The craft beer explosion in Southern Vermont
By Troy Shaheen It’s no secret that Vermont is a beer mecca. The Boston Globe recently ran a winter feature on the epic journeys that beer aficionados undergo to get their hands on Heady Topper from Waterbury’s The Alchemist, Prohibition Pig (also of Waterbury) was just named one of the Best New Breweries in America by Thrillist, and Greensboro’s Hill Farmstead was crowned (for the second time in three years) the best brewery in the...
In These Shoes? Modish mamas and their sense of cool
By Erica Ludlow Bowman Few people look to Vermont as a pinnacle of fashion. Fewer yet consider the rubber boot to be a necessary accessory. That is not to say Vermonters don’t have style. We do. It’s a little something called “Vermont chic.” Hard to define perhaps, but as it’s often said, “You know it when you see it.” Shoes are a big part of the equation. When you have a whole season dedicated to mud and another one dedicated to...
Wine Observed: Supporting local producers globally
By Marty Ramsburg One of the beautiful things about living in Vermont is its scale. With 625,000 residents, we are often only one-degree of separation away from knowing each other. While I have not read accounts that attribute Vermont’s strong locavore predilection to this connection (proximity), I’m going to offer it as at least a plausible cause. Many of us know some people who farm for their livelihood. We make active choices to...
Talk of the Arts: Arts Council refocuses importance of arts in education
By Katherine P. Cox Fearing a loss of focus on the arts in education, the Vermont Arts Council has set out to redirect attention on the important role the arts play in education. Ben Doyle, Arts Education Program Manager for the state council, said several factors account for that loss of focus. The Vermont Alliance for Arts Education, which received funding from the Kennedy Center for the Arts, was a strong advocate for the arts in...
New and Notable: From marmalade to wet paint
NEW GALLERY ON DEPOT STREET Dorset resident Lisa Helmholz-Adams, known by many for her passion for the arts and the artists she represented at Tilting at Windmills Gallery in Manchester where she was Gallery Director for 19 years, is now a gallery owner with her name on the door of Helmholz Fine Art, more centrally located on Depot Street in Manchester Center, VT and established in November 2014. The gallery is open Tuesday to...
Grafton sanctuary returns to its former glory
In 2010, the Grafton Church council determined that the outside of the Grafton Congregational church should be repainted. While the outside needed painting for maintenance reasons, the inside suffered only from age and some cosmetic cracks and accumulated dirt and soot in patterns on the walls and ceiling. The last significant painting of the inside was in 1969. The outside was painted white in 2011. The inside of the church has two...
Deep Background: For Westminster Artist David Stern, a plain painted wall just won’t do
By Arlene Distler The well-worn view is that people come to Vermont to learn how to slow down, leave city or corporate life for the more mellow gifts of gardening, gentleman-farming or getting into their long-postponed craft or art. Then there is David Stern, who stands that notion on its head. Stern is possessor and purveyor of so many artistic talents and enterprises, that he seems like an over-achieving city guy who transplanted...
Bottom Line: The pivotal role of the arts in the Southern Vermont economy
By Tricia N. Hayes Laugh, cry, learn, and see anew. For decades, the arts have added definition and inspiration to the Southern Vermont landscape. Landscapes, still-life paintings, and abstract interpretations have told the story of the rolling fields and softly shaped mountains for generations. Think Ralph Earl and his panoramic view of Bennington from 1798, a classic in the art world in early townscape painting; fast-forward 200...
Workshops, Classes & Artist Residencies
ArtisTree Community Art Center 1206 Rt 12, Woodstock artistreevt.org, 802 457-3500 Ongoing: Our community arts center provides the opportunity for a joyful, meaningful, and satisfying experience of the visual arts and music through our year-round classes, workshops, and events. Carving Studio and Sculpture Center 636 Marble St, Rutland carvingstudio.org, 802 438-2097 May 16-17: Letter Carving for Beginner and Intermediate Students,...
Summer Picks
Vermont Fiddlehead Festival: May 23-24 Downtown Wilmington, VT This year our festival will be bigger and better. Taste the harbinger of spring, the Fiddlehead Fern. Live music, craft fair and children’s activities. Featuring a phenomenal line up of regional Bluegrass bands Gang of Thieves, Blind Owl Band, Brummy Brothers and Jatoba under the tent at the Dover Forge/OMT. This all day event also features craft fair and bouncy house...
Food Festivals
Grafton Food Festival: July 11 The 3rd annual Grafton Food Festival will feature celebrity chef Mary Ann Esposito, vendor tastings, farmers’ market, cooking demonstrations, lodging packages, giveaways, kids cooking competition, local food and drink vendors, and much more. Vermont Cheesemakers Festival July 19, Coach Barn of Shelburne Farms, Shelburne, 212 576-2700, vtcheesefest.com. Vermont is the premium artisanal cheese state with...
Music & Theater
Summer Music Festivals Grafton Music Festival Grafton in the White Church graftonmusicfestival.com Sat, July 11: The Grafton Music Festival will present A Far Cry, the Grammy-nominated chamber orchestra from Boston, in the White Church in Grafton at 8 p.m. 5th Friendly Gathering Music Festival: Timber Ridge, Windham friendlygathering.com June 26-27: Featuring nearly 30 different musical acts, including rock and roll, bluegrass,...
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