In keeping with Westport”™s legacy of art and civic volunteerism, the town recently created an art curator position to advise the town on its art collection.
The town”™s collection includes roughly 1,600 paintings, sculptures and other pieces of art, including several federally commissioned pieces from the Great Depression.
The Westport Arts Advisory Committee, established in 1997, has advised on how to care for the collection. But after several years, the committee has decided it”™s time for someone to devote their full attention to the ensemble by creating visually stunning presentations, caring for the work and increasing its educational value. The position is unpaid.
“The collection is incredibly unique,” said Kathleen Bennewitz, the newly appointed curator. “It”™s rare for a town and school district to have a collection of this size. It”™s a real asset to the cultural community.”
Bennewitz has worked as a professional curator and art historian in museums in Texas, Minnesota and Connecticut for several years. In Fairfield County, she has been a member of the Westport Arts Advisory Committee, served as the chairman of the Westport Schools Permanent Art Collection and worked at the Greenwich and Fairfield history centers.
“I”™m honored to be appointed to this,” Bennewitz said. “It marries my professional background with my love of Westport.”
David Rubenstein, co-chairman of the arts advisory committee, said the town has enjoyed a rich history in the arts.
“For decades it”™s been the home to outstanding artists,” Rubenstein said. “I feel the town is a wonderful place and all of us who serve voluntarily want to enhance it ”¦ the consciousness of the arts is quite unique.”
Rubenstein said he was happy to see Bennewitz jump into the job and that the committee is already relying on her tremendously. One month into her new position, she”™s already monitored a discussion on the town”™s rescued pieces from the Depression and worked on a project with Yale University.
Bennewitz said Westport has done an excellent job maintaining its art collection. It”™s easy for a turn of the century piece of art to get lost, but for years Westport has kept an inventory of its entire collection, including information about the artists and medium.
A lot of the collection is on display in the town”™s schools, town hall and library. Bennewitz said it was time to freshen up the displays to keep people from passing by without so much as a glance. She”™d like to incorporate technology, like cell phone apps and virtual exhibits, to keep people engaged and give residents more access to the collection.
The schools”™ collection is only accessible to students and their parents, but in late October a public tour will be available, Bennewitz said. She is also looking to partner with teachers, regional museums and other institutions to lend art out and help teachers find relevant pieces to incorporate into their curriculum.
“It is definitely a job that has a lot of responsibility and could be appointed to a staff,” Bennewitz said. “But at this point, it”™s being done in the spirit of civic responsibility, which has been a long tradition in Westport.”
