DANCE - FINE ARTS - MUSIC - THEATER - WRITING

ARTBITS by Richard B. Harper


VOLUME 19 * * All Arts News On the Web * * February 5, 2015

STUFF YOU SHOULDN'T MISS

      ArtBits always features a calendar of the goings on of Franklin County artists. Check out these events around Franklin County. Each issue includes the entire text of our weekly newspaper column.


     Franklin County's arts and music gatherings bring new opportunities, gossip, "show-and-tell" and occasional workshops. There are also booked and acoustic Open Mic Nights that feature music, readings, and more from the best new artists in Vermont.

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ART ON THE WALLS

ST ALBANS--The Northwestern Medical Center Gallery hosts photographer Austin Abbott this month. Mr. Abbott is exhibiting wildlife, domestic animals, scenery, and antique cars and trucks.
      The free show continues through the end of February.
      Call Katherine Winchester (802.524.1055) to buy one of the pieces or to learn how you, or someone you know, can become the featured Artist of the Month on the NMC Art Wall.


STOWE--The Vermont Town Hall speaker series presents international artist Christo at the Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center this evening at 7 p.m.
      Christo has produced monumental but temporary environmental artworks including the Valley Curtain in Colorado, Surrounded Islands in Miami, The Pont Neuf Wrapped in Paris, and The Gates in Central Park which attracted over 4 million viewers.
      Click here for more info. THE EVENT IS SOLD OUT!


MARATHON, FL--Wyland is coming to the Pigeon Key Art Festival.
      The Art Festival celebrates its 21st anniversary this weekend with a two-day outdoor show in Marathon Community Park in the heart of the Florida Keys on Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
      The nationally recognized fine arts event will showcase the works of more than 80 other international artists and craftsmen. Wyland will create a live ink painting for live auction. There will also be a drawing or raffle to win a Wyland piece. One of his 100 life-size Whaling Walls ocean murals is #087 'Florida's Radiant Reef' at the Marathon K-Mart.
      The yearly fundraiser offers personal time with exhibiting artists, fine cuisine, and great local music. Pigeon Key is a five-acre island located 2.3 miles west of Marathon. It is connected to the mainland by the original seven-mile bridge. Pigeon Key originally served as a construction and maintenance base camp for the Florida Overseas Railroad. The Foundation continues its restoration, operates a museum, and provides a center for marine science research and education.
      General admission is $7 per person per day. All funds raised go directly to the Pigeon Key Foundation. Click here for more info.


ON STAGE LIVE

SHELDON--The Abbey will host the A Factor, a $2,000 Karaoke Contest, every Thursday in the Pub from this evening through the finale on April 2. Karaoke starts every Thursday at 9 p.m.; the competition will be held from 9:30-10:30 p.m.
      Entry is free. Click here for more info.


ESSEX JUNCTION--On Tap offers Blues Night with the Nobby Reed Project tonight at 7 p.m. Vermont's best known blues trio includes Eric Belrose, percussion, Ray Bushey, bass, and Mr. Reed on lead guitar and vocals.
      Friday brings Franklin County favorites, the Phil Abair Band at 9 p.m.
      The Contois School of Music Band performs Saturday at 5 p.m. This CSM show features classics, some new tunes, and uptown funk with Trevor Contois on drums alongside new guitarist/vocalist Aaron Mitchell and Thomas Carvey.
      Call 802.878.3309 or email for more info.


ST. ALBANS--Twiggs presents Vern Colburn Live on the Piano in the Dining Room Friday evening at 5:30 p.m. and classic rocker Bob Young in the Window on Saturday at 7 p.m.
      The Twiggs Comedy For A Cause series also continues on the Main Stage Saturday evening at 7 p.m. The evening will raise money to support Team Emma and Type 1 Diabetes. Admission is $20. There are just 75 seats available at the restaurant. Call Amber (802.238.1893) or Jenn (802.578.8576) for tickets. Make dinner reservations prior to the show since only drinks, appetizers, and desserts will be served during the show.
      Twiggs offers Music to Dine By with relaxed music and the arts. They have three stages with live piano, violin, or light guitar any day of the week in the dining room, the Window, or the main stage. The Cabaret offers live performances by musicians, visual artists, poets, and more. Piano Night is every Monday night at 6 pm. The regular Open Mic Night repeats next Wednesday and on the first Wednesday of every month. Their Open Comedy Night for comics 18 and older is held on the third Tuesday of every month. Dayve Huckett showcases the guitar on the first and third Saturday, and with additional performances by Abby Road, Bobby Cee, Mint Julep, Sean Ashby, and Sean Casey.
      Call 802.524.1405, email, or click here for more info.


