where natural history meets art
Storytime at the Museum! Join us at 10:30 a.m. on the second Tuesdays of each month (May – October) for stories about birds and more. Stories will be followed by a craft project, music, or nature walk, depending on the topics and weather.
Intended for pre-schoolers, but all ages are welcome.
Got a favorite book about birds? Share it with us! Email museum@birdsofvermont.org.
Free with museum admission. Donations welcome, especially for crafts—and remember, members enter for free!
Welcome to our May-June 2011 exhibiting artist: Lori Hinrichsen. Her show, “Familiar Ground: monotypes, intaglios and photography inspired by nature”, opened at the Museum May 1st, with the opening day of our 2011 season.
Lori grew up in Iowa and attended the University of Kansas, graduating with a degree in Theatre, Film and Video. Lori spent several years exploring the US, living and growing her art from California to Vermont. This included being a resident artist in Mendocino, at the Vermont Studio Center, and at the Virginia center for Creative Artists. She first joined the Museum community last fall as a judge for the 2010 Annual Youth Art Contest.
Lori has a studio at Shelburne Pond Studios, where she works with printmaking, painting, fabric, and ink. She writes:
Much of my time is spent exploring and connecting with the land and the sky, from meandering paths along the rugged coastline, to breathing in the intoxicating smells of evergreens and fresh rain, to the star-filled desert skies that touch the earth. I feel a deep reverence for the ordinary, for the sensual ecstasy as each season unfolds. My work is in response to this intimate awareness and observation of nature which reflects the moment, engaging the present.
Come by and view her art and photography any day from now through the end of June. We are open from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Free with admission to the museum ($6 for adults, discounts for children, seniors, and members).
About the artist: http://lorihinrichsen.com/
The Museum was most fortunate to be the temporary workplace this winter of Laura Waterhouse, an American citizen born and raised in New Zealand, as she completed an internship program here during December, January, and February.
While interning at the Museum, Laura was engaged in both daily operations and research projects. From feeding birds and shoveling snow to researching and compiling regional museum data, updating signage for the endangered species exhibit, and developing materials for educational activities offered at the Museum, Laura covered a multitude of topics and tasks. Two very tangible and informative projects Laura completed were adding text and graphics to a comparative activity about birds’ feet and an origami mobile depicting bird migration. Laura met every assignment with clear purpose and focus and demonstrated great creativity and style with her independent projects. Continue reading “Laura Waterhouse: Winter Intern”
A great big shout-out thank you to the volunteers and staff that made our March 5th Painting Party busy, cheerful, and incredibly successful.
We had more than the usual number of volunteers (some even came a day or more early to help prep) , and much more was accomplished. The museum is cleaner and fresher. We went through three and a half gallons of paint, and wow, can we tell! We’ve also taken the opportunity to refresh both what’s on our walls and where we’ve put it, so be sure to come by and admire the results.
All told, we logged over 50 hours of volunteer time. THANK YOU!
Many thanks to Northeast Delta Dental for their recent generous donation. Since 2005, they have helped the Birds of Vermont Museum by supporting our thrice-yearly newsletter.
Jeffrey Landa, a former Board of Trustees member and Board President who also serves on the Museum Advisory Board, dropped by last week to bring us this good news. Shirley Johnson, President of the Board of Trustees, and Erin Talmage, Executive Director, were here to accept it.
We will use these funds to cover printing and mailing costs of Chip Notes. Older editions are made available online as PDF files; if you would like to receive current ones by mail, become a member!
Join our Painting Party on March 5th from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Help us paint part of the museum. Lunch will be provided.
Please let us know you’re coming so we can feed you! Call us at 802 434-2167 or email us at museum@ birdsofvermont. org. You can find driving directions to the museum on our website, at http:// birdsofvermont.org/ map.php
Free.
Appropriate for teen and adult volunteers–we thank you!
This competition is open to persons aged 0 – 18 years old.
First, second, and honorable mention prizes will be awarded in the following categories (most are age-based):
Winners will be announced at the Museum at our Fall Festival, Saturday October 8, 2011.
Winning entries will be displayed (with artist and parent approval) on the BOVM website or our Facebook page after the festival.
Entries may be picked up at the Museum after Nov. 1, 2011.
We welcome sponsors of our art contest! Contact us if you’d like to donate funds (to purchase prizes) or prizes (we do ask that we get to vet these first).
Past sponsors have included farm and garden stores, art supply shops, artists, and museum members.
Call (802 434-2167) or email us (museum@birdsofvermont.org) if you can sponsor the show.
Guest post from Ali Wagner, Birder and Museum Member
Last fall, a few of Vermont’s counties decided to take part in a friendly challenge of seeing and reporting the most species of birds during the 2011 calendar year. This has morphed into a state-wide challenge with all counties eagerly participating.
The quest, as described by the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, is “part fun, part discovery, part conservation, but mostly fun.”
The goal is to get more people involved in birding as well as documenting bird species of the state. There’s a nice write-up at eBird: http://ebird.org/content/vt/news/vermont-county-birding-quest-takes-flight
If you would like to contribute your sightings, go to www.ebird.org/content/vt or www.vtecostudies.org/quest to sign up! If you have any questions, you can contact Ali at alikatofvt@gmavt.net or 802 434-7672.
You saw the rules. You saw the preview. You saw last year’s results and the Letter to Young Artists. Now, finally, you can find out Who won in 2010?
Age 0-5: Melody B, Lily K, Kenny F, Anna P, Olivia O
Ages 6-8: Noah B, Cooper H, Jake B, Petra B, Celeste B
Ages 9-13: Lena H, Anna-Sophie S, Lexi P, Amanda G, Kate O
Ages 14-18: Christina H, Lindsay F, Hannah G
Sculpture (3-D): Shannon H, Allison G, Alexander U, Hannah D, Melissa A
Collage (First Graders): Kameron C, Mary M, Cater F, Ian M
Flying Patterned Birds: Will P, Nicholas M, Caroline S, Caleb R, Carter S, Myiah D
3-Dimensional Flying Foil Birds: Makenna T, Isaac D, Jackson E, Shannon H, Amy L, Kyle D
Georgia W for “Best Kestrel”; Clementine for “Cutest Penguin”; Lily for “best Mallard”; Leola A for “Cutest Couple”; Kenny for “Best Cardinal”; Aziana H for “Best Happy Owl”, and David A for “Best Woodpecker”
For more images, check out our album at Facebook. Feel free to leave comments here or there.
Guest post by Lori Hinrichsen, Artist, Photographer, and Judge of the 2010 Art Contest
When I walked into the Museum the other day I was thrilled to be surrounded by so much creativity, imagery, and enthusiasm of all the artwork entries. From abstract to representational, from humor, composition, color and form, to a range of creative interpretation, the Birds of Vermont Museum Art contest was a delight for the eyes.
I want to congratulate all of you who participated in the event and I genuinely wish I could have given each of you a ribbon for all your wonderful entries. I would like to encourage you to keep making art and sharing it with others. I would like to extend gratitude to your teachers, parents, neighbors, friends and family for keeping the arts alive, every day.
Wishing you a warm lingering autumn. Vermont is a very special place in all seasons.
• Lori’s Website • Photographs •