Northwest ...er, Princedom? Chasing mid-20th C art

[DGehman71]

Spent a long time here (and elsewhere) researching a short trip to the shadow of Mt. Mansfield. If Vermont's Northeast is the Kingdom, is the Northwest the Princedom?

Anyway, we bought Andy's book, gathered some good auto tours, rounded up a number of covered bridges and key scenes, many of which we found here. Thanks to all for providing the info.

We'll be in and around Jericho, Jeffersonville, Cambridge, Waterville, Smuggler's Notch, Stowe Mon. Sept 30, heading back home (west of Boston) on Wed., Oct 2. Weather is supposed to be near perfect and peak-iness appears to be headed toward our destinations (Yankee's foliage map already has Franklin County at peak; our B&B is in Fairfax).

Beginning some time in the 1920s, as summer wound down, a good dozen or so landscape artists began taking the train out of Cape Ann (Gloucester & Rockport, Mass.) to Smuggler's Notch Inn in Jeffersonville. From there, they'd spread out and paint day-in and day out. And they'd paint through the color season and well beyond, deep into Vermont winters.

They aren't household words, though a couple (Aldro Hibbard and Emile Gruppe') were famous in their day. Gruppe's daughter maintains the Emile A. Gruppe' gallery in Jericho... and very graciously, she's meeting us on Tuesday, when the gallery is usually closed, to allow me to look at Emile's paintings close up.

We'll be ranging through the area, in part seeking out the motifs they made famous. One that was repeated often was a view of Waterville with the covered bridge in the foreground. Another: almost anywhere in Pleasant Valley south of Cambridge & Jeffersonville. Another: almost any view of Mt. Mansfield.

Today's painters still gather at the Smuggler's Notch Inn on paint-outs, painting retreats, workshops, contests. One of them, Stapleton Kearns, says of the area, "There's a painting wherever you look."

Most of their work ends up at the Bryan Memorial Gallery, at least for a week or so. (Alden Bryan was one of the mid-50th C. painters who loved the area, and, being of independent means, he built a beautiful little museum and gallery in Jeffersonville which at first housed only his friends' Vermont paintings).

Hopefully I can post some photos next week.

Again thanks for all the routes, spots, and foliage talk.

Dave Gehman

[DGehman71]

Thanks, bm.

Found your report on this area and we've added Cilley Hill Road to the things to explore.

Here's hoping that color comes along fast. The NOAA weather page for Jericho tells me 0% cloud cover right now and the rest of the day -- maybe the sunlight will act as a color accelerator... but we'll get what we get. And no matter what, it will be a fun trip.

Dave

[Aspen]

Dave, the areas you will be driving are beautiful at all times so you are guaranteed a wonderful drive, certainly the Fall foliage colors would add an extra special touch and do hope you experience that.
What I like about this Forum is the sharing, exchanging of information and the authentic reports that come along "real time" which updates and permits people to adjust their drives and visits. Although you may have been reviewing the Forum for your visit, in turn you contributed some very interesting information. One morn, several Autumns back, my husband and I were driving to explore some of the Covered Bridges in the Jeffersonville/Johnson area. The best thing that happened that morning was we turned off onto a wrong road that shadowed the Lamoille River. There were quite a few artists setup along the Lamoille River painting the scenes. The sight of the artists spread out along the banks just added to the beauty of the area. Your comments about Artist workshops brought back that memory. I googled to learn more about the artists you shared. It was amusing reading! When folks need a break, return to Dave's message for the Artists' names and investigate their history. I came upon Aldro Hibbard's painting of the Village of South Londonderry, Vermont that was up for appraisal and aired on the January 28, 2013 Antique Roadshow.
(http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/archive/201201A09.html) Some people, familiar with the Village of South Londonderry, who viewed the Antique Roadshow sent in comments that the beautiful red First Baptist church in that painting was lost to a fire in 2010. Hibbard's winter snow scenes are awesome and his words of wisdom related to how he painted are an inspiration. That painting was discovered in the attic of the Mather School in Dorchester (Massachusetts) Interestingly, it was shared this was North America's first public elementary school. On the Antique Roadshow, Artist Hibbard's painting was appraised to be valued between $45,000 to $50,000 dollars. With the sad news viewers shared, the beautiful scene of Vermont which this painting has preserved, to me, is priceless!
Really amazed me to learn a lot of the Vermont artwork of Artist Emile Gruppe and Aldon Bryan is also very valuable. One painting in particular was priced at $63,000. I am no Artist nor previously interested in Art. Thanks Dave for kindling a new interest in some of us who visit the Scenes of Vermont, Fall Foliage Forum. You introduced this interest since I love Vermont and looking at this beautiful artwork, I can relate to the scenery and surprisingly, found it to be very interesting. Aldro Hibbard's painting of snow is extra special. It is not just white paint but snow the way HE saw it! He reminded his students and people he painted what HE, saw not what others may see.
Thanks Dave, after the beautiful Fall Season has come and gone, some of us will have time to enjoy some hours this Winter in Vermont online by viewing the beautiful artwork and stories of these wonderful Artists whom you introduced to viewers on the Scenes of Vermont Forum.

