Warren Kimble: Artful Assemblages Opening Reception

The small town of Brandon, Vermont, takes the spotlight again, with a multifaceted art exhibit showcasing its best known octogenarian. Warren Kimble, at age 87, remembered everywhere as “the contemporary folk artist,” selects a venue dear to his heart to stage what he calls his “last hurrah,” until he retires once again.

Many are familiar with the Kimble folk art imagery. Less well known, however, are other distinguished
collections, beginning in 2004, as the artist explored new forward-thinking themes. Kimble branched out with installations, such as “Widows of War” (2008), at Vermont’s Shelburne Museum, in reaction to the Iraq War, and, later, his “Cosmos” series relating to the Earth and the Universe.

The current contemporary offshoot with a folk art flavor, Artful Assemblages, was engendered by Kimble’s early years as an antiques expert with deep knowledge of handcrafted toys, furniture parts, discarded factory molds, obsolete kitchen implements, and the like. Ongoing, he continues to cherry-pick the perfect vintage leftover items at auctions and antique shops.

Using a 15-year accumulation of such pieces, Kimble’s creations can be seen as shrines to the beauty
of old-timey wood-turning, hand-carving, and the valued skills of bygone days. Fragments are combined and grouped in three-dimensional tableaus, found objects taking the place of actors. There’s a connection to theater and set design, relating to the artist’s love of Broadway.

Both locally and throughout Vermont, Kimble has been an art community leader. He helped to mastermind the highly successful street-art fundraisers, beginning by the BAG in 2003, imitated by other towns.

As a Vermont Arts Council board member, he created the State-wide “Palettes of Vermont” fundraiser,
and then sparked similar charity events at other area non-profits. A tribute to his devotion and dedication to Vermont, in 2013 Kimble was given the Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts.

Throughout a long life as an artist, educator, entrepreneur, and leader, Warren Kimble has given much of himself to his hometown Brandon and to the State of Vermont, with his ebullient spirit, high energy, and old-fashioned rollicking fun.