The Milton Artists’ Guild Board of Directors is pleased to announce their new Executive Director, Jessie Swétel. Since the Milton Artists’ Guild opened its Art Center and Gallery on April 1, 2017, growth in sales and attendance has been outstanding. Membership is up 100% and sales are up 60%. For over one year, the MAG organization ran solely on member volunteer time. In keeping with their strategic goal to make the Milton Artists’ Guild sustainable and financially viable, the Board of Directors approved a professional Executive Director position and selected Jessie Swétel to fulfill the role. The MAG mission is to expand the awareness and the appreciation of the arts in Milton and beyond. With Ms Swétel as part of the leadership team, this nonprofit arts organization furthers the cause to realize its most aspirational dreams.
As a student of St Johnsbury Academy’s rich arts curriculum, Jessie Swétel dove into all kinds of mediums and after a couple semesters of printmaking she was able to join the Academy’s Intaglio Society for a trip to Florence, Italy to study with masters at the Il Bisonte print studio. She received a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Vermont in Animal science with plans to work in zoos or doing conservation field research, though art always remained a passion. She returned to Vermont in 2010 after an internship at the Columbus Zoo, to assist the family business (Vermont Awards and Engraving) as her father’s Alzheimer’s progressed. Since her return, she has taken advantage of many opportunities to get involved with the local community and grow professionally as a small business owner. Her growth was recognized when in 2017 she received Rising Star Awards from both Vermont Business Magazine and the LCRCC. In addition to being Workshops’ Chair with the Milton Artists’ Guild, Jessie serves on the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce Ambassador Committee and is a graduate of their Leadership Champlain program. Jessie also serves on the Women Business Owner’s Network Board of Directors, and was elected Vice President in 2019. She has also volunteered with COTS, the United Way of Northwest Vermont, the Humane Society of Chittenden County, ECHO (Leahy Center for Lake Champlain) and the Alzheimer’s Association of Vermont.
In April 2017, the Milton Artist’s Guild opened its 6,270 square feet of retail space which is located at 199 US Route 7 South in the plaza behind the Milton Post Office. This art center and gallery showcases the work of over 100 MAG members and has become a hub for the arts in Milton and the greater region. The Milton Artists’ Guild is comprised of 200 artists from Vermont, New York, and other regions. The art center and gallery features exhibits (permanent and rotating); a gift shop and rental space for artists and community groups. The public can visit the art center and gallery Wednesdays through Saturday between the hours of 11:00 am - 6:00 pm and Sundays between the hours of 11 am - 3 pm. Visitors are encouraged to stop by regularly to see “artists in action” in the space and participate in ongoing art workshops, informational sessions and community activities.
The MAG has regularly scheduled events like free Social Sundays throughout the winter months, Vermont Open Studio Weekend, free workshop themed events, like the Halloween Monster and our latest Santa visit. The MAG collaborates with community organizations such as the Milton Recreation Department and Milton Youth Coalition; projects like the Milton Winter Festival Valentine Ball, offering a monthly “High Teas” for senior center residents at the art center; coordinating/executing public art, such as the welcoming mural on the Gardener Supply Building as you enter the south side of the Town of Milton on Route 7, and the 2018 mural project at Bombardier park.
For more information about the Milton Artists’ Guild and the Milton Art Center & Gallery, go to www.miltonartistsguild.org