THIS spring , Bennington Museum is reimagining the enduring legacy of one of America ’ s most celebrated folk artists , Grandma Moses , with a new permanent exhibition and gallery space .
Grandma
Moses :
Folk Hero
BENNINGTON MUSEUM OPENS A NEW , PERMANENT GRANDMA MOSES EXHIBITION
B y B e n j a m i n L e r n e r
Cambridge Valley , 1943 , Oil on pressed wood , 24 x 29 3 / 4 inches ; Museum purchase , funds provided by exchange from the Channing Hare-Mountfort Coolidge Collection , Anna Mary Robertson “ Grandma " Moses ( 1860-1961 ), © Grandma Moses Properties , New York .
THIS spring , Bennington Museum is reimagining the enduring legacy of one of America ’ s most celebrated folk artists , Grandma Moses , with a new permanent exhibition and gallery space .
Renowned for her self-taught artistry and her evocative depictions of rural life , Moses captivated the American public during the mid-20th century . Born Anna Mary Robertson in 1860 , Grandma Moses emerged as a quintessential figure in 20th-century American folk art . Embarking on her artistic journey in her seventies , she swiftly rose to prominence , becoming one of the nation ' s most beloved artists . Her works graced the walls of prestigious New York City galleries , as well as mass-produced greeting cards and home décor pieces that found their way into countless American living rooms . Moses spent much of her life in Eagle Bridge , New York , just over the state border from Bennington . She captured the timeless allure of the local landscapes in her paintings , including the picturesque fields , valleys and mountains of Washington County , New York . While Moses ' primary artistic focus was her immediate , local surroundings , she occasionally ventured into Vermont . This is evidenced by her beloved painting , Bennington ( 1953 ), which prominently features the iconic gray stone Bennington Museum building at its center .
Over the past five decades , Bennington Museum has built the largest public collection of Grandma Moses artworks in the world , which encompasses dozens of paintings and thousands of personal artifacts , photographs , and documents . “ We ’ re embracing the fact that people come from far and wide to see her work here at Bennington Museum with this exhibition ,” says Bennington Museum ’ s Executive Director Martin Mahoney , “ and we ’ re proud to be able to present it in this newly renovated space .”
Bennington Museum ’ s five recently acquired Grandma Moses paintings , Mt . Nebo in Winter , Cambridge Valley , Sugaring Off , Old Times , and The Great Fire ( The Burning of Troy in 1862 ) are housed in a gallery area that celebrates her life and artistry . The expanded exhibition space opened to the public on March 28 . It connects Bennington Museum ’ s main gallery to the on-site Grandma Moses Schoolhouse through a hallway , and its walls are lined with her paintings , as well as historic archival materials . Highlights include her early needlework , an 18th-century table used as her painting surface , and a trove of pictures and documents , one of which features Moses standing next to acclaimed illustrator Norman Rockwell .
According to Bennington Museum Curator Jamie Franklin , the five Moses paintings were acquired from the Kallir Research Institute , an institution originally founded as Galerie St . Etienne in 1939 by renowned art dealer Otto Kallir .
“ Otto Kallir worked closely with Grandma Moses and shaped her career ,” shares Franklin . Kallir showed her works at Galerie St . Etienne and helped to arrange a Gimbels department store Thanksgiving show for Moses that caught
the public ’ s attention in 1940 . Over the course of his life , Kallir amassed a collection of her works that has now found its way into museum collections across the country . A number of Moses paintings also have been recently acquired from the Kallir Institute by prestigious institutions such as Atlanta ’ s High Museum of Art and The Smithsonian American Art Museum , the latter of which will be hosting a major retrospective in 2025 . “ We ’ re going to be lending a number of works to the Smithsonian for that exhibition ,” says Franklin . “ We ’ re working with the Kallir Institute and other museums to preserve her legacy .”
The Moses exhibition was made possible through extensive community support , including a fundraising gala in late-2023 and a generous contribution by Lyman Orton , a passionate art collector . Orton ’ s collection of Vermont paintings was recently featured in the For the Love of Vermont exhibition , which ran at Bennington Museum and Southern Vermont Arts Center in 2023 . “ The community has really come together with this exhibit ,” says Mahoney . " The Moses name is well-known throughout popular culture , and she represents a pivotal era in the folk-art movement here in Bennington , Upstate New York , and far beyond . She shattered barriers and paved the way for others as a self-taught artist . Her story is inspiring , and it still resonates today .” n
Bennington Museum , 75 Main Street , Bennington , Vermont ; 802- 447-1571 ; benningtonmuseum . org
Holiday 2023 BERKSHIRE MAGAZINE // 87