New Canaan in retrospect Silvermine Artists’ Colony on permanent display

Saturday, 08 August 2009 06:39

Oxen pulling carts, women wearing bonnets and a clear sky unobstructed by trees are all things that made up New Canaan just 100 years ago.

Serving as a portal into this earlier New Canaan is the Historical Society’s new Silvermine Room, recently opened for the purpose of exhibiting the art of the Silvermine Artists’ Colony.

Silvermine is a neighborhood that forms part of New Canaan, Norwalk and Wilton.

The artists who founded the Artists’ Colony more than a century ago also formed a group called the Knockers’ Club — later the Silvermine Guild of Artists — which met Sunday mornings to critique each other’s work.

“They were a local group of artists who would congregate in their barns and homes to literally knock each other,” an amused Jeff Cooley of Cooley Galleries recently told the Advertiser. “When the Knockers got together, they would criticize their work in order not only to improve it themselves but also to try as a group to become better.”

Edward Vollmer, a member of the board of the New Canaan Historical Society, chose the many pieces that are in the exhibit. In his mind, he said, “the main purpose of the Silvermine Room is to offer recognition to those artists of Silvermine.”

When asked if he thought the exhibit properly represented the artists who are on display, Cooley responded with an enthusiastic, “Absolutely.”

He described the exhibit as not only “aesthetically pleasing,” but also “an admirable effort to represent the Silvermine artists by pulling together the art on a shoestring.”

It is the Historical Society’s intention that the new gallery will always display the work of the Silvermine artists, but the pieces themselves will change. Some of the artwork on display now are owned by the Historical Society, while others are on loan.

“There’s quite a lot of diversity in the art,” said Janet Lindstrom, director of the Historical Society. From “Windy Fall Day” by Helen Hamilton to “Gospel Story” by D. Putnam Brinley, the Silvermine Room is filled with paintings, sculpture, early newspaper articles about the group, invitations to Knockers’ Club shows and other historical memorabilia.

Gertrude Schmitt, daughter of artist Carl Schmitt, met with the Advertiser at her father’s old art studio outside of town.

She said that when her father was 17, his close friend Addison Millar brought him down to Connecticut for a visit. There, Schmitt met the founder of the Silvermine artists’ colony, Solon Borglum.

“My father was overcome by the scenic beauty of Silvermine and moved here right away,” she said, gesturing at the pristine landscape surrounding the studio.

Gertrude described the new gallery as housing “one of the nicest exhibits I’ve seen in a while,” adding that the overall show is well put together.

“Because Ed Vollmer is an art collector, he knew what he was doing when he put the room together,” she said. “You don’t get the feeling that you’re in a showroom because Ed has such a terrific sense for which paintings go together.”

One of the volunteers at the Silvermine Room is David Borglum, grandson of Silvermine Artists’ Colony founder Solon Borglum.

After attending the opening of the exhibit, Borglum said that it “is a nice representation of not only my grandfather’s work but also the work of the other artists as well.”

“The artists really captured the beauty of Silvermine — it was their inspiration,” said Robert Schmitt, Gertrude’s brother. “They have a precision about their work that makes each piece different.”

“My father worked on his artwork like a musician works with music,” his sister added. “He applied an intellectual passion.”

The current exhibit will be on display until August 15, and an exhibit featuring works by Justin Gruelle is planned for the fall.

The room is open from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, with a break from noon till 2:30 p.m. on Saturdays.