BURLINGTON--The 2015 Young Tradition Vermont Showcase takes over Contois Auditorium on Saturday at 6pm.
      The concert will feature duo and small group combinations of teachers and students, parents and their children performing traditional songs, tunes, and dances. Performing instructors include Ismael Bangoura, Elly Barksdale, Sarah Blair, Dominiqu Dodge, Peter Macfarlane, Jeremiah McLane, and many more.
      Contributions to Young Tradition Vermont can be made via PayPal through or to Mark Sustic. Call Mr. Sustic (802.849.6968) or email for more info.


JERICHO--The Jericho Cafe & Tavern presents Carol Ann Jones with Will Patton on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
      Call 802.899.2223 for reservations.


STOWE--The Peak VTartist Series presents the Woods Tea Co. at Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
      Woods Tea Co. performs rich and fiery Celtic tunes, bluegrass, sea shanties, and American folk songs, all tied together with stories and laughs. The trio includes Howard Wooden of St. Albans, singer/songwriter Patti Casey, and Pete Sutherland. Known as "Vermont’s greatest living folk musician," Mr. Sutherland joined the group in 2013.
      Admission is $20 in advance or $25 at the door. Click here for more info.


ENOSBURG--Eats of Enosburg restaurant has a monthly evening of live music by the Missisquoi River Band, on the second or third Saturday with seatings at 6 and 8 p.m. only. The dinner will be a full meal and which encourage conversation and entertainment.
      The cost is $30 per person with limited seating available. Call 802.933.3123 or email to purchase your tickets or for more info.


MORRISVILLE--Moog's Place has "live music every night we're open, starting between eight and nine pm" with open mic night scheduled most Thursdays at 8:30 p.m.
      Click here for more info.


MORRISVILLE--River Arts holds a Farmers and Artisans Market at the River Arts Center every Wednesday from 3 - 7 p.m. Even when there is snow. Click here for more info.


ST. ALBANS--Shooters Saloon sponsors an open-mic night every Thursday and scheduled music on some other evenings.
      Call 802.527.3777 for more info or booking requests.


ST. ALBANS--The Traveled Cup offers open-mic nights hosted by Jesse Potts for musicians as well as poets and other performers to share their talents every other Friday. The shop is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
      Call 802.524.2037, email or click here for more info.


FILM FRONT

     The Montgomery Town Library film series, Freedom & Unity: One State--Many Visions, continues Sunday at 2 p.m. The film screening and discussion series looks at our state with a six-part series of films shown every other Sunday. Part 3, this Sunday, explores Refuge, Redemption, and Revolution with a discussion of innovation, the interstates, and the counter-culture led by Jill Mudgett.
      The Vermont Humanities Council program is hosted by the Friends of the Library. Call June Abramowitz (802.326.4239), email, or click here for more info.


CLICK HERE: ART SITE OF THE WEEK

     Starstruck: The Fine Art of Astrophotography continues at the James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown, PA, through February 8. It is one of the first major exhibitions to treat astrophotography as an art genre. This show features 100 images by 35 artists including Robert Gendler, Sharon Harper, David Malin, and Jacqueline Woods. Starstruck offers landscapes to deep sky objects and includes historically significant photographs such as the first successful image of the solar analemma.
      The site has images from the shows, plus info about the museum, exhibitions, education, collections, research, contact info, events, and membership info.


ON THE BOOKSHELF

      ArtBits features a quick weekly peek at the bookshelf or night stand of the folks you know in and around Franklin County. That popular feature has a page of its own at the Franklin County Bookshelf here on the AAC site.


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      This article was originally published in the St Albans Messenger and other traditional print media. It is Copyright © 2015 by Richard B. Harper. All rights reserved. Archival material is provided as-is. Links are not necessarily maintained (if a link in this article fails, try Google.com or your favorite search engine).
      Thanks to recent misuse of copyright material on the Internet by individuals and archival firms alike, we emphasize that your rights to this article are limited to viewing it and printing it for personal use only. You must receive explicit permission from the All Arts Council and the author before reprinting or redistributing this article in any medium.