BRATTLEBORO — Attendees at the May 23 BEAN (“Brattleboro Essential Arts Network”) Micro-Grant Dinner at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center awarded a grant of $300 to artist Alicia Hunsicker of Leyden, Mass.
According to Hunsicker, the funds will help cover the cost of printing and mailing a large full-color postcard advertising her upcoming exhibition at Brattleboro's Gallery in the Woods.
This was the seventh BEAN micro-grant awarded since the program began last fall, and it was the first to be given directly to an artist, as opposed to an arts organization or school group.
According to BMAC Director Danny Lichtenfeld, approximately 30 people paid $10 each to attend dinner at the museum. Over dinner, which was donated and served by Brattleboro's Elliot Street Café, guests read and discussed six proposals submitted in advance and then voted for the one most deserving of the dinner proceeds.
“I was very impressed by the thoughtful discussions that took place over dinner,” said Lichtenfeld. “Everyone took their responsibilities as philanthropists and community decision-makers very seriously.”
Several guests expressed gratitude to BMAC and the Elliot Street Café for facilitating a program that simplifies the funding process for art projects, cuts out the middle man, and enables virtually anyone to have some measure of control over the vitality of art in their community. Dinner guest Anne LaPrade Seuthe said, “Simply having the opportunity to eat a meal in an art museum is a great thing. It makes the place feel so much more accessible and inviting.”
Alicia Hunsicker's solo exhibition, entitled “Moments of Creation,” will be held at Gallery in the Woods this coming November and December. According to Hunsicker, the exhibition consists of “paintings that explore the moment of creation, when dark matter turns to matter, when a thought manifests the spark of life.”
With funds to help publicize her exhibition, Hunsicker hopes more people will visit the gallery, perhaps purchase artwork, and also “discover the many delights that Brattleboro's Main Street has to offer.”
“Our goal with this program is to empower our community to support art projects it deems worthwhile,” said Lichtenfeld. “We look forward to partnering with the Elliot Street Café to present more BEAN Dinners in the future.”
For more information about BEAN Micro-Grant Dinners, visit www.brattleboromuseum.org or the Elliot Street Café.