The South Burlington Public Art Gallery is featuring a new exhibition titled “Vermont Vernacular” of paintings, mixed-media works and photography by four regional artists: Linda Finkelstein of South Burlington, Kathleen Fleming of Charlotte, Susan Larkin of Isle La Motte and Phil Laughlin of Williston.
The latest exhibition at the South Burlington Public Art Gallery brings together four artists who call the Green Mountain State home. Each is inspired by the natural beauty of the landscape but captures it through a different perspective, style, and medium
Linda Finkelstein describes her art making as a “way to many places,” either quiet or exuberant. Her works are stories about her love for color and nature and her gratitude for life’s possibilities. After moving to Vermont nine years ago, she has found that the state’s natural beauty keeps her nourished and focused.
Kathleen Fleming works in a contemporary style that often incorporates a playful use of color and composition. Natural elements play an important role regardless of whether she is painting a more representational image or in pure abstraction. The landscape of Vermont, with its colors, shapes and tones, is endlessly inspiring to her and provides an antidote to the chaos of the world.
Living among the islands of Lake Champlain, Susan Larkin paints to record a daily narrative of her outdoor life, where, she says, she finds her most authentic self. Her work reflects the seasonal changes, weather, light, and human impact on the landscape; it is a visual response to a set of ever-changing situations. In her most recent work, she focuses on simplifying and distilling the visual story, using shapes, color and fewer details to get closer to the essence of an idea, a moment in a day.
Phil Laughlin attended the Worcester Museum Art School and moved to New York City after graduation to paint; however, the need for employment pushed him to study applied arts and work in graphic design. Creatively, commercial design work wasn’t very fulfilling, but the city offered new ideas and world-class galleries and museums; he passionately consumed it all. In 1986, Laughlin moved with his family to Vermont. Here he discovered the rich traditions and subjects that have inspired generations of New England artists, and he took up the practice of painting again. The landscape and architectural vernacular of the state feature prominently in his work.
The Gallery, located at 180 Market Street, is free and available to the public whenever the Public Library, City Hall, or Senior Center are open: Monday–Thursday, 8 a.m.–7 p.m.; Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m.; and Saturday, 9 a.m.–3 p.m. The exhibition will run through May 30, 2023.
For more information, please contact gallery@southburlingtonvt.gov.
Learn and see more on our Public Art Gallery Page