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16 THE COMMONS • Wednesday, April 20, 2011
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Tiny art at
the ‘Louvre of
Londonderry’
Muralist Kim Ray
assembles an exhibition
of miniature works
By Richard Henke
Special to The Commons
LONDONDERRY—
Perhaps it takes
someone who works
big to see the beauty
in things small.
Kim Ray is a muralist who
paints sides of walls that can
be as big as 6 feet by 24 feet.
Precisely because it would be
completely opposite from the
way she usually works, she conceived
of the current exhibition
for her Londonderry gallery as
“The World’s Tiniest Art Show.”
The show features 11 members
of the Mountain Painters
and Artisans group exhibiting
more than 50 miniature and
small works in watercolor, oil,
pastel, fiber, cut paper, mosaic,
jewelry, and mixed media. It
will remain open until the end
of May at Ray’s studio and gallery,
now known as the “Louvre
of Londonderry.”
After all her work on such a
grand scale, Ray feels the special
delight of the small.
“The charm of miniature art is
in part because it can be held in
the palm of the hand,” she said.
“Miniatures entered the world
of art as a new genre as early as
the 16th century. To this day,
these works, with their specific
techniques, diminished format,
and reduced scale, continue to
evolve and remain popular with
artists around the world.”
Of all the artists in the show,
it is Ray herself — the one who
normally has the largest works to
display — who has the smallest
pieces here. She is pleased that
all of the small works are under
$100, making fine art affordable
for everyone.
Ray has been working as a
muralist since 1995, at first only
part time. After 2001, however,
she quit her job as an educator
so that she could dedicate herself
full time to her craft. She
has painted murals for people
and businesses in and outside
Vermont.
After she completed a
Vermont mural depicting the
four seasons for the Mountain
Market Place in Londonderry,
she decided on a whim to email
and invite then-Gov. Jim
Douglas to the public unveiling
of this mural last Nov. 28.
She never expecting a reply,
but not only did Douglas graciously
respond, but to her surprise
and delight, he agreed to
attend the opening.
Ray created her gallery when
her 10-by-15-foot studio at home
proved small for her needs.
“After receiving a too large of
a commission for the children’s
area at the Northshire Bookstore
[in Manchester, Vt.], I had to
find a wall to paint it on,” she
said.
The space she found in
Mountain Marketplace turned
out to be so large that she decided
also to open a gallery there,
for herself and other artists in
the area.
“After opening the art studio
as an ‘open studio,’ curious
people and local artists would
stop in to share in the process of
art. Inspiring art discussions and
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COURTESY OF MOUNTAIN PAINTERS AND ARTISANS
Some of the miniature paintings on display this month at muralist Kim Ray’s studio, a.k.a. the Louvre
of Londonderry.
exchanges occurred,” she said.
“There was a need for all that
wonderful creativity of the artists
to be showcased, and that
is how the Mountain Painters
and Artisans was established,”
Ray said.
“We are not a typical gallery,”
she continued. “We are a community
group of artists that support
each other in our creative
endeavors and bring that inspiration
out into the community.
We use each other’s strengths
to become successful in the arts.
We also have several supportive
members that have joined due
to their love of the arts and their
goal as well to extend the arts
into the community.”
The Mountain Painters and
Artisans is comprised of 11 local
artists who work in diverse media:
Martha Stevenson, folk art
paintings; Vicki Greene, handmade
collectible artisan dolls
and fabric art; Ken Ahlering,
traditional realistic oil paintings;
Diane Bell, watercolor paintings;
Linda Carthaus, luminous oil
landscapes; Mona McGreevy,
native birch bark paintings made
with materials from the mountains;
Esther Fishman, pastel
landscapes; Lisa Sicotte, scherenschnitte
(hand-cut paper
scenes from nature); Elinor
Katz, mosaic designs on vintage
furnishings; Bob Ray, plein air
Vermont oil landscapes; and, of
course, Ray herself, who besides
murals also works in many other
media to display in the Louvre of
Londonderry.
The reason for Ray’s gallery’s
name, the Louvre of
Londonderry, is an inside joke:
two of the artists in the group
have the first names “Mona”
and “Lisa.”
Recently, Ray received a call
from a 12-year-old girl from
Pennsylvania who was planning
to write a report on the “World’s
Tiniest Art Show.” Ray asked the
girl how she could possibly know
of her exhibition.
The young student explained
that someone had posted information
about it on the Internet.
Ray was thrilled that someone
living so far away could be
touched by her art.
“It was more exciting than
Gov. Douglas coming to my unveiling!”
she said.
“The Artist’s Garden &
Flower Art Show,” the next
gallery show, will open during
Vermont Open Studio Weekend
2011, which runs Memorial Day
weekend, May 28- 29.
“Each artist of Mountain
Painters and Artisans displays
unique, one-of-a-kind original
work that has been inspired by
living in Vermont and nature. .
Ray invites the public to meet
the artists and see art demonstrations
and experience the creative
process throughout the day.
The Louvre of Londonderry is
located at the Mountain Market
Place at the junction of Routes
11 and 100 in Londonderry. The
gallery is open Thursday and
Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and
Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., or
by appointment, by calling Ray
at 802-824-6555.
COURTESY MOUNTAIN PAINTERS AND ARTISANS
The Mountain Painters and Artisans in the space they
call the Londonderry Louvre. Back row: Diane Bell,
Vicki Greene, Esther Fishman, Kim Ray, Bob Ray.
Front row: Lisa Sicotte, Mona McGreevy, Martha
Stevenson. Missing from photo: Ken Ahlering, Linda
Carthaus, Elinor Katz.
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