 million dollars, the medium has truly risen out of the dust as a major art form.  

The opening reception is Sunday, July 15.  At 2 PM: An Artists Roundtable will feature four artists, discussing their studio practice.  A reception in honor of all the artists is from 3 – 5.  There is no admission charge for the roundtable or the reception or the exhibition.   

The gallery is open daily, 11 - 5 and by appointment at any time.  Bryan Memorial Gallery is at 180 Main Street, Jeffersonville, Vermont.  802-644-5100.  A preview of the exhibition can be seen at www.bryangallery.org.  Click on exhibitions.  
Contact:  Mickey Myers, Executive Director, 802-644-5100, mickey@bryangallery.org





Press Release: Furchgott Sourdiffe looks at birds, Shelburne

F S Gallery (Furchgott Sourdiffe) will be exhibiting "BIRD" ,a show of work by four accomplished Vermont artists : Don Hanson, Valerie Hird, Beth Robinson, and Adelaide Tyrol. The exhibit opens with a publicreception for the artists on Friday, July 13th, 6-8 p.m. and continues through August 14th. Adelaide Tyrol is the curator for this exhibit which explores the bird kingdom through reality, myth, fantasy, and intuition.Here is how she describes the show:

“All four artists in this exhibition look well beyond the avian bird form and  deep into an exploration of how birds are part of our collective psyche. Since the beginning of time - through art, science, mythology, childhood memories, and daily life,-birds have populated our explanations of the world. The desire to imbue birds with supernatural powers is a universal one and time and time again we call on them to bridge a gap between the known and the ineffable. I like to think of each of these pieces as avatars- enigmatic beings that work in different ways to clarify and enrich our understanding of the world ”
Don Hanson is an abstract painter, printmaker and photographer. His work addresses a respectful exploration of man’s association with nature. Hanson draws much of his inspiration and images from observing the marks, textures and patinas of natural forms. Unpredictability and experimentation are integral to the work - often giving it a raw and primitive quality.
Valerie Hird is a Vermonter with creative ties to the people and countries of the Middle East and Central Asia where she has worked and traveled for 25 years. Her work explores cultural mythologies and the roles they play in Eastern and Western societies. Inspired by Farid Attar's (Persian poet 1177) 'Concourse of the Birds', she has created a new contemporary myth describing the role birds play in an on-going concept of creation.

Beth Robinson is a self-taught artist who starting making "Strange Dolls" in 2003. While she has dabbled in a variety of mediums, it was the discovery of polymer clay that allowed her to combine her interests in sculpting, painting and sewing and gave her a concrete foundation of expression in the form of "Strange Dolls". Common themes that appear in her work are: anthropomorphism, alter ego, and fantasy. As Robinson notes: “I love testing perceptions of the beautiful and sublime with my work.  Dolls represent precious things, sentimentality, innocence and I am attracted to manipulating people's natural response to the doll form by pairing it with the grotesque."

Adelaide Murphy Tyrol lives and works in Vermont and New York City Her work often explores ideas and intuitions she has about the confluence of the  natural world and the human enterprise. The sumi-e pieces on exhibit at Furchgott-Sourdiffe arose from a recent exploration of the art of falconry and the attendant theme of prey and predator.

Furchgott Sourdiffe Gallery is located at 86 Falls Road, in Shelburne Village. Hours are Tue-Fri 9:30-5:30, and Sat 10-5.For more information call 985-3848, write: mail@fsgallery.com,, or visit
the website at www.fsgallery.com

Images (top to bottom): Adelaide Tyrol, Predator sumi-e on Yupo; Beth Robinson (Strangedolls),Harold and Henrietta, mixed media; Valerie Hird Hoopee, 9 x 12 inches (image size),watercolor, gouache, ink, gold leaf on BFK paper

Thursday, June 28, 2012

PRESS RELEASE: Tica Netherwood at Green Bean Visual Art Gallery at Capitol Grounds, Montpelier, VT



Tica Netherwoods, a Charlotte VT resident, brings a unique visual of the outer world through usage of a variety of mediums including acrylics, watercolor paint, and pencil.  Her unveiling of images, such as folds of a casually draped quilt, lights translating through a prism, or the glints of water reflecting the remnants of a red dish; permeates her expressions to the outer world.  

Journey & End exhibits Tica’s visceral translation of these images with her ever growing exploration of juxtaposed colors “to bicker or take to the dance”.  

