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What we do

CAL’s purpose is to support education and the arts by:

  1. Providing and maintaining educational and arts facilities and associated infrastructure to support the respective missions of the corporation and its founding member organizations’ respective missions;
  2. Advancing community improvements while maintaining the aesthetic qualities of Montpelier;
  3. Improving connections and quality of life in the community by providing facilities, services opportunities and other support for, or distributions to, non-profit education, arts, public gatherings, and other community connections that advance any of these purposes or other related charitable causes.

Ways we do this

  • Maintaining and improving the 46 Barre Street campus to suit the uses of the founding members and the general artistic community
    • Providing for lease 28 private studios for creative and educational exploration
  • Adherence to historic preservation guidelines in regards to building maintenance
  • Providing free, low-cost and collaborative opportunities to engage with the community
    • Barre Street monthly summer potluck dinners
    • Montpelier Art Walk coordination
    • Short term rentals and meeting spaces
    • Fiscal sponsorship program
    • Sponsorships and collaborations
    • Community-responsive partnerships

Staff

  • Phayvanh Luekhamhan, Executive Director: director@cal-vt.org.
  • Jesse Russell, Facilities Coordinator: facilities@cal-vt.org
  • Melissa Shekinah, Bookkeeper: finance@cal-vt.org

Board of Directors

  • Phillip Robertson, President
  • Elliot Bent, Treasurer
  • Debra Smoller, Secretary
  • Leslie Welts, Director
  • Leanne Tingay, Director

History

The Center for Arts and Learning was founded in 2012, when Monteverdi Music School, the River Rock School, and T.W. Wood Gallery formed a non-profit umbrella organization to manage and later purchase the building at 46 Barre St., previously St. Michael’s School and convent. Together, they had a vision to transform the building into a thriving hub for music and art education in central Vermont. Though River Rock School has since closed, we are hosting a number of exciting programs and organizations in their former space. The building now houses over 25 artists, writers, nonprofits, and makers.

Programs

As CAL continues to grow, so does our programming.

Montpelier Art Walk: Taking place on the first Friday of every even month from 4 – 8 PM, this is a time for the community to engage in a self-guided tour of art exhibits in our downtown businesses. Many venues host receptions during this time. For more information, contact Yvonne: artwalk@montpelieralive.org

Art Exhibits: The Art Resource Association curates the art exhibits in the first floor community spaces. These group shows are self-curated from the CAL studio artists and the ARA members and change every two months. For more information, contact Kate: kmuellerarts@aol.com. To buy art at CAL, go to the “art” page.

CAL staff curates the second floor community spaces and draws from the community of creatives at large. These shows change every two months. For more information, email: info@cal-vt.org

Fiscal Sponsorship: CAL is committed to supporting independent creative and learning opportunities in Vermont. We offer a Model C fiscal sponsorship to support these programs.

Studio Rentals: CAL has over 24 studios rented for artists, musicians, nonprofits, and others in the creative and learning realms. There’s usually always a room available, so feel free to reach out if you’re interested in a space for yourself.

If you are interested in being part of CAL’s programming, please contact Phayvanh at director@cal-vt.org.

Building

46 Barre St. is a special building. Located next to the Montpelier Senior Center and across the street from the Montpelier Rec Center, it is in an ideal spot for visitors of all ages to attend concerts, workshops, exhibitions, and other events. Since 2014, we have made major progress on building repairs and upgrades, including installing energy-efficient lighting with help from Efficiency Vermont.

In 2019, we installed an elevator to make the building more wheelchair accessible – a major project for which we received support from the State of Vermont, the Vermont Arts Council, and the National Life Group Foundation. We are committed to accessibility for all, and to inviting all members of our community to participate in our programming. Learn more about accessibility at CAL.

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