Yes, I am in Vermont Studio Center now! My flight went smoothly enough: from Hong Kong non-stop to O’Hare Chicago then continued on to Burlington, the closest airport from Johnson, where Vermont Studio Center (VSC) is located. I stayed overnight at Anchorage Inn in Burlington and the VSC people picked me up the following morning.
I was lucky to get a window seat which enabled me to take aerial photos as the plane was lowering down for landing in Burlington. The view was just so pretty… so much snow I almost couldn’t believe it! The lower our plane was going, the cuter it all looked. Just like a giant maquette – only much more detailed and cuter!
Today is my 7th day here and I love it so far! It’s such an amazing place… They really do a great job running this place. There are about 40 artists and 12 writers at a time – they came here on various different programs/fellowships/durations so there are always people coming and going all the time. It’s so exciting!
For those who wasn’t sure what VSC is all about, basically they are a non-profit organization: from artists for artists. They are funding artists and writers from the US and all over the world to come here to create in a non-competitive community-based environment. They house us in simple and yet cozy rooms, feed us three times a day with excellent meals (the desserts are killers!) and provide us with private studios to create in. Some of us are here on full fellowship (like me – funded by the Freeman Foundation) which means we don’t pay for anything – we’re even given some stipends. While others are here on partial fellowship in which they have to pay a small amount and do some community work i.e. helping with washing the dishes, etc. VSC does not offer training programs nor courses although from time to time there are some lectures or presentations from Visiting Artists and Visiting Writers. To learn more about VSC, you can visit their website at http://www.vermontstudiocenter.org. If you are an artist or a writer, I encourage you to apply for their various grants/fellowships.
It’s so nice here – everyone is so friendly and eager to help each other. I’m a hermit but I must say I do enjoy socializing with others here. Meal time is the time to meet others and chat; it’s very interesting learning about what they do, where they come from, etc.. These are a bunch of very creative and talented people of all ages. Some of them are so young and yet so accomplished! This is such a wholesome community – I am very impressed!
It’s no wonder then that I’m settling down well. I love my studio too – it’s so spacious with plenty of natural light coming through the three windows. It took me a few days to set everything up; and I have started working in it now. I’m not sure what I’m going to make yet. Got some ideas but they keep on changing. Originally I wanted to continue working on my To Breed Or Not To Breed project currently in progress, in Hong Kong. But later on I decided to do something entirely different. Or, it could be exploring the same theme, but with a new approach or something. So I’ve been experimenting. My challenge is to create with what I got here – which is quite limited as naturally I couldn’t bring everything from my studio in Hong Kong! So far there is nothing I’m really pleased with, but I am hopeful. Maybe within the next week I’ll be able to come up with something more definite.
The other day, for the first time ever in my life I got to do a ‘Laundromat’ thingie! It was interesting! haha! Walking on the snow is also interesting – I actually like it! What is tough is walking on melting snow or sheeting icy ground – so slippery! Oh and I also got the see snow falling for the first time too! And I’m turning into a morning person here! Got up very early without any difficulties. It could be just jetlag though… but I’m enjoying it – the ‘morning person’ bit, not the jet lag! :)
And there was a Resident Slide Show – it was very interesting to see others’ work. This is done every Wednesday – my turn will be on the 19th.
Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day and some of us went to the nearby town, Morrisville to get some materials at the big hardware store there. It was fun!
Last night, I attended the Writer Reading, there were about 5 writers reading their work: some are poems, some are short stories, some are excerpts from the book or article they are working on. It was very interesting and enjoyable!
This weekend, there is a snow storm warning – and I’m excited as I’ve never been in a snow storm before! Silly eh!
Well, that’s it from me for now :). Have a wonderful weekend!
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