Her work will be exhibited at the Green Bean Visual Art Gallery in Capitol Grounds June 29th  – July 29th, 2012. For more information visit:  'Fans of Green Bean Visual Arts Gallery' on facebook



Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Press Release: New Edgewater Gallery show, Middlebury



Edgewater Gallery is proud to present July’s Featured Artist of the Month, oil painter Sara Katz, as she uses exhibition space to explore the idea of terrarium as idyllic microcosm through exaggerated and abstracted presentation in a collaboration with her brother, installation artist Elliott Katz. 

Proposing the terrarium as an example of human’s desire to control the landscape while also fulfilling a universal passion for nature’s beauty, Katz and Katz unveil their exhibition, with its melding of water, woods, and glass, at Edgewater Gallery on July 1, and celebrate its opening on Friday, July 13, from 5-7pm during the Middlebury Arts Walk. 

Sara and Elliott grew up in Cabot, Vermont on a vegetable farm/greenhouse  nursery. Sara now lives and paints in North Ferrisburgh, and serves as Assistant Director for Burlington City Arts, where she has worked since 1999. Elliott practices art in Burlington, Vermont and is managing director of Seven Below Artist Initiative, an artist residency in Westford, Vermont. 

Featured Artist of the Month: Sara Katz, in collaboration with Elliott Katz, is on view through July 31. For more information call 802.458.0098, email shawna@edgewatergallery-vt.com, or visit www.edgewatergallery-vt.com.

Press Release: EXPOSED 2012 exhibition at Helen Day Art Cnt. Stowe


Exposed 2012 Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition

presented by Stephen & Petra Levin and Helen Day Art Center
July 13, 2012 – October 13, 2012

Helen Day Art Center proudly presents the 21st year of Exposed. This outdoor sculpture exhibition features 15 artists and collaborations presenting over 30 sculptures and installations throughout the town of Stowe, Vermont. Opening Reception is July 13th at 5:00p.m. and Walkabout is July 13th at 6:00 p.m.
Local and international sculptors have installed work along Main Street, the Recreation Path, and on Helen Day Art Center’s property. Monica Herrera, from Mexico City, was chosen by this year’s jury and curator to be the featured artist. She spent two weeks in Stowe installing wind chimes throughout Stowe. She explains her piece, titled Bells:
For centuries bells have been located at the center of public culture, as markers of significance in funerals and weddings, calls to mass and to town hearings, calls to war, and warning about natural disasters. Their sound has had countless meanings across times and places, but their voice has always had the same power to connect people.
The remaining artists in the show are a mix between local (David Stromeyer*, Enosburg Falls), national (Anthony Heinz May, Oregon/NYC), and international (Leonidas Chalepas, Greece) to create a well balance survey of contemporary public sculpture.
Five local and national creative writers have written a collaborative poem, called a renga, under the direction of writer m. pinchuk (San Francisco). This poem is displayed on five storefront windows throughout the town and is thematically specific to summer and fall in Stowe.
Continuing the tradition of parallel events, Exposed will host five performances on Thursday evenings at 6p.m. at Helen Day Art Center. Throughout the duration of the exhibition these events will enliven the show and expose other forms of artwork. This year includes the popular soprano and guitar duet, Gretchen Farrar and Francisco Roldán; Polly Motley, choreographer and dancer; Yajet K.M., performance artist; and a collaborative improvisational dance and piano performance by Robert Grundstein (piano), Hanna Satterlee (dance), Joseph Schine (dance), Marly Spieser-Schneider (dance), and Lida Winfield (performance director). For more information see helenday.com/exposed.
Cellphone audio tours; QR codes; walkabout tours; a full color catalogue with images and descriptions; and a comprehensive map cohesively work to create a more accessible exhibition, engaging the anticipated 75,000 visitors.Curated by Rachel Moore


Images:Monica Herrera, Bells, 2012; Jiwan Singh, The Ark, 2012


Monday, June 25, 2012

CALL FOR INPUT; Proposed Art Facility for Morrisville


River Arts is researching the creation of a new arts facility in Morrisville that would provide dedicated space and equipment for ceramics, metalworking, glass, printmaking, digital media and other creative endeavours that the River Arts Center cannot currently accommodate. The proposed project would also provide space for the performing arts, 2D and 3D exhibition space, and studios that could be rented for personal use by artists. 

Would you like to take your interest in ceramics, sculpture, printmaking, etc.  to the next level?  Are you a parent of children who would like to take studio classes?  Do you need a place to weld?  Are you an artist in need of studio space outside your home? River Arts is launching an online survey, as part of a larger feasibility study, to assess the interest and needs of the community and help guide planning. The 10 minute survey may be found at the River Arts website www.RiverArtsVT.org … we need your feedback!

