New Exhibit Building!
Hazelett Watercraft Center
The centerpiece of this exhibit is the 35 foot long, 1902 ice yacht Storm King, given to the museum by William (Bill) and Dawn Hazelett. Storm King towers above a two-story array of dugout and bark canoes, kayaks, rowing skiffs, and sail boats from the LCMM collection, and digital displays of vintage postcards and film footage of ice boats in action. “We can’t find enough words to thank Bill and Dawn Hazelett and their family for their generosity,” commented LCMM director Art Cohn. “What a great way to celebrate the museum’s twenty-fifth season. The Hazelett Watercraft Center fulfills a long-cherished vision of a facility at the Maritime Museum that celebrates the lake’s legacy of wooden watercraft and their makers, and the sport of iceboating.”
This new building will feature highlights of LCMM’s extraordinary collection of over 90 small boats made and used on Lake Champlain. The exhibit celebrates the unique style and craftsmanship of Lake Champlain’s watercraft and honors the boat builders who created them. Over the centuries thousands of hand-crafted wooden boats on the lake served a myriad of purposes: hunting, fishing, transportation of goods and people, as well as recreation and leisure.
These boats continue to inspire the people who design and create boats, canoes and kayaks of both traditional and innovative materials. The ribbon cutting of the new building on July 17 at 10:30am will kick off LCMM’s annual Small Watercraft Festival.
Through the Eyes of Custer Ingham
A Special Presentation of his art
May 29 - August 15
Join us for a special reception & gallery talk with guest curators
June 24, from 7pm - 8:30pm
Vermont artist Custer Ingham (1863 - 1931) was born during the Civil War and named for General George Armstrong Custer. He grew up fishing, hunting, and exploring Otter Creek and other waterways connecting to Lake Champlain. He began photographing and painting views of the area during the 1880s, and traveled to New York to study art. On his return, he took a job maintaining the boats and property of Vergennes businessman William Bixby, and continued to paint local scenes along the water as well as occasional portraits and still lifes.
The exhibition, “Through the Eyes of Custer Ingham” features more than 25 works from private collections, most of which have not been on public view since the 1970s. Guest curators Bill Benton and Greg Hamilton worked with LCMM Director Art Cohn to develop the exhibition and illustrated catalog. “Ingham captured many views that help us envision daily life along these waterways in his era,” Cohn commented. The exhibition will be on view from May 29 through August 15.
If you love art, check out our friends at Vermont Art Zine - your resource for art reviews, shows, and more.
Contact of Cultures, 1609
May 22 - October 17, 2010
Newly installed in LCMM’s historic 1818 Stone Schoolhouse, this special exhibit reflects the maritime skills and traditions of the region’s Native people and the pivotal expedition of Samuel de Champlain in 1609. Lake Champlain’s first navigators are represented by a dugout canoe, full sized and miniature birch bark canoes, and some of the tools used to make them, an array of canoe paddles, as well as traditional fishing net, hooks, and sinkers. Then meet Samuel de Champlain, whose explorations (including the 1609 expedition to Lake Champlain) and personal diplomacy helped shape the world of today. Discover the skillful and tenacious man behind the myth, and some of the region’s Native American people revealed in Champlain’s writings and drawings.
Abenaki historian Frederick M. Wiseman, Ph. D. worked with his students and with a professional armorer to provide replicas of the armor, helmets, and other equipment used on the Champlain expedition. El-nu Abenaki Chief Roger Longtoe and Vera Longtoe created replicas of fishing lures, hooks, sinkers, and net used by Native people in the seventeenth century. Live demonstrations are presented at LCMM each year at the Native American Encampment.
Shipwrecks!
May 22 - October 17, 2010
LCMM introduces a new way to experience the lake's underwater cultural preserves - without getting wet! The dark waters of Lake Champlain hold over 300 shipwrecks. Stop by LCMM’s Nautical Archaeology Center to view video footage from lake shipwrecks in a recreated underwater shipwreck site and a collection of artifacts that are clues to the identity of the un-named vessel known only as the Sloop Island Canal Boat. The exhibit also includes a look at each of the lake's nine underwater historic preserves, and other important shipwrecks. Interested in more? Sign up for a family-friendly on-water Shipwreck Tour!
Lake Champlain Through the Lens Photo Show
September 4 - October 16, 2010
The many seasons and moods of Lake Champlain are beautifully reflected in this exhibit of outstanding work by professional and amateur photographers. Comments from the panel of judges illuminate the details. Come and cast your vote for the “People’s Choice Award.”
Want to get involved? Read our Call for Entries; then deliver your ready-to-hang photographs to the museum in August.