Enriching the Arts in Rutland
Since its launch in 2013, the Castleton Downtown Gallery in Downtown Rutland has hosted more than 30 exhibitions ranging from student, faculty and alumni work to that of both local and international professional artists. With a vibrant schedule of new exhibits each month and a focus on enriching the arts experience in Downtown Rutland for both locals and visitors, the gallery has successfully brought a broad variety of artwork to the area, while remaining free and open to the public.
“In the last two years, Downtown Rutland has seen a drastic transformation in its efforts towards the arts,” said Director of the Castleton Art Galleries Sarah Karczmarczyk, “Castleton University, along with the Chaffee Art Center, the Paramount Theatre and the Rutland Downtown Partnership are all making an effort to highlight the value and importance of an arts enriched community, and it seems to be working.”
As the gallery continues to grow, it has taken on the role of providing art for additional downtown locations at the request of local building owners and city officials. To date, artwork collected and curated by the Castleton Downtown Gallery has been displayed in venues such as Rutland City Hall, the Rutland Chamber of Commerce, Chittenden Building, Opera House, Chaffee Downtown and the Rutland Free Library, livening up professional offices, community meeting spaces, and public buildings across downtown.
Part of the many upcoming projects from the gallery will be an installation in the Chittenden Building, previously utilized as a bank space. Re-vamped for this specific purpose, the exhibit will feature over 20 artists from around the state of Vermont, bringing in around 100 works for art in a wide variety of mediums. While the exhibit does not have regular hours, the buildings large windows and carefully placed lighting will allow passerby’s to view much of the artwork on display from the outside.
Also new to the area is the Castleton Downtown II, which hosted its Grand Opening in early November. Located in the Opera House in Downtown Rutland, the gallery is home to the permanent installation of the Rutland: “Ideal City” Drawing by Castleton Art Professor Bill Ramage. Standing 11 ½ feet high and 43 feet long, the streetscape drawing is composed of 18 panels with a gray pencil sketch of downtown Rutland stretching across the display, creating a life size image featuring recognizable landmarks such as Merchants Row.
“I think Rutland is a great space to showcase Castleton’s artwork,” said Rutland Mayor Chris Louras, who pictured a Castleton-related collaboration as the perfect addition to City Hall, which later evolved into a striking exhibit featuring pieces from 16 of the university’s alumni dating as far back as 1982 and up to Castleton’s graduating class of 2014. “We have a very good symbiotic relationship with Castleton and their presence in Rutland, downtown especially, is critical to Rutland’s success. Castleton adds to both the economic well-being of the community and vibrancy.”
ABOUT THE CASTLETON GALLERIES
Castleton Downtown Gallery
The Castleton Downtown Gallery is located on Center Street Alley in Rutland and is open Wednesday through Saturday with house of operation from 11 am – 6 pm.
Christine Price Gallery
The Christine Price Gallery is located in the Fine Arts Center on the Castleton University campus and is open Monday through Friday with house of operation 8 am – 4:30 pm.
Castleton Downtown Gallery II
The Castleton Downtown Gallery II is located in the Opera House on Merchants Row in Rutland and is open Monday through Friday with hours of operation from 9 am – 5 pm.