Bennington Museum
75 Main St., Route 9, Bennington
Thru October, 10a–5p daily; November–December, Tue–Thurs 10a–5p
http://www.benningtonmuseum.org
802 447-1571
Thru Nov. 3: Fields of Change: 1960s Vermont. Thru Dec. 30: Visible in Vermont: Our Stories, Our Voices, multi-generational photo and story exhibition highlighting experiences of people of color living and going to school in Vermont. Sept. 21–Dec. 30: Asa Cheffetz: Vermont Wood Engravings: meticulous wood engravings served as printing plates from which came beautiful prints inspired by the Vermont countryside. Nov. 29–Dec. 22: Annual Festival Exhibition: A Snowy Evening, celebrates the creativity of a range of artists as they respond to the words of Robert Frost. See website for array of special events.
Brattleboro Museum & Art Center
10 Vernon St., Brattleboro
11a–5p (Closed Tues)
http://www.Brattleboromuseum.org
802 257-0124
Oct. 4–Feb. 9: Tree Talk, a multimedia exhibit by Cuban-American artist Marìa Elena González, explores the translation between the physical and the acoustical; By Rail, a suite of 12 intimately scaled abstract paintings by southern Vermont artist Doug Trump; Observed/Abstract surveys the career of painter Thelma Appel, a founder of the Bennington College Summer Painting Workshop. Oct. 4–March 7: Hovering above the ground, dark and dense, Fafnir Adamites’ installation of felted wool and burlap; Gordon Meinhard: The Lives of Tables. Though depicting humble tables, Meinhard’s creations bear physical and psychological nuances, requiring careful observation to unlock their riches.
Clark Art Institute
225 South St., Williamstown, Mass.
10a–5p, Tue–Sun
413 458 2303
Nov. 16–Feb. 9, 2020: Travels on Paper takes visitors on a world tour featuring prints, drawings, and photographs by Camille Corot, Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps, John La Farge, Robert MacPherson, Thomas Moran, Félix Teynard, and many others. Dec. 14–March 22: Arabesque: Implying infinite freedom and open-ended, self-engendering form, Arabesque is deeply associated with Islamic art and architecture while being central to key movements in European art. Traces a series of moments in European art when arabesque was in the ascendant, from German Romanticism to the Pre-Raphaelites, Nabi artists, and Art Nouveau.
MassMoCA
1040 MassMoCA Way, No. Adams, Mass.
413 662-2111
October: Sarah Oppenheimer’s S-337473. Opening Dec. 14: Ledelle Moe.
Southern Vermont Arts Center, Yester House Gallery
West Road, Manchester
Tues–Sat, 10a–5p; Sun, noon–5p
802 362-1405
Thru Nov. 17: Andō Hiroshige Woodblock Prints. Oct. 12–Nov. 17: Juried Member Show: Autumn Angles (opening reception Oct. 12, 2–4p). Dec. 6–15: Winter Wonderland Member Show. Dec. 6: Tree Lighting and Sip ’n’ Shop, 5p.
Sculptor Johnny Swing with one of his pieces from the Wedding Present series.
Great Hall
100 River St., Springfield
Weekdays 9–5p
Facebook.com/GreatHall Springfield
802 885-3061
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T
he Great Hall is delighted to exhibit Johnny Swing’s series of sculptures The Wedding Present as part of “Alchemy—Metal, Mystery & Magic,” an exhibit that runs through February 2020 at the Great Hall in Springfield.
Swing is best known for his undulating welded coin furniture. His work sits alongside de Kooning’s, rests on the lawns of the Duke of Cornwall and the Storm King Art Center, and is displayed in Christian Dior stores in Beverly Hills, Tokyo, and Seoul. A wide range of his work was recently shown Feb–June at The Shelburne Museum. The Wedding Present series recently was hosted at the Bundy Modern, a midcentury gallery and sculpture park in Waitsfield.
The Great Hall has nine of the original Wedding Present sculptures, which are made with stainless rods and assorted bread toasters, twisted together into abstract knotted forms. Swing says he wants the sculptures to look a little like found objects.
“Clearly they were made, but their unexpected shapes imply curiosity. Like a 13-year-old boy twisting a string into a knot, they have a little of that energy. I’ve always wanted to twist up a car or washing machine,” he says. Then he adds, “A buddy once said, Why not try something smaller? Why don’t you try a toaster?”
The toasters, new and shiny, some still in their boxes, burst and contort when twisted by the rods. “There’s whimsy in their fragments and exposure,” Swing says.
The playful yet powerful sculptures celebrate metal transformed. A video on the Great Hall’s Facebook page shows a work in progress as an excavator and a giant flywheel provide the muscle for the twisting of long steel rods.
Other distinguished artists featured in the exhibition include Jeanne Carbonetti of Chester, Sabrina Fadial of Barre, Alexandra Heller of Morrisville, Peter Heller (deceased); Pat Musick of Manchester, Dan O’Donnell of Springfield, and Gerald Stoner of Underhill, all in Vermont.
Exhibitions are sponsored by Springfield Regional Development Corporation.