If you have further questions about this study or our vision for this project, please contact Steve Ames at River Arts - 888-1261 or info@riverartsvt.org . River Arts is a nonprofit organization dedicated to enriching the community through the arts, located at 74 Pleasant Street in Morrisville, VT.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

CALL TO ARTISTS: SculptFest 2012 in West Rutland

The Carving Studio and Sculpture Center invites sculptors to submit proposals for SculptFest2012, September 8-October 21. The theme for this year's outdoor installation event is "Keep on Keepin' On," guest curated by Adam Frelin, Artist and Assistant Professor of Art, SUNY University at Albany. Please visit here for Adam's discussion of the theme.

Proposals should include a project description on one or two pages, sketches or other visual representations, resume, optional statement and up to ten digital images portraying previous site-specific work. Applications are due July 20, 2012. Materials will be returned if accompanied by a self-addressed envelope with sufficient postage.

PRESS RELEASE: Carol Lippman at Two Rivers Printmaking Studio in White River Junction

The July exhibition at Two Rivers Printmaking Studio is Trail Markers and Seasonal Signs: New Prints by Carol Lippman.

There will be an opening reception with refreshments and live music on July 6, from 6 - 8pm at Two Rivers Printmaking Studio in the Tip Top Media Building at 85 North Main St, in White River Junction.

Carol is a printmaker who divides her time between New York and Vermont. Carol writes that she loves "the outdoors: the lines, the colors, the smells, even the detritus of those who have traveled before me. Walking and ordering the landscape, mapping the surface, photographing the flora, smelling and feeling the air--allows my mind to shift from the three-dimensional to the two-dimensional representation of the world of my walks. My hikes are enriched by the presence of my dog and the myriad misadventures he gets into along the way.

My recent work involves the development of a personal language that uses mapping and unique marks and symbols to record our trips along the trails. Changes--seasonal, weather-related, or man-made--get translated into my own language. I invite the viewer to join me and my dog in the evolving pictorial adventure, as well as the hikes and share our discoveries."

Image: Structure IV

PRESS RELEASE: Nicholas Heilig at Studio Place Arts (SPA) in Barre

Nicholas Heilig’s Exhibition, Live Art, on view at Studio Place Arts through July 8, is at once overwhelming and refined. Heilig, using a limited palette of black and white, depicts current political themes and events with the spare, direct detail of a Japanese woodcut and the power of street art. The result is a commanding group of drawings that more than fill the space in the second floor gallery.

The depictions range from oddly comforting figures like Tony the Tiger, Mr. Peanut, and Big Bird, all cheerfully dropping little black bombs, to the more sinister silhouettes of armed soldiers with the words “Make Sense not War” superimposed on their bodies. The politically charged subject matter, and the fact that the works were done to music as part of a live performance, makes the almost serene aspect of these paintings quite amazing.

Heilig, a native Vermont artist living in Burlington, is currently working as both an artist and as Backwood MC, combining visual art and music by performing his craft live. He says, "I'm the guy on the microphone keeping the crowd hyped/performing hip hop lyrics to whatever the DJ I'm working with fancies to play!" The works on display were created during various live music performances around Burlington.

In addition to the works on the walls, all done in acrylic, marker and ink on acid free foam board, Heilig has available small prints for the very reasonable price of $10 each and larger prints for $50 each.

Don’t miss the opportunity to take in this exhibit, along with the main gallery show (sc-EYE-nce – a science and visual art fusion) and the installation (Digital Topographies) by Karolina Kawiaka on the third floor. All three shows run through July 8.

Image: Heilig creates Live Art at SPA.  Photo Credit: Jack Rowell

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Press Release: Corrina Thurston at the Aldrich Library, Barre

Corrina Thurston started drawing two and a half years ago when she was diagnosed with a chronic illness. Now she spends her 'good' time drawing, and specializes in colored pencil. Most people are shocked to find out that her preferred medium is colored pencil, as it often takes on the look of a painting.

Corrina is holding her First Opening Reception at the Aldrich Library, Tuesday June 26th, 5:30-7pm. She currently has about 30 pieces of art on display in the Milne Room of the Library, which is located in downtown Barre, VT. Light refreshments will be available, greeting cards will be for sale, and it is one of the rare opportunities to meet this artist.

