W. TOWNSHEND, Vt. – Vermont Open Studios during Memorial Day weekend is a 30-year old tradition. The Vermont Crafts Council has designed a creative road trip throughout Vermont to connect you with artists in their workspaces.
One new artist to the annual event is the experimental painter and sculptor, Jim Jackson. The public is invited to his studio-gallery on Turkey Mountain slope, overlooking the West River Valley in West Townshend, Vt.
Choosing not to be fenced in by the boundaries of any one medium, Jackson embodies this intention in his work. He encourages electric colors to spill and splash onto the frame, which becomes an integral part of each composition.
During this 2022 Open Studio Weekend, Jackson shares a sampling of his 60 artistic years, along with his most current paintings and his “Rot Garden,” which has germinated and grown over the past 13. “My experience with wood sculpture, when exposed to the elements, introduced me to the beauty of natural material rotting away, returning to the earth,” says Jackson. His attentiveness to the fungi and molds that consume wood casts a spell, evoking in his work the beauty of decay in the natural world.
Visitors can walk in the gardens and woods at Jackson’s studio to view sculptures made from wood, recycled materials, and the stems and roots of the invasive honeysuckle bush. And then there’s nature’s own breath-taking art at Jackson’s studio – the inspirational, spacious view of the hills lining the West River valley.
The 30th Annual Vermont Spring Open Studio Weekend is the Saturday and Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend, May 28 and 29, 2022 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. each day. Artists welcome visitors, sharing the artistic and technical aspects of their work. Visitors learn the stories behind the creations, many of which are for sale.
Visit Jim Jackson and his studio-gallery at 329 Windham Hill Rd., West Townshend, Vt. Reach him by phone at 802-874-4706 or by email at jjartist@comcast.net. His website is www.jimjacksonart.com.