Few migrations in human history have been as extensive as the march of Europeans across the North American continent through the United States and eastern Canada. As these newcomers altered the environment, dominated other cultures and gradually redefined their own identities to become “Americans” and “Canadians,” they also carried the fine arts of Western civilization to the Pacific.... Read more

A modest group exhibition at Feick Fine Arts Center, on the campus of Green Mountain College, appears through August 28 in the scenic town of Poultney. The show is unpretentiously called “Summer Group Show: Local Artists” — akin to “VFW Ham Supper” or “Pancake Breakfast” — but it does offer a few surprises.... Read more

Shows by so-called “emerging” artists are often filled with undeveloped ideas and brash experiments. Such is not the case with “Masterworks,” currently on view at BigTown Gallery in Rochester, Vt. This is a dynamic exhibition showcasing six of New England’s most distinguished, mature artists — the youngest painter in the group was born in 1930. The works, however, are fairly recent; all but two pieces were created since 2000.... Read more

Rain or shine, Stowe becomes a sculpture park in late summer thanks to the Helen Day Art Center’s annual “Exposed!” exhibition. The 2009 installment differs from the previous 17 in that a larger portion of the show than usual is indoors. It’s not because of Vermont’s ongoing monsoon this summer, but owing to construction on the HDAC building and grounds. Fourteen regional artists are showing work in the gallery, while 20 others have installed theirs outdoors.... Read more

For the first two weeks of July, Burlington artist Jane Horner took over the Flynndog gallery and made it her studio. The result of her labors is a sprawling show that gathers disparate elements into an aesthetically unified whole. Called “Intermediaries,” the exhibition includes a 25-by-3-foot roll of figure drawings, seven paintings, a substantial installation and a host of assemblages of varying scale.... Read more

The “secrets” referenced in the title “Secret Stories” may be simply narratives bundled less than obviously in the works featured in the current exhibit at Stowe’s West Branch Gallery & Sculpture Park. It’s certainly no secret that the drawings and paintings were made by masterful technicians: Sumru Tekin and Giovanna Cecchetti.... Read more

The circus is in town! An all-media group show with the simple title “Circus!” at Studio Place Arts in Barre trumpets the weird and wonderful visual world of the “Greatest Show on Earth.” With about 50 pieces on display, including works with dozens of constituent figurines, SPA’s main gallery is a whirlwind of vibrant colors and exotic forms.... Read more

Twenty thousand souls

swell beneath these waves

each whitecap is a headstone,

each billow is a grave.

With shoulders drenched by cannonballs

men fought to give you their name-

their names now lay beside sturgeon,

and spars that were charred by flame

their beards are tangled in milfoil

their eyes stare into green, and we

now praise your luster, your glimmer, your hills

without asking for your name.

We did not dream above your petrified whales,

while sawing trees and nailing ash to cross... Read more

Art’s Alive, in its 23rd year and the area’s oldest visual arts festival, has again installed numerous artworks in Church Street Marketplace windows for the month of June. That signifies the organization’s egalitarian approach to presenting artwork, and looking for the displays is rather like going on a cultural Easter-egg hunt.... Read more

Each of the dozen members of 215 College Artists’ Cooperative is entitled to curate an exhibition during the year. The current “Small Works” show, originating with Burlington painter Elise Whittemore-Hill, is a dynamic display of diminutive works.... Read more