| THE SCULPTURE MILE at Ivoryon & Madison |
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| This site is now under reconstruction and revision of the sections on exhibitions. Most of the other material is current. We ask your patience, but you now can download our complete catalogue, a free hard copy is also available at a dozen public libraries in the towns nearest the two exhibitions. GEOGRAPHICALLY (west to east and north): Guilford, Madison, Clinton, Westbrook, Old Saybrook, Lyme, Old Lyme, Essex, Ivoryton, Deep River, Chester, Killingworth, and Haddam. | ||
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Located in Ivoryton- Niki Ketchman's "Corinthian" sited in the front of the Foundation's first headquarters |
Located in Madison- Jonathan Water's steel "Deuces Wild" in front of the famed Deacon Grave House |
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| Presented here is an essay celebrating the fifteenth anniversary of the founding of THE SCULPTURE MILE at Ivoryton DISCOVER IVORYTON |
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Apart from those living there, Essex residents as well as tourists, rarely visit the village of Ivoryton. An occasional gastronomic adventure to the upscale Copper Beech Inn (only half-way into the village) and an infrequent visit to a production at the famed Playhouse is par for the course. The quaint Main Street happily is devoid of day-trippers and overly eager tourist shoppers, but there has been little draw for visitors to stroll the street of manicured lawns and attractive homes. Few folk recall that the Town's Historic Commission discovered decades ago that there are more homes in Ivoryton eligible for the National Historic Register than in all the rest of Essex. The Hollycroft Foundation has changed the appearance of that somewhat overlooked thoroughfare, not with hectic activity, but by installing THE SCULPTURE MILE. It is an outdoor exhibition of world-class sculpture, created by nationally renowned artists and valued at more than a half million dollars ($553,300.) along a mile of the Main Street. The idea of a prestigious rotating outdoor sculpture exhibition was born in Ivoryton fifteen years ago. Having been the host in 1994 to the first such exhibition in the United States, Essex can take great pride in this revival, which celebrates the 15th anniversary of the event's founding and birthplace. This exhibition has converted Main Street into a “living museum” designed to encourage a leisurely stroll and contemplation - contemplation of the beauty, complexity, and meaning of contemporary American art. Children and adults are encouraged to view, enjoy and even carefully touch, there are no intimidating guards, and this” museum” never closes. |
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Essex Elementary School Art Educator, Marilyn Malcarne, explains to students: Alec Adamson, Siena Schaller, and Sadie Blue Konstan, the inspiration for Ana Flores' sculpture of the earth Goddess "Demeter" who wandered the earth in search of her lost child. The sculpture's steel frame is purposely covered by a rare climbing plant provided by the Ivoryton Village Gardeners. |
THE SCULPTURE MILE runs on both sides of the street from the Tuscan Restaurant and the Playhouse to Centerbrook’s border, and to provide for safety there are sidewalks along the street for the entire length of the exhibit. Full color catalogues that detail the works are available at a dozen area libraries, as well as from many merchants throughout the Shoreline and the River Valley. |
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| ABOVE, the cover of the 2005-2006 Madison catalogue featured a steel work by Sandy MacLeod titled "Unbalanced." |
EXHIBITIONS LECTURES SEMINARS ART TOURS MULTI-MEDIA EDUCATIONAL CURRICULA creators of THE SCULPTURE MILE The Hollycroft Foundation 13 Main Street Ivoryton, Connecticut 06442-0278 860.767.2624 hollycroft@hollycroft.org Photographs are selected at random from various projects and exhibitions, with an emphasis on the exhibitions at Madison and Middletown, Connecticut. |
The Hollycroft Foundation, founded in 1991, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, a member of the Arts Council of Greater New Haven and an Institutional Member of the American Federation of Arts along with the following Connecticut art institutions: Lyman Allyn Art Museum, The William Benton Museum of Art, Florence Griswold Museum, Silvermine Guild Arts Center, The Wadsworth Atheneum, The Yale Center for British Art, and the Yale University Art Gallery. |
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