December 2024 in the Crowell Gallery
Jen Wood – “Nature’s Joy”
December 3 – 28, 2024
Artist Reception, Wednesday, December 4, 2024, 3:00 – 5:00 pm
Jen Wood is well known in the Brattleboro area as a cosmetologist specializing in hair color. Lesser known are her talents in watercolor. The gallery is pleased to exhibit one of the most colorful shows of the year. Starting with a background in oil painting, Wood soon found painting with watercolors a more creative outlet. “The dampness of the paper and the paint are key to working with the paint and not against it. It is a bit of a dance. Add in the use of salt and alcohol and various utensils and I can create many forms and textures. The transition from being a cosmetologist to a painter may seem unexpected, but for me it was a natural progression.” Raised on a farm, drawing and crafting the world around her had always been an important and fulfilling part of her life. This collection is reflective of her insatiable love of the Vermont landscape she calls home. This will be Wood’s first major exhibit.
2024 Gallery Schedule
- January— Crowell Art Collection
- February— Crowell Art Collection
- March— David Parker – Wildlife Photography
- April— Area School Children Exhibit
- May— Ahren Ahrenholz
- June— Art Among Friends
- July— Monadnock Area Artists Association
- August— Barbara Garber
- September— Gayle Robinson
- October— Nora Daniel
- November— Jessica Bigaj
- December— Jen Woods
Interested in exhibiting your art at the Crowell Gallery? Email crowellartgallery@gmail.com for information.
Gallery History
The Crowell Gallery at the Moore Free Library in Newfane, VT was opened to the public on September 2, 2000. It houses an outstanding collection of contemporary Southern Vermont artists. The permanent collection is on view each winter (usually in January and/or February). For the rest of the year, the gallery hosts special monthly exhibits by local artists. The gallery also serves as a venue for public programs and meetings.
Robert and Muriel Crowell funded the renovation of the Moore family’s 1890 post and beam barn. The work was performed by local artisans Dan and Gary MacArthur. A gift in 2004 from the Wolf Kahn and Emily Mason Foundation provided tensor lighting for the gallery.
About Robert L. Crowell
Robert L. (Bob) Crowell, former head of the Thomas Y. Crowell Company (which later became part of Harper Collins Publishers), was the grandson of the company’s eponymous founder. Thomas Y. Crowell began publishing books in 1876 and was the first U.S. publisher of Tolstoy and Gogol. Bob joined the company as a salesman in 1931, was elected treasurer in 1937, and rose to head the company in 1938. Under his leadership, the company published Roget’s International Thesaurus, the Frank Heller detective series and numerous art and children’s books.
Bob served as a trustee of the Moore Free Library from 1976 to 2001 and was President of the board for five of those years. As the Moore Free Library’s primary benefactor, he funded scholarship programs, literary awards, and library renovations. He passed away June 29, 2001.