MONTSTREAM MONTSTREAM

Katharine Montstream - man, the girl can't help it.

I think of her in the way I think of Bruce Springsteen. Like Bruce, it just comes out of her. For Bruce, it's a quality of courage and heart - a music that moves the listeners to the marrow of their bones. It's just his soul; everything he writes expresses this particular shining facet of our shared humanity.

For Katharine, it's the ethereal, magical beauty of the natural world, and her tools are paints and brushes. Working mostly in watercolor, though occasionally in oil, her work - and I mean every single one of her creations - moves me on the soul level. I just stare and get this dumb, happy look on my face.

And the paintings are so simple! Just the flashes of brilliant color, not a wasted stroke, and the earth, sky and water appear as if in a vision. Her primary subject is Vermont, in all it's seasons, delicacy and majesty. I have three of her prints hanging in my home, and I take refuge in them daily.

So, I suggest:  Visit her studio in the old Union Station on the foot of Main Street. Maybe Katharine will be there, a very friendly and open soul. If you're lucky, maybe her husband, Al, as well, who runs the family art biz and is a masterful framer. Here's their website:   http://www.kmmstudio.com/