Professional Membership

Featured Member

Artist Warren Kimble and one of the palettes he created, “Patterns of Vermont”

This month, the Vermont Arts Council will formally launch Palettes of Vermont, a fun, inclusive project designed to unite people and communities through the arts. Internationally renowned artist Warren Kimble—a resident of Brandon, VT, and trustee of the Arts Council—conceived the project after organizing several successful community-based arts projects at the local level. Palettes of Vermont will provide people from every part of the state, from every walk of life, and of all ages and abilities with the opportunity to receive a 12" x 16" wooden artist's palette and use it to make art.

More than 6,000 wooden artist palettes, produced and donated in part by the Vermont Wood Manufacturer's Association, will be distributed to individuals, organizations, and businesses throughout the state beginning in this month. The palettes can be created using any medium—paint, pastels, paper, ink, fabric, etc., or they can be incorporated into other creative activities such as theater, film, music, poetry, prose, dance, and/or multimedia. To inspire the broadest possible participation, the Vermont Arts Council will encourage collaboration between different types of groups to determine how best to distribute, display, and promote the palettes created in their communities. In many communities, the palettes will be displayed in conjunction with an existing cultural event or festival. In some towns, organizers may choose to auction palettes to fund a community project. In others, the palettes may become part of a permanent public display. Additionally, the Vermont Arts Council is planning an exhibition of palettes that will travel around the state during the summer of 2006. All participants in the program will also be honored at Arts Achievement Day in 2007 at the Vermont State House, and selected pieces will also be featured as part of the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing's summer/fall promotions.

Founded in 1964, the Vermont Arts Council provides funding, services, and information to artists, arts organizations, schools, communities, and the general public. It is the only state arts agency in the United States that is also an independent, nonprofit membership organization, and as such is uniquely qualified to unite both public and private resources in support of the arts.