This display will be up through July 18th, with many of the pieces for sale, or able to be made into prints. For more information about Corrina, email her or go to her website:
www.corrinathurston.com

PRESS RELEASE: Ian Creitz at Bennington Museum


 “My photographic interests are at polar opposites.  On one side is urban decay and the other is a natural beauty of the surrounding landscapes”    Ian Creitz

Opening June 30 in the Regional Artists Gallery at the Bennington Museum is Decaying Landscapes, works by Ian Creitz.  Looking at both urban decay and the natural beauty of surrounding landscapes, the artist invites the viewer to see both through his lens.  Although sometimes contrasting in content, both create striking images.  The show will be on view until August 11.  Visit with the artist on June 30 from 3:00p.m.to 4:30 p.m. in the Regional Artist Gallery of the Bennington Museum.

Always interested in photography, Creitz would find himself playing with cameras, binoculars, basically anything that would allow him to view the world through a lens.  During high school, he took a course in black and white photography and film developing.  Upon acquiring a digital camera, his exploration of the world through a lens became slightly more intensified, but it wasn’t until years later that Creitz realized the power of the camera by working with one in a manual mode.  That along with studying composition, and the mechanics of photography brought the artist’s work to another level.  Creitz remarks, “With my work thus far, I have tried to capture the contrast between natural and man-made to show how nature will ultimately overtake our own trappings when we leave them alone: out of crumbling walls come twisting vines; from floors, plants root and spring up; all about, bugs and small animals take residence wherever they can. In spite of this contrast, I hope to show how a similar beauty can be found in both my natural and architectural images.”


“I have been fascinated by photography since childhood, when my father would let me borrow his old Minolta so I could take pictures around our property and in the village of Cambridge, NY.  The idea of photographing locales distant from my hometown excites me, but I have found that there is nonetheless a wide array of interesting and highly photographable material within this relatively small radius: on the rolling hills around Cambridge can be seen numerous green and luscious farmlands, while farther away, in the cities of Albany and Troy, we find a mixture of buildings old and new, many dilapidated and crumbling, covered in graffiti. Cambridge itself is home to a few old-but-charming structures – most notably the old Mary McClellan Hospital, which I have shot extensively, both inside and out.” states the artist.

Most recently his work has been on exhibit at venues which include Southern Vermont Art Center, Manchester;  Barret Art Center, Poughkeepsie, NY; Landscapes for Landsakes, Cola, NY; Cambridge Hotel, Cambridge, NY; and Cambridge Antique Center, Cambridge, NY.

PRESS RELEASE: Century-old Historic Factory Building in Springfield Opens with Large New Exhibition Space


For years, the Fellows Gear Shaper Building has loomed rundown and derelict along the Black River, a symbol of Springfield’s former glory as the machine tool capital of the world. The factory’s hidden creative possibilities were just waiting to be discovered.

Now, nearly 40 years after the old factory closed its doors, those possibilities are about to be revealed. The 160,000-square-foot sprawling complex has a new name, a new look and a new purpose. The building, now known as One Hundred River Street, has been transformed into Vermont’s newest venue for the arts. Inside, the Great Hall, a splendid, soaring space is about to be inaugurated as a great new venue for the arts, capable of showcasing large artwork and sculpture, performance art, dance, music and lectures.

With the building’s multi-million-dollar renovation nearly completed, the public is invited to the unveiling of the Great Hall at a reception slated for Friday, July 20, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at One Hundred River Street. The first group art show, Emergence, features works by artists from around Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine and includes sculpture, stoneware, tapestries, mobiles and more.

With a soaring 25-foot ceiling and clerestory windows, the 150-foot-long by 45-foot-wide world-class public art space is unique in the region and will accommodate and compliment very large artwork and sculpture. When word got out about the Great Hall, via the Vermont Art Council’s website and other ways, the response was immediate from artists who had a difficult time finding display places for their extra-large work. “Within one month, a two-year lineup of shows was complete with both locally known artists and those who are more widely recognized, such as Fran Bull and Sabra Field,” Jamison said.



Even before completion, the space spiked the creative juices in every artist who toured the Great Hall. Sculptor Carolyn Enz Hack decided to use her grant from the Vermont Community Foundation to create a sculpture in the Great Hall rather than at the more established Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. She is among the artists who are featured in the first exhibit, Emergence. Others include Patty Sgrecci of Brandon, mobiles; Rich Hearn of Chester, oil on canvas; Scot Borofsky of Brattleboro, enamel on linen; Robert Carsten of Springfield, pastel; Robert O’Brien of Perkinsville, watercolor; Oliver Schemm of Saxtons River, sculpture; Carolyn Enz Hack of Thetford Center, sculpture; Stephen Procter of Brattleboro, stoneware, and Tapestry Weavers in New England (TWiNE): Suzanne Pretty of Farmington, NH; Betsy Wing of Hartland; Sarah Robbins Warren of Jefferson, NH; Priscilla May Alden of East Boothbay Maine and Eve S. Pearce of Bennington, VT.

