Arts News for May 9, 2019    
High School Artists Honored

Aubrey Benoit discusses her award-winning photograph with Rep. Peter Welch.
Art filled the walls of the Vermont College of Fine Arts gallery on Friday--a hundred and fifty-seven individual pieces to be exact. The works were submitted for the annual Congressional Art Competition by students from thirty-six Vermont high schools.

A photograph by Aubrey Benoit from Spaulding High School in Barre won first place. Aubrey's work was selected by a panel comprising Alice Dodge, Wylie Garcia, and Dan Gottsegen. The photograph, Brother, will travel to Washington, D.C. to join top picks from other U.S. congressional districts. The art will be displayed for a year in the tunnel between the Capitol and House office buildings. In this heavily traveled corridor, the exhibit will be viewed by thousands of people from around the country and the world. 
Brother by Aubrey Benoit.

The Congressional Art Competition is a nationwide high school visual art competition initiated in 1981 by then-Rep. Jim Jeffords to celebrate and encourage the artistic talent of young people from across the country.

All Vermont students that participated in the Congressional Art Competition have been offered automatic admission to the Vermont Governor's Institute on the Arts, a two-week intensive arts program for high school students.

Congratulations to Aubrey, the runners-up, and all of the students who entered the competition. Read about the other winners.

Learn about the story behind Brother in this segment from WCAX.
A Big Top Makes a Big Space
 
Photo by Amy Donohue Photography.
"Circus is like a miracle factory. We take our mistakes, and figure out how we can turn them into our assets."

So says William Forchion, summer camp director for Circus Smirkus. And while he sees the art form as inherently inclusive, he and his colleagues look continuously for ways to improve. The organization continues to welcome more people to their programs through residencies and other outreach.

Read more about the work in You Are Welcome, this week's featured story.
Make Music Vermont: Call to Artists

Photo courtesy Luke Awtry. 
Make Music is a free celebration of music around the world held each year on June 21. More than one thousand cities in a hundred and twenty countries participate annually. Make Music is open to anyone who wants to take part--young and old, amateur and professional, of every musical persuasion.

Vermont is the only place in in the U.S. in which the entire state is invited to participate. That includes you! Whether you play solo cello or rock out with a ten-piece band you have a place in this statewide celebration. Big Heavy World, the coordinator of Make Music Vermont, invites musicians to join the fun.

Find more information and register to participate in Make Music Vermont 2019
What Draws Writers and Poets to Vermont?

Credit Aaron Shrewsbury
The answers to this question are the topic of VPR's Brave Little State this month. This episode explores the literary luminaries of Vermont, and asks why so many writers seem to thrive in the Green Mountain State.

 
The reporters "look at the freedom, inspiration, and isolation that fueled the work of notables of the past (Robert Frost, Sinclair Lewis, Shirley Jackson), modern best sellers (Chris Bohjalian, Julia Alvarez), poetry giants of the Northeast Kingdom (David Budbill, Leland Kinsey, Howard Frank Mosher) and many others."
 
Arts Briefs
T.W. Wood Gallery in Montpelier announced the appointment of Margaret Coleman as executive director.
  Learn more about Margaret.
ArtisTree Gallery and the Bookstock Festival invite artists to submit entries for UNBOUND Vol IX, a juried exhibit exploring what a book can be. The deadline
is June 28.
Get the details.
Inclusive Arts Education in Practice is a workshop designed to illuminate the power of authentic, inclusive arts experiences through hands-on experimentation.  June 1 in Brattleboro.
   Find out how to register.
Upcoming Events
SOPHIE SHAO AND FRIENDS
Mahaney Arts Center
May 10
Middlebury
Castleton University Bank Gallery
May 11 to June 22
Rutland
Highland Center for the Arts
May 11
Greensboro
HILTON PARK
Brandon Music
May 11
Brandon
RICHARD ARTSCHWAGER
Hall Art Foundation
May 11 to December 1
Reading
multiple venues
May 9 to 12
Shelburne, Randolph, Montpelier, Warren
TWO DAYS IN MAY: A SHORT PLAY FESTIVAL
ArtisTree Community Arts Center Grange Theatre
May 10 and 11
South Pomfret
The Front
through June 16
Montpelier
Fried Family Gallery
Catamount Arts
through June 14
St. Johnsbury
AMARYLLIS: MADRIGALS AND TUNES FROM SIXTEENTH-CENTURY ENGLAND
two venues
May 12 and 13
Lincoln and Middlebury
BigTown Gallery
through June 23
Rochester
FREE FAMILY RAVE DANCE PARTY WITH DJ KERMIT
Flynn Center Lobby
May 11
Burlington
Burnham Music Hall
May 11
Lincoln
West Branch Gallery
through June 1
Stowe
NORTHERN STAGE PRESENTS: ONCE
Barrette Center for the Arts
through May 19
White River Junction
The Vermont Arts Council is funded, in part, by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts , which requires a 1:1 match from the Vermont State Legislature. Council grants, programs, and statewide arts promotion would not be possible without the critical funding provided by these government agencies.


Like us on Facebook  Follow us on Twitter    View on Instagram

 Vermont Arts Council | 802.828.3291