Stowe speakers series hosts three upcoming discussions
August 12, 2023 | By Waterbury Roundabout The Current gallery in Stowe has three upcoming events in its Currently Speaking series starting with the Aug. 17 lecture “Taking Monuments off their Pedestals.”
The topic connects with the center’s ongoing indoor/outdoor sculpture exhibition titled “A Place of Memory” on view through Oct. 21.
The speaker is Kelley Helmstutler Di Dio, Ph.D. is the University of Vermont’s Rush C. Hawkins Professor of Art History, executive director of the UVM School of the Arts, and Associate Dean in the College of Arts and Sciences. She has published five books and dozens of articles and essays, and has lectured at universities and museums across Europe, the U.S. and Canada.
UVM professor and associate dean Kelley Helmstutler Di Dio, Ph.D., speaks at The Current gallery in Stowe on Aug. 17. Courtesy photo
The topic focuses on how the call to take down public monuments around the world in recent years has resulted in deeper considerations of what purpose monuments have, what histories are conveyed, and who gets to choose what people and moments are honored. Di Dio will consider why, when, and by whom American and European monuments of the past were made. The presentation will consider the future of public monuments.
The presentation begins at 5 p.m.
Aug. 31: “Radiant Geometry”
Artist Grace DeGennaro of Yarmouth, Maine, will discuss her work, her methods and process at The Current on Aug. 31. Courtesy photo
On Aug. 31 watercolor artist Grace DeGennaro of Yarmouth, Maine, will discuss her work, her methods and process that she uses in creating her paintings and watercolor drawings, a collection of which is on view in the gallery’s Art Lounge.
While striving for symmetry and precision, each piece is subtly asymmetric. DeGennaro will discuss the sources of her inspiration including sacred geometry, traditional symbols, Josef Albers’ color theory, and her 40-year practice of recording dreams. She will share the archetypal images that serve as the foundation of her studio practice and their ability to communicate ideas transcending religion and culture.
DeGennaro’s work has been internationally exhibited at galleries and institutions across the U.S. and internationally including Center for Maine Contemporary Art, in Rockland, U.S. embassies in Qatar and Tanzania, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, galleries in New Mexico, New Jersey, Boston and Ireland. She has been a visiting artist at numerous colleges on the East Coast including Bowdoin College, Skidmore College and Colby College. She received her MFA from Columbia University and her bachelor’s from Skidmore College.
Her talk begins at 5 p.m.
“Fluxus: Art Performs Life” on Sept. 14
John Killacky and Clute present “Fluxus: Art Performs Life” on Sept. 14 at The Current. Courtesy photos
Vermont collaborators John Killacky and Sean Clute visit for the September installment of Currently Speaking.
“Fluxus: Art Performs Life” is a presentation of a series of original Fluxus films on loop from 5 to 5:30 p.m. followed by a presentation until 6 p.m. on the history of the Fluxus art movement in which unconventional artists created intermedia performative events that utilized simple and playful instructions and welcomed others to participate. The result challenged the very notion of authorship and how art is made, presented, and received.
Killacky and Clute will cover renowned artists such as Yoko Ono and Nam June Paik, whose provocative actions challenged existing art norms in the 1960s. They also will share their 14-min. Video titles “FLUX,” which was inspired by this seminal but forgotten art movement.
The presentation will include time for questions from attendees.
South Burlington resident Killacky has served two terms in the Vermont House of Representatives. Previously he was executive director of Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, program officer for arts and culture at the San Francisco Foundation, executive director of Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, and curator of performing arts for Walker Art Center. He has served as a panelist, lecturer, and consultant for a broad range of arts and funding organizations and has written and directed several award-winning short films and videos.
An interdisciplinary artist, composer, and performer, Clute experiments with technologies and methodologies to construct audiovisual instruments, sensor-based interfaces, and computer-generative processes.
Clute’s work has been presented internationally at venues such as the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and The Museum of Natural History.
Clute has lectured at universities around the world including the ICST Institute for Computer Music and Sound, in Zurich, the Institut Intermédií in Prague, and the University of California Berkeley. He is currently an assistant professor of Digital Art at Vermont State University.
The Currently Speaking series hosts experts in various contemporary art genres and media to encourage discourse among community members and speakers about the art they showcase.
Located on Pond Street in Stowe, The Current is online at thecurrentnow.org.