This Month's Vermont Art Exhibition  

Along with the freshness of the spring, the gallery is blooming with new work, too:"Pop-art"-style paintings with found objects by Den Poitras; a new life-sized portrait by Juan Jr. Ramirez; still life paintings by Elaine Hahn; acrylics by Carol Keiser; pastels by Deedee Jones and Susan Parmenter; ceramic sculpture by Chepe Cuadro; and wild horse photos by Caroline  Christie.

Information for Open Studio Weekend

Once again, Vermont Artisan Designs Gallery will be a regional information center for the 21st annual Vermont Open Studio tour over Memorial Day Weekend. More than 240 studios throughout the state will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on May 25 and 26. Maps and information about the tour are ready to be picked up so you may plan your visit to various parts of Vermont over the holiday. The gallery also will give you an insight into some of the quality workmanship you'll find on your tour!

Strolling of the Heifers

We're expecting more people than usual for the 11th Strolling of the Heifers and the Slow Living Summit in June. The Stroll has been named one of the Top 10 summer festivals in the United States by Livability.com, a national website that ranks quality of life and travel amenities of America's small and mid-sized cities.

In addition to the festivities of the parade of heifers along Main Street and the accompanying fun, this year we're teaming up with a group of local Plein Air painters who are already making paintings of area farms that will be shown at Vermont Artisan Designs Gallery during the months of June and July.

New Portraits by Juan

Juan Jr. Ramirez was putting the finishing touches on the latest of his almost life-sized portraits this week when he invited me over to see how it was coming along. It's a painting he's calling "The Connoisseur" and one that he's pleased with. It will soon be hanging at Vermont Artisan Designs along with another that he finished just in time for May's Gallery Walk titled "The Artist's Apprentice." Juan just turned 26 and is headed for a good career in art. He's developed a good following on Facebook and we're happy to show his work.

Welcome Center, Too

If you want to see a preview of some of the work, we have displays at the northbound I-91 welcome center in Guilford and also at the southbound I-91 center in Hartford.   Many of these will be on our continually growing website, however it's always more impressive to come by and see us next time you are in Brattleboro.

Looking Ahead

The summer looks promising! In July, the gallery will be featuring the watercolors of graffiti artist Scot Borofsky. And in August, you're invited to meet Will Moses, Grandma Moses' great-grandson. Will paints in a similar-yet-updated style reminiscent of his famous relative. Also in August, Vermont Artisan Designs is pleased to feature a new show of paintings by plein air artist Charlie Hunter.

We'll look forward to seeing you and showing you what's new in the world of Vermont Artisan Designs. And, let us know what you'd like to see! You can drop an e-mail to [email protected] or, better yet, stop in.

Best wishes for a great spring,

Greg

Vermont Artist Juan Jr. Ramirez at Vermont Artisan Designs Gallery in Brattleboro