Aspen

[DGehman71]

Aspen, beautifully put. You have made my month (at the very least).

And you're right about Hibbard's snow paintings. He is among the acknowledged masters.

Much appreciated,
Dave

[Andy]

Dave: Thanks so much for buying my eBook. I hope you will find it helpful. I have spent perhaps the bulk of my time in the area you will frequent, as a resident of Bakersfield, in the Northwest "Princedom", and a frequent visitor to Waterville, where I attended church every Sunday and Wednesday for a couple years, Jeffersonville, and the Pleasant Valley road, which I normally drove when commuting back and forth from Bakersfield to Burlington, to attend the University of Vermont.

As others have said, the Pleasant Valley Road(s) (upper and lower, and the Notch are beautiful anytime. Hope you have good success. And, if you find any discrepancies or changes to my book, please let me know.

Best of luck!

[DGehman71]

And thank you, Andy. Your book is a gem. I only wish the photographs were higher resolution in the Kindle edition -- we would have liked to zoom in farther.

It must have been something else to commute through these towns. I can't imagine the trek becoming the usual glazed-eyes-on-the-road slog of most commuters.

You're in Saginaw? Saginaw was one of the points where our spirits lifted on our summerly "commute" from Cleveland Heights to the Upper Peninsula for vacations at my grandfather's cabin on Lake Michigan. Reaching Saginaw meant we were halfway there.

It was around Saginaw that you'd first see the white sand, at first here and there; but by the time you reached the lower U.P. sand was the majority of the landscape. Today, of course, the route is I-75 and a lot more direct, but this was a long time ago.

[Turning to the forum audience] If you like traveling northern climes and haven't yet been to Michigan's Upper Peninsula, by all means, plan a trip there. Pine, hemlock, blueberries, fern, sand, granite, cerulean blue water (almost Mediterranean blue), flatland, highland, gorgeous headland dunes on the north, at Lake Superior. Read Hemingway's "Big Two Hearted River" (actually in the U.P.) and look at Winslow Homer's "Blue Boat" (but his subject was really in the look-alike Adirondacks), https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File ... _Homer.jpg .

Color there is okay. Not stunning. High summer is more palatable, every day air-conditioned, rarely going past 80 degrees F. Winter is exceptionally brutal, with no decent ski slopes to attract trolls (the Youper term for people south of the U.P. -- people who live in the land under the [Mackinac] bridge.)

[Andy]

Hi Dave: Unfortunately, the eBook "revolution" really hasn't hit prime time for photo books yet. The most expensive part of publishing - if you use a TP publisher (I used BookBaby) is the photographs. And, yes, the resolution is terrible. One option would be to go to my website: http://www.lightcentricphotography.com, and see the images in the Vermont Gallery in much higher resolution. Most of the images from the book (and more) are there.

LOL, re: Saginaw. About the ONLY thing positive you can say about it is what you did . Seriously, while I grew up in much more picturesque Northern Michigan (Traverse City, for those who know the area), Saginaw has certainly provided me and my family with a good living and a good place to raise children.

I have to - gently - disagree, however, with your characterization of UP color. I lived in Vermont for many years in my youth, but I have really grown up and lived in Michigan my whole life. I have a great deal of experience with both places (eBook is in progress for the Michigan U.P.). I am at work and don't have access to any of my images, but again, the Michigan UP area of my website will, I think, demonstrate that the UP colors rival those of New England. In a contest, Vermont wins, but it is a (pun intended) "photo finish" .

Let me know if there is any detail you need that isn't well covered in the Vermont book and best of luck with the rest of the trip! Looking forward to seeing your results.