August 2021
Bennington Museum Monthly
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We have lots more in store for this month too, including some great news to share about some exciting funding requests coming to fruition. Read on to see what you can look forward to with your next visit, and what the Museum is looking forward to this year!
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Sunday, 8/1
& EVERY SUNDAY
11am - 3pm
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Mouthwatering Indian cuisine in the Courtyard.
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A pay-what-you-will virtual program
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Friday, 8/6
4:30pm - 7pm
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A free initiative by the State of Vermont
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Join us for food, drink, and good company. Kids' activities too!
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Saturday, 8/7
& EVERY SATURDAY
noon - 3pm
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Authentic Jamaican food in the Courtyard
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A free in-person Concert by the MMF Young Artists
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Thursday, 8/12
5:30pm - 7pm
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An in-person curator-led tour of Bennington's Historic downtown
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Join us for food, drink, and good company. Kids' activities too!
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Sunday, 8/15
2pm - 3:30pm
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A free in-person event presented by the BHS
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Thursday, 8/19
1:30pm-2:30pm & Saturday, 8/21
10:30am-11:30am
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A free in-person outdoor event for pre-school kids
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Join us for food, drink, and good company. Kids activities too!
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Join us for food, drink, and good company. Kids activities too!
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Closing:
Performative Acts by Dona Ann McAdams closes on August 15th. Don't miss your chance to see the work of this amazing Vermont photographer who captures the spirit of each moment so perfectly.
While here, make sure to get your history fix, too. Through the end of August, the Grandma Moses Schoolhouse will host an in-depth historic exhibit on the Breakenridge Stand-Off and the origin story of Vermont.
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Madrid-1988-silver-gelatin-photograph |
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Opening:
On August 21, Boundless by Dusty Boynton will open in the Regional Artists' Gallery. At once sophisticated, spontaneous, and guileless, Vermont-based artist Dusty Boynton draws from her inner subconscious world to create exuberant and whimsical characters people of all ages can relate to. This exhibit is co-curated by Sophie Brechu-West ( 571 Projects) and Jamie Franklin (Bennington Museum).
On August 27, Bennington Museum will host an opening reception for Dusty in tandem with the Concert in the Courtyard (5-7pm). Food and drink will be served in the Grandma Moses Schoolhouse. Prior to the opening, Monument Society members will be invited for an exclusive walk-through with the artist and curators. Stay tuned for the invitation in your in-box.
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22, 2020 monoprint, 30x22"
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2, 2020 monoprint, 30x22"
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A Month for Giving
We mentioned above that we had a strong start to our fiscal year. This is thanks largely to several gifts and grants that have come to fruition. You have already heard about some of these opportunities, and others you will certainly be hearing about more in the coming weeks. Thank you to everyone who contributed ideas, proofing skills, and letters of support to make these funding opportunities possible. We are so excited to begin work on these projects.
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Stages in the Sun
On July 8th, Bennington Museum was awarding a "Stages in the Sun" grant in support of free outdoor public programming at the Museum- and we certainly have a lot of that going on this summer! The Stages in the Sun initiative is a partnership between the Vermont Recreation & Parks Association, the Vermont Arts Council, and the Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing, to promote two of the best things Vermont has to offer: incredible artists and the great outdoors. We thank the Vermont Community Foundation for their donation to help sponsor this and other Stages in the Sun events through a Covid-19 Response Grant. Please check out the Stages in the Sun calendar online to find more great outdoor arts events, and make sure to check out Concerts in the Courtyard and NBOSS at the Museum- the two programs that will be the primary beneficiaries of this funding.
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Robert Fleming & Jane Howe Patrick Foundation
This month the Museum was also awarded a $3,000 grant from the Patrick Foundation which provided the seed money to begin the restoration of the Civil War memorial that sits just outside the gates. The Williamstown Art Conservation Center crew completed their extensive cleaning just this week, and the bronze does look beautiful! The full cost of the project (including interpretive signage, and some further clean-up around the site) comes to just under $6,000. We are inviting the public to consider matching the Patrick Foundation gift to support this important piece of community history.
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Internship Endowment Fund
An anonymous donor has made a $25,000 gift to the Museum's permanent endowment which is intended to provide paid summer internship opportunities for Mount Anthony Union High School (MAUHS) and Southwest Tech (SWT) students. We are thrilled to have this opportunity as it will help Museum staff during a very busy time of year, and create a valuable career pathway in the non-profit sector for the young people in our community. We look forward to working with the MAUHS and SWT teams in the coming year to identify prospective candidates and build a long term pipeline for cultural engagement.
Be on the lookout for a more detailed press release in the coming weeks where we will introduce our inaugural intern and hear what she has learned from her time with us so far!
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The Frankenthaler Climate Initiative
Bennington Museum is honored to have been selected to receive an award from the Frankenthaler Climate Initiative, a new grant-making program established by the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation that seeks to catalyze climate change action in the visual arts. The $80,000 grant awarded to Bennington Museum will enable us to address energy loss from the unsealed original windows in the historic church structure (where the Library and Church Gallery are currently situated). Over the next two years, the window improvements that we implement will make the Museum more environmentally sound by reducing our energy use and will allow us to move forward with a complete overhaul of our inefficient heating systems. This window remediation project is the springboard to creating a sustainable and green building that can serve our community for decades to come and address one of the most critical issues of our times: climate change.
Read more about the Frankenthaler Climate Initiative and other awardees HERE.
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We have some updates to share with you!
RECURRING GIFTS
Many of you have been asking if you can make a recurring gift to Bennington Museum. Now that is a possibility! On our donation page you can choose the amount you would like to give and your credit card will be billed that monthly- no hassle. Recurring gifts can make things easier for you, and also helps Bennington Museum by spreading out your gift over the course of the year.
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COVER THE FEE
When you make a payment by credit card a small portion is directed to the credit card processing fees. Now, upon checkout, you will have the option of adding that percentage onto your purchase as another means of supporting the Museum.
Our goal is to meet you where you are in terms of your philanthropic methods of giving. Hopefully, these small improvements will make it easier for you! And remember, no matter how you choose to give, we appreciate your support.
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Bennington Museum engages and transforms our visitors and our community by connecting you to the region’s diverse arts, rich history, and culture of innovation.
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