Connecticut Impressionist Art Trail
http://www.arttrail.org/
Treasures from The Connecticut
Impressionist Art Trail: Connecticut's Millennium Legacy Trail
The Connecticut Commission
on the Arts has organized a celebratory exhibition, Treasures from The
Connecticut Impressionist Art Trail: Connecticut's Millennium Legacy Trail,
at the Old State House in Hartford through October 28, 2000. Nominated by
governor John G. Rowland, the Impressionist Art Trail was recently designated
by the White House Millennium Council as Connecticut's Millennium Legacy
Trail. Connecticut's Art Trail is a unique partnership involving ten museums
and historic sites and is the only one of the fifty state legacy trails
devoted to art.
The
exhibition features several paintings from each site on the Art Trail and
traces the American Impressionist art movement in Connecticut, widely considered
to be its 
"birthplace."
Drawn by the beauty and peace of Connecticut's shoreline and countryside,
many prominent artists flocked to the state at the turn of the century to
establish artist colonies in Cos Cob and Old Lyme. These sites and the Branchville
farm of J. Alden Weir became critical to the creation of American Impressionism
and are featured stops along the Art Trail. They are joined by art museums
housing prime examples of the art that was embraced by turn-of-the-century
America. The Farmington home of a collector of French Impressionism and
a corporate collection of Connecticut impressionism famed for its breadth
and quality complete the tour. (left: Willard Metcalf, Mountain
Laurel, Courtesy New Britain Museum of American Art; right: Willard
Metcalf, Summer in Hadlyme, Florence Griswold Museum)
"The
designation of the Art Trail as Connecticut's Millennium legacy Trail is
testament to the importance of art in our state's history," said John
Ostrout, Executive Director of the state Commission on the Arts. "`We
should all be very proud of Connecticut's seminal role in the establishment
of a significant artistic movement recognized around the world. The Millennium
Legacy Trail designation will help preserve this remarkable piece of Connecticut's
heritage for generations to come." (left: Frank Dumond, Top
of the Hill, Florence Griswold Museum)
Millennium Trails is a national initiative of the White
House Millennium Council in partnership with the U.S. Department of Transportation
and the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy to promote, enhance and construct trails
across America that will connect communities for centuries to come. The
nation's Governors nominated the fifty Millennium Legacy Trails.
The
Connecticut Impressionist Art Trail is comprised of the Bruce
Museum in Greenwich, Bush-Holly Historic
Site in Cos Cob, Weir Farm National
Historic Site in Wilton, Yale University
Art Gallery in New Haven, Florence
Griswold Museum in Old Lyme, Lyman
Allyn Art Museum In New London, the collection of Hartford Steam Boiler
Inspection and Insurance Co. in Hartford, Wadsworth
Atheneum in Hartford, Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington, and New Britain Museum of American Art. (left:
Frank Dumond, Grassy Hill, Lyme, 30 1/2 x 24 1/4 inches, Florence
Griswold Museum, 74.9)
Hildy Cummings, noted authority on American Impressionism,
organized the exhibition. Trained docents will be on hand at the Old State
House to guide visitors. The Old State House is located at 800 Main Street
in Hartford. Visiting hours are Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. and
Saturday from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. Admission is free. For more information
about the exhibition, please call the Old State House at (860) 522-6766
or the Connecticut Commission on the Arts at (860) 566-4770.
Ed. One of America's earliest art centers was the Lyme
Art Colony. See AskArt.com's data on 60 Old Lyme Colony painters. Other
early Connecticut art colonies were at Cos Cob and Mystic. See also the
Connecticut State Capitol Statuary Collection..
rev. 10/11/00, rev. 11/20/10
Please click on thumbnail images bordered by a red line
to see enlargements.
For further biographical information on selected artists
cited above please see America's Distinguished
Artists, a national registry of historic artists.
This page was originally published in Resource
Library Magazine. Please see Resource Library's Overview section for
more information. rev. 4/6/11
Search Resource
Library for thousands of articles and essays on American art.
Copyright 2011 Traditional Fine Arts Organization, Inc., an Arizona nonprofit corporation. All rights
reserved.
The
exhibition features several paintings from each site on the Art Trail and
traces the American Impressionist art movement in Connecticut, widely considered
to be its 
"birthplace."
Drawn by the beauty and peace of Connecticut's shoreline and countryside,
many prominent artists flocked to the state at the turn of the century to
establish artist colonies in Cos Cob and Old Lyme. These sites and the Branchville
farm of J. Alden Weir became critical to the creation of American Impressionism
and are featured stops along the Art Trail. They are joined by art museums
housing prime examples of the art that was embraced by turn-of-the-century
America. The Farmington home of a collector of French Impressionism and
a corporate collection of Connecticut impressionism famed for its breadth
and quality complete the tour. (left: Willard Metcalf, Mountain
Laurel, Courtesy New Britain Museum of American Art; right: Willard
Metcalf, Summer in Hadlyme, Florence Griswold Museum)
