Press Release
For Immediate Release: September 25, 2018
Contact: Susan Strano, Marketing Director
802-447-1571 ext. 204
Image:
Study for Maple Sugar Industry, Vermont, 1939
Peppino Gino Mangravite (1896-1978)
Oil on canvas, 33 x 37 inches
“Lost Vermont Images” collection of Lyman Orton at The Vermont Country Store
Art & Architecture of the New Deal in Vermont
Join Devin Colman, State Architectural Historian at the Vermont Division of Historic Preservation in Montpelier on Sunday, October 7 from 2:00 to 3:30 PM (followed with Q&A) as he presents Art & Architecture of the New Deal in Vermont. His illustrated talk takes place in the Ada Paresky Education Center of Bennington Museum and explores New Deal art and building programs of the 1930s, with an emphasis on projects undertaken in Vermont. A graduate of Colby College, Colman earned his MS in Historic Preservation at the University of Vermont. This presentation is free and includes admission to the Museum’s summer exhibition Crash to Creativity: The New Deal in Vermont.
Background on the New Deal in Vermont
The days were dark as the Stock Market Crash of 1929 took its toll on the country in the early 1930s. It has often been said that the Depression didn’t have much impact in Vermont. “Depression, what Depression?” was the quip. Vermont had always been a hard-scrabble place and the Depression just forced farmers and shop-keepers into a local barter-based economy. But the state of Vermont was not spared. Many of those in the towns, as well as those living by the land, saw their lives crumble before them.
However, 1934-1944 was also a time of immense creativity and innovation in the Green Mountain State. Artists, architects, writers, construction workers, and civil employees, whose work was funded through Federal New Deal programs, helped to document the state’s history, record the conditions of contemporary life during the Depression and recovery, and build infrastructure that continues to benefit us today.
On view at the Bennington Museum through November 4, Crash to Creativity: The New Deal in Vermont sheds light on the important, under-studied aspect of Vermont’s history, focusing on the role these many government sponsored New Deal projects.
About the Museum
Bennington Museum is located at 75 Main Street (Route 9), Bennington, in The Shires of Vermont. The museum is open 10 am to 5 pm daily through October. It is wheelchair accessible. Regular admission is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors and students over 18. Admission is never charged for younger students, museum members, or to visit the museum shop. Visit the museum’s website .benningtonmuseum.org or call 802-447-1571 for more information.
Bennington Museum is a member of ArtCountry, a consortium of notable art and performance destinations in the scenic northern Berkshires of Massachusetts and southern Green Mountains of Vermont, including The Clark Art Institute, Williams College Museum of Art , Williamstown Theatre Festival (20 minutes away); and MASS MoCA (25minutes away). Visit ArtCountry.org for more information on these five great cultural centers.