How one woman turned a small Vermont town into an arts destination
| South Pomfret, Vt.
When Kathleen Dolan started teaching music and art to young children in Woodstock,听Vermont, in 2003, she was used to being a one-person operation.听
In an earlier role in Boston, she conducted music programs at child care centers, and she recalls, 鈥淚 would just travel with my keyboard.鈥�
In a span of 10 years, she went from toting her keyboard to renting a small downtown space in Vermont for classes, to owning a dynamic arts center that would give her community and others accessibility to the arts.
Why We Wrote This
At a time when many rural villages have faded, South Pomfret, Vermont, population 900, is thriving. At the heart of its success: a passionate advocate of the arts and her campaign to bring them to this quaint New England village.
Her local nonprofit, ArtisTree Community Arts Center, has become a powerhouse of听creativity, welcoming local artists to its classes, art exhibitions, concerts, and theater productions in the village of South Pomfret. Here, they can explore their craft and share it with the world. Driven by Ms. Dolan, a spirit of inclusion and openness to all artists and art forms guides ArtisTree鈥檚 mission.听
鈥淚t鈥檚 a place where individuals feel their creative, imaginative selves can thrive, and it鈥檚听supported,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 supported by teachers, by the people around you, by the space.鈥�
Woodstock-based artist Judith Taylor is one of the artists who enjoys that support.
鈥淚 really believe we鈥檙e here to question and imagine and create and tell stories,鈥� Ms. Taylor says. 鈥淚 always had a feeling at ArtisTree that I was welcome to do that. I really got the courage to explore whatever interested me.鈥�
Ms. Dolan has also brought new vitality to the village of South Pomfret, a sliver of quintessential New England where the local ski resort Suicide Six towers above the landscape. The arts center, gallery, and the 90-seat Grange Theatre have transformed this town of about 900 into something of a cultural center.听
Community spirit
The journey began when Ms. Dolan rented a downtown space in Woodstock in 2003 to provide music and art for young children.
鈥淭hat was the beginning of me noticing how valuable a community space was for parents and听kids,鈥� Ms. Dolan says.
And she always honored that community spirit, says Dail Frates, executive director of Zack鈥檚 Place, a nonprofit serving children and adults with special needs, where Ms. Dolan sometimes teaches programs. Mrs. Frates remembers a time when only a couple of participants showed up for a class Ms. Dolan was teaching there. Mrs. Frates apologized for the low attendance, and she says Ms. Dolan鈥檚 response touched her. 鈥淪he said, 鈥榃ell, they matter too. It doesn鈥檛 matter if it鈥檚 two or 20 people. Everybody matters just as much.鈥欌�澨�听
鈥淪he鈥檚 such a kind, considerate, and respectful person. It doesn鈥檛 matter who you are; you鈥檙e important to her.鈥�
After听Ms. Dolan moved her听organization to a larger Woodstock location in 2006, community participation skyrocketed, and local partnerships grew.听She听continued putting resources into it, and in 2011,听gave the organization its current name: ArtisTree.听
In 2013, ArtisTree鈥檚 biggest expansion to date included the opening of the arts center and gallery in South Pomfret. For the first time, ArtisTree had a location it owned.
鈥淲e got to design the space, and we had performances in mind, so that piece of it really started听to get more attention and energy,鈥� Ms. Dolan says.
Art enthusiasts can now find a wide range of classes there, including the visual arts, theater arts, music, movement classes, and creative wellness. The wellness classes offer 鈥渇ocused, personal growth experience through a given art form.鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 another way that the arts can be of service to people,鈥� Ms. Dolan says. 鈥淵ou can really听learn something about yourself and find some peace and wellness through an art project as听well.鈥�
Fiona Davis, director of the ceramics program, says accessibility is one of the hallmarks of Ms. Dolan鈥檚 work.
鈥淲e get the chance to provide art to people who don鈥檛 always get that opportunity,鈥� Ms. Davis听says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 been one of the most important things to me.鈥�
Small-town revival
The arts center was also a game-changer for this tiny village, spurring the restoration of a historical barn, farmhouse, and Grange Hall, the last of which became Pomfret鈥檚 first theater venue in 2017. Its theater productions draw actors and performing arts fans from around the region.
The projects boosted visitor traffic and gave the village a new dose of vitality it hadn鈥檛 seen in decades. Still, it was important to Ms. Dolan to honor South Pomfret鈥檚 history. At the Grange, a cherished landmark in town, ArtisTree salvaged parts of the building wherever possible, displaying several historical Grange artifacts behind glass.
鈥淲e were really sensitive to that because the Grange held a lot of the cultural history of this听area,鈥� Ms. Dolan says.
All this adds up to a unique arts experience.
鈥淚t鈥檚 pretty significant that we have this amazing, amazing facility,鈥� Mrs. Frates says. 鈥淚 love听going to the theater and watching the productions.鈥�
(Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, theater and music events are canceled for the season as of publication.)
In coming years Ms. Dolan plans to host more productions featuring local talent.
鈥淚t brings more participation from the people that live here, and that鈥檚 the whole point of听ArtisTree,鈥� Ms. Dolan says.听
Ms. Taylor, the Woodstock artist, has been working with ArtisTree for years. She remembers displaying her work of art 鈥淢udrug鈥� in ArtisTree鈥檚 gallery in 2017. She fashioned mud from the Dead Sea, brought back from a trip to Israel and the Palestinian territories, into the shape of a prayer rug adorned with intricate designs, and allowed it to dry on the floor, where it was exhibited facing east. It was meant to honor a culture at a time when there was a lot of discussion in the world about Muslims, Ms. Taylor explains.听
鈥淢y intention really was to make something beautiful and fragile, because it seemed to me there was so much negative feeling about something that was in the world and has great meaning,鈥� she says.听
Ms. Taylor treasures the memory of that exhibition, and keeps the dried mud that formed 鈥淢udrug鈥� in a glass bottle at her home.听
鈥淭his is what Kathleen made possible in my life, and I鈥檓 so grateful, because if she did it for me,听she鈥檚 done it for so many other people.鈥澨�
