Call to Artists: Birds and Myth

Text over a sepia-toned photograph. Text reads Birds and Myth / meanings metaphors and guides / a call to artists. The background is the bristle-ends of 7 paint brushes, radiating out from the center.

Birds and Myth: meanings, metaphors, & guides

We seek to understand the world. Birds are some of our teachers, not only through our senses and observations, but also through our stories about them. These stories can be factual accounts, broader myths, or something in between. A myth might be a traditional legend, a widely-held-but-false belief, or a representation (or misrepresentation) of something true. A myth can offer insight into who we are, individually or collectively. A myth can offer us ways to behave and ideals to live by. What understanding of birds and humans have you gained through myths you have heard, told, or invented?

The Birds of Vermont Museum’s 2025 art show is centered on these ideas. We invite art submissions that bring birds and their meanings into art to retell an old story, weave several together, represent your beliefs, and/or create a myth for the future.
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January 2025 events

small songbird (Junco or Chickadee) tracks in snow

Happy New Year! We’re launching 2025 with some talks, the ever-changing winter art show, and bird walks (of course). The Museum is open by appointment and for special events from now through April 30.

The trails are open from sunrise to sunset, every day—we recommend using the south trails (Spear, Discovery, Story) rather than Gale’s, Pop’s, or Bob’s, thanks to flooding last July. Trail maps and more information are available on our website, and are posted at the museum and at trail kiosks as well. (Let us know if the wind moved any!)

=== JANUARY EVENTS ===

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December 2024 events

A child wearing a green coat and a hunter's orange knitted beanie peers in the window of the museum. A sign to his left says CLOSED.

Busy on the inside! And outdoors? It’s a good day for a walk. Or call to make an appointment for your visit! The Museum is open by appointment and for special events from now through April 30.

The trails are open from sunrise to sunset, every day—we recommend using the south trails (Spear, Discovery, Story) rather than Gale’s, Pop’s, or Bob’s, thanks to flooding last July. Trail maps and more information are available on our website, and are posted at the museum and at kiosks as well. (Let us know if the wind moved any!)

=== DECEMBER EVENTS ===

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November 2024 events

Take time to reflect, experience the peace in a late-autumn forest, or schedule a visit this month. The Museum is open by appointment and for special events from now through April 30.

The trails are open from sunrise to sunset, every day—we recommend using the south trails (Spear, Discovery, Story) rather than Gale’s, Pop’s, or Bob’s, thanks to flooding in July. Trail maps and more information are available on our website, and are posted at the museum and at kiosks as well. (Let us know if the wind moved any!)

=== NOVEMBER EVENTS ===

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October 2024 events

Art, coffee, wildlife festivals, wood carving, migratory birds—even trees! This is a happening month. Events at the museum are below, or check the special upcoming list for a few extras.

The Museum is open Wednesday – Sunday, 10 am – 4 pm. The trails are open sunrise to sunset, every day. The best access to to those on the south, the pond side of the property, thanks to flooding in July. Libraries have passes you can check out, and admission is always free for members (https://birdsofvermont.org/membership/).

=== OCTOBER EVENTS ===

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September 2024 events

Kid in field with mom, investigating something small

September is for transitions: an equinox, return to school, seasons officially change. Yet, it’s also continuous, with ongoing art shows, new chances to learn, and time to just enjoy birds (and possibly coffee).

The Museum is open Wednesday – Sunday, 10 am – 4 pm. The trails are open sunrise to sunset, every day—for now only on the pond side of the property, thanks to flooding in July. Libraries have passes you can check out, and admission is always free for members (https://birdsofvermont.org/membership/).

=== SEPTEMBER EVENTS ===

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August 2024 events

Two people gaze at distant forested mountains. One is a child with short brown hair and a blue shirt; the other, hunkered down, is white-haired and wears a gray shirt, and is pointing out something to the younger person. Both have their back to the viewer.

Looking for a new way of noticing? Come visit art, try hand work, listen to music, or look for birds. August is a great month for you and a friend to stretch or swap points of view.

The Museum is open Wednesday – Sunday, 10 am – 4 pm (but we are closed July 4th). The trails are open sunrise to sunset, every day. Libraries have passes, and admission is always free for members (https://birdsofvermont.org/membership/).

=== AUGUST EVENTS ===

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The Power of Perspective | 2024 community art show

A hawk is silhouetted against a pale sky, seen from beneath flowers. Title: Hunter. Fabric, embroidery by Sarah Ashe. Copyright © 2024 and used with permission. #PowerOfPerspective

The Power of Perspective: shifting points of view

The Birds of Vermont Museum has been hosting themed community art shows since 2014. Each winter, the staff develops a bird-related theme for the exhibit and invites submissions in varied media: visual arts, the written word, sculpture and more.

Our 2024 art show, The Power of Perspective: shifting points of view, poses and answers questions of how our bodies, ideas, and assumptions might alter or affect what we perceive, think about, imagine, and understand about birds.
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Call to Artists: Power of Perspective

The Power of Perspective: a shifting point of view

How do we focus our creative “vision”? Consider the scope of an eagle’s eye—the narrow view of a gleaning warbler—the shadowed sight of a loon underwater. We may see birds above us from the ground, or below us from a plane. We may use a camera lens to record from afar, or a magnifier and lamps to perceive what is normally unknown. How does time influence your perspective? What if we “zoom out” from one bird to a species, to an ecosystem, to a planet? What if we “zoom in” to one bird to its wing, to a feather, to a gene?

How does your art reveal a point of view?
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