In addition to the Great Hall, the mixed-use facility will include a medical center and space for retail and restaurants. Located on the Black River upriver from the impressive Comtu Falls, which cascade 110 feet down over a series of drops, One Hundred River Street stands at the entrance to the Designated Downtown of Springfield. A new 16’x32’ historic mural by artist Jamie Townsend covers part of a long neglected building, an artistic “stepping stone” between the Great Hall and the heart of downtown. Historical information on the 1800’s Springfield to Charlestown NH Stagecoach is mounted next to the mural.

Images: Nina Jamison, Project Coordinator and Eric Tinkhauser, Project Manager, discuss the finishing touches to the Great Hall; Scot Borofsky, The Story Of Fresh Water, 84"x172"; Sarah Warren, CanyonWalls, 24'x29.5'

PRESS RELEASE: Henry Erickson’s Ink Drawings at Festival Gallery in Waitsfield

The Festival Gallery in Waitsfield, Vermont presents Connections: Works in Ink, a show of the photography and ink drawings of Henry Erickson. The exhibit opens Saturday, June 22nd and runs through July 29th at the Festival Gallery.

His images of stark trees or mist-covered mountains conjure up ancient Japanese drawings.  They complement his landscape photography by drawing you in and evoking a sense of place that reveals the beauty and simplicity of our world.   “My ink drawings and photos are meant to point to the unseen web of connections to the world around us,” states Waitsfield resident, Henry Erickson.

Carp (at left) in particular stands out.  Set on a clean white background and with both light and strong brush strokes, the fish stares at you as it jumps through the air. Erickson became interested in pursuing this style of drawing as an extension of his Buddhist practice, which calls him to produce art.  He has furthered his studies through a number of brush-painting workshops and studying in Middlebury.  His yearning for connection with the world around him led from photography to ink drawings as an expression of his spiritual journey.

The Festival Gallery is located at #2 Village Square, next to the Tempest Book Store.

Stone Truck Project to be Unveiled in Maple Corner

Chris Miller funded a sculptural project called The Stone Truck through Kickstarter, and it’s due to be unveiled this Saturday June 23rd from 2-8pm in Maple Corner.  Chris says people are welcome –bring a bathing suit and a side dish if you like.

The intention of the project was to create a sculpture to be built roadside among the maples and the tall grass in the rural setting of Maple Corner, a small village in central Vermont, as if it had been abandoned there years ago. The site in Maple Corner is home to a vibrant arts community, neighborhood theater and dancehall, annual celebrations and tournaments, music festivals and an emerging sculpture park.

Miller says, “I’ve always been drawn to the relics of past industry, and every little town in Vermont is blessed with rusty old farm trucks, abandoned and overgrown right where they came to rest. In 1974, a college art class at Cornell created a stone VW randomly placed at the edge of some field. The professor believed that art should be found anywhere. I couldn’t agree more. I’ve never been to see it and may never get to. But I am really glad that it is somewhere for folks to enjoy. This project is created in the same spirit.”

PRESS RELEASE: EMFTM at Winooski Welcome Center

On Saturday, June 23 at 3pm Katie Green, Director of the non-profit organization En Masse for the Masses (EMFTM), will be at the Winooski Welcome Center, hosting an informal information session about EMFTM and the collaborative drawing/painting initiatives that they facilitate in partnership with schools and communities across Quebec.  She will give a brief presentation and then there will be plenty of time for questions, discussions and introductions.


En Masse For The Masses (EMFTM) is the pedagogical branch of the EN MASSE collaborative drawing project. Led by a team of art educators and professionals, our goal is to foster collaboration and artistic expression in youth by bringing them in direct contact with highly talented emerging artists.

Students are given the opportunity to work collaboratively on large-scale productions guided by artists who have taken on a mentorship role. A hands-on approach allows these artists to empower, inspire, and pass-on knowledge to students who, in turn, develop a sense of ownership, pride, and ambition for their own personal practice.

