The Story

Maybe it was spring fever, or just an urge to get out and breathe some fresh air untainted by wood smoke, but when some of us drove up to Brandon, Vermont and came face to face with the Pigs of Brandon for the very first time, it was instant love. We hadn't known they were there. It was just one of those things. We turned the corner and there sat Petunia holding her little pocket book, all smiles, and we were hooked.

We spent an enjoyable time in Brandon that day, visiting with a town lady who wanted to show us her favorite painted beastie, and meeting the folks from the art exchange who had organized the whole event. By the time we left, we thought, "Why not Bennington?"

There were stories of moose who occasionally appeared in Bennington, and indeed, one "lady" moose had recently visited our property on Route 7. We know she was there, because the next day we saw her unmistakable footprints in the snow (each print was seventeen and one-half inches long), and along side her huge footprint, was a petite little eight inch print. We took photographs of those prints, just to have. It seemed natural then to present a little inkling of an idea for a painted moose event to the Events Committee of the Bennington Area Chamber of Commerce.

The idea was presented, they listened, there was about five seconds of absolute silence, and then everyone began talking at once.

"I think we have an important project here", said Lyndy Lynch, co-owner of Kevin's at Mike's Place. "I want to be on every committee." (And she is!)

Jerry Kline offered to chair the program. Volunteers appeared from everywhere. Cheryl Wehrspaun of Sweet Pea Antiques is Chair of the Web Site Committee, Michelle Hogan who works at the Court House has had the gargantuan task of co-ordinating the artists portfolios with the patrons. Keith Martin of P.J. Martin Company has carried moose from one end of the state to the other, in a perpetual motion of showing off the beautiful critters as a way of inviting visitors to come and see. P.J. Van Houton of Southern Vermont College has taken on the daunting task of organizing the Gala and Auction that will take place on October 29, 2005 . Of course there are dozens and dozens of volunteers involved, from artists to patrons, sponsors, and mavens (see Moose Mavens).

There are those of course who would say that these lovely street sculptures are not real art, but let's look at that, shall we? What exactly do the artist and his/her patron want to accomplish? First of all, a sense of fun. Check. Secondly, to bring a smile or an outright guffaw from a person happening upon one. Check. How about an ooh or an aah over one that has a particularly beautiful or poignant scene painted on it? Check. We've heard a "fantastic" when someone encountered a moose that had historical scenes painted on it. Not bad. Check that also. What is art anyway? If a project of this ilk can bring a community together in a sense of pride and fun, and can include every single person from school children to retirees, from presidents of colleges to bank presidents, to grocery clerks, to lawyers....well, that friends, is wonderful. It just doesn't get any more beautiful!

Thank you to the Bennington community and the local surrounding area of Pownal, Shaftsbury, North Bennington, Arlington, to everyone who has participated in the fun and the year long events. (See Events)

Welcome new friends to Bennington. We hope you will enjoy your visit here to the Gateway to Vermont, and that you will linger a while and have a smile or two with us.

If you have a comment or story to share about Moosefest, please email us