PRESS RELEASE: Josh Stockwell and Corey Armpriester at Inferno in Brattleboro




Location- The Inferno, 19 Elliot Street  Brattleboro VT.
Opening- July 6, 5-11PM
Artists will be in attendance

Inferno is pleased to announce a two-man exhibition,  The Other Psychology, by artists Josh Stockwell and Corey Armpriester. The exhibition celebrates a dark psychology not often put under society's microscope, with artists aesthetically illustrating (via photography and pen & ink drawings) the shadows that sneak around one's subconscious, bringing into the light two mysterious and dark visions.

Josh Stockwell's pen and ink drawings are both expressive and surreal imagined mindscapes filled with reflective metaphysical visual metaphors. Corey Armpriester's photographs explore the masked figure in society, the faceless portrait. Armpriester's photographs capture  mood within a dark light. Both artists are in dialogue and agreement about the often-ignored shadow self, asserting that facing your demons in order to cast them out or to embrace them is an essential ingredient for a well adjusted life.  The Other Psychology is an exhibition by two artists exercising their demons.

Images: Drawing by Josh Stockwell; Door #13 by Corey Armpriester

PRESS RELEASE: Monique Dewyea at Emile A. Gruppe Gallery in Jericho

Monique Dewyea:
Florals and Landscapes in Watercolor

Show runs through July 15, 2012
Artist Reception: Sunday June 24,  1 pm - 3 pm

Biography - Monique M. Dewyea
Since my childhood, nature, and in particular flowers, have tweeked my imagination and have led me to study Biology and read extensively about plant life. I find it most fascinating to grow flowers and vegetables from seed and observe the magic of life’s evolution. The leaves and flowers are wondrous to behold, but, oh! the added bonus of fragrance is transfixing. I spend a lot of time tending to my gardens and photographing my blooms which I then use as subjects for my art.

I am a self-taught watercolor artist. The joy of learning new approaches, of watching the intriguing flow of paint, and of capturing light on paper mesmerize me. Of late, I have challenged myself to painting en plein air and relish the peaceful settings of landscapes that these venues offer.

My work has been exhibited at Bryan Memorial Gallery in Jeffersonville, Phoenix Book Store / Gallery in Essex, Champlain Valley Exposition in  Essex Jct., and the Village Frame Shop /  Gallery in St. Albans. Sales of my art have been through these sources as well as privately.

As I am now retired from my professional years of nursing, I have unique moments to develop my florals and scenes in permanence as aquarelles, graphites, and/ or colored pencil drawings. What a ride!

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

REVIEW: Carolyn Shattuck at Walkover Gallery Bristol

by Joan Curtis

KEY WEST: INSIDE/OUTSIDE

Carolyn Shattuck’s new artwork celebrating the energy of Key West and its environs is featured at Bristol’s WalkOver Gallery July 9th through August 24th.

In her wildly colored, abstract-plus-figurative art, Shattuck’s aim is to show connections and contrasts between the energy in the water and the energy on the street, reflecting the blend of lifestyles she experiences every year during her four months near Key West.  The collages depict two opposing aspects of the area: the loud, boisterous life of the ethnic neighborhoods with music, dancing, motorcycles versus the serenity of life out in a kayak viewing the denizens of the deep. The natural world has its own super-abundance: shore birds – plovers and sandpipers, horseshoe crabs, and other wildlife.  Shattuck documents this barrage of disparate information.

The artist says that her work combines such experiences as the idyllic kayaking trips, where she sees “complexity and chaos in random harmony,” and then on the streets, the “cacophony of the Bahamian village, with chickens and music and dogs and cats and people sitting out on their porches yelling across the street.”  Petronia, a 30-inch-square collage, depicts a sea turtle, sea birds, shells, and marsh grasses in addition to crazy-quilt-type patterns and rollicking rhythms that conjure up the frenetic ethnic life.

Shattuck  enjoys using a variety of seductive materials in these new collages: pieces of artist-created print patterns, Japanese papers to effect transparencies, and prints of her own delicate drypoint sketches, to mention a few.  Some of the collage pieces involve printmaking with fiber dyes and transfer stencils.

The artist is known as a painter and printmaker.  Shattuck also has a national reputation as a book artist -- making artist-created handmade books, a selection to be included in the current show.

The WalkOver Gallery exhibition will be open Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM, or by appointment (802-453-3188; 15 Main Street, Bristol, VT).  The public is invited to meet the artist at a Reception on Saturday July 14th, from 5 to 8 PM. Shattuck is also giving a talk about the artwork on August 16th at 6 PM.