Voices of Featherstone

As part of our celebration of the 30th anniversary of our home on the Featherstone Farm campus, Abby Remer has been conducting interviews with those who were involved in the beginning. On this page are many of the Voices of Featherstone, sharing tidbits from the 30 year history. These artists, former board members, volunteers and donors helped the organization take shape, and have been integral to the growth and success of our art center.
(Please note, this page is being updated weekly with new interviews!).

Lynne Kenney (early board member)

Lynne Kenney’s connection with the Featherstone Center for the Arts began at the organization’s birth, serving as one of the original board members as the vice president. Kenney was integral to the initial group of artists and art enthusiasts that turned what had been Mary Stevens’ family’s Featherstone Farm into, as she explains, “A year-round arts center that fostered a sense of community, which we wanted for all the arts and all ages.”

Kenney recalls the look of the six-acre campus: “There was the old house, the small building off to the side, a little pottery hut, and overgrown grass everywhere. For eight years, we just got it going. It was very grassroots and totally hands-on.” The buildings were transformed into classrooms, studios, a gallery, and an office. “The gallery was in the main house, and there were weaving, printing, and ceramic classes. My husband, Robert, mowed the grass. I gave a piano and the desk that now sits opposite the gallery.”

Kenney organized a lecture series featuring artists, authors, and musicians and brought in several external exhibitions to complement those of Vineyard artists. There was an outdoor sculpture exhibit by Chinese artist Ju Ming, one of Filipino artist Ben Cabrera's works, and a photography exhibition by Jerry Friedman, who traveled around the world for three years creating portraits of people aged 110 and older, along with their stories.

Kenney recalls the first gallery show, which the board decided would be of art made by Featherstone community donors. It included the work of her good friend Don Wilks, who was creating bronze sculptures using the lost-wax method. “I convinced Don to put in a few of his pieces. He had never thought about exhibiting and had been creating just for fun. The rest is history.” Wilks, known for his fluid figures capturing human movement, went on to become an internationally known sculptor with many important municipal, commercial, and private commissions to his credit, including the Heisman Trophy.

Recalling the excitement of those heady days, Kenney says, “Everyone was on a mission, and no one had any idea whether it would succeed. My favorite memory was sitting in the meetings we held, probably every week. We were working very hard. We could see the sun setting out the window, and I remember feeling so happy that we were doing this. It was exciting since everything was new.”

Thinking about how far Featherstone has come, Kenney adds, “Ann [Smith] has brought it to a place I could never have imagined. I think it’s fun to celebrate its 30th anniversary. I’m amazed at Featherstone’s impact. If you compare what it originally was to now, it’s unbelievable what’s happened.”

Sharry Stevens-Grunden (ceramic artist, daughter of founders)

Featherstone Center for the Arts sits on a lovely stretch of land that was once Featherstone Farm, owned by Mary and Bill Stevens. Their daughter, Sharry Stevens-Grunden, shares about the impetus for the transition, “My parents wanted to support the community with a grand gesture. And my mother, being an artist of many different mediums, wanted to build something for the art world, and my father was a land conservationist, who didn’t want it to be built up.”

The sale came about when a group of local artists and advocates, including Virginia Besse, Mary and Bill Stevens, and Tom Maley, were seeking a permanent home. In 1996, Mary facilitated the purchase of six acres of her family’s horse farm, transforming old barns into galleries and studios. Featherstone received six acres and the Land Bank the remaining 18 acres, ensuring that the campus’s natural beauty will live on.

The brick kiln that Sharry (a ceramic artist) built by hand is a welcome sight to visitors as they ascend the hill from Barnes Road up to campus. Sharry recalls leaving her kiln at Featherstone after moving to a new site. “I had to leave it behind, but I found a way to build my own little pottery [studio] about a mile and a quarter away.” She enjoys participating in many of Featherstone's exhibitions, the Potter’s Bowl fundraiser, and the Holiday Gift Show.

Reflecting on Featherstone’s growth from a volunteer-run organization into a thriving, year-round non-profit arts center with galleries, workshops, and community events, Sharry says, “I think Featherstone is a great place where people can come and do various forms of art.”

Anne Grandin (early board member, artist)

Anne Grandin, early board member, artist, and patron, has an abiding affection for Featherstone Center for the Arts. She recalls, “My first show was in the stable. I hadn’t shown my work before. It was a group show, and each of us had a stall. I think there was still hay downstairs, which was kind of cool.” She continues, “I remember walking out, and one of the board members was sitting on a stump. He said, ‘Someday, Anne, this place is going to be incredible—a place for all artists to come together. I was so impressed by that dream that he had. And it’s come true.”

Grandin recalls being on the board herself when they hired their first director, Francine Kelly. “It was fun to have someone all year round [in the position]. She was just amazing. She really loved people and was very connected to Island arts. Francine made a great effort to bring all the different artists together. She felt strongly about what Featherstone could become.”

Reflecting on Featherstone’s blossoming over the past thirty years, Grandin notes, “It’s been incredible for the Island. It’s open year-round. There are programs for kids, kiln firings, and Musical Mondays. Featherstone is really a center for the arts. It’s also the largest display space for art on the Island. When I first joined the board, nobody had even heard of Featherstone. Initially, I wondered, how do you tell people about it? Now, with fabulous events like the wonderful galas that are always packed, you can see that it’s made a huge impression on the Vineyard.”

“All through the years,” Grandin continues, “I’ve shown with Featherstone and kept in touch because I feel so strongly about their mission. It’s very rare as an artist to come together with other artists and be friends. At Featherstone, it doesn’t matter if you’re at a gallery or not a professional, everybody shows and gets to know each other, which is a unique and rare situation. I see new young artists coming up, learning, and showing. As an artist myself, it’s so nice to go to a place where people are all showing their work because they love art; that’s truly unique. You know, artists basically work alone, and it’s nice for artists to be with other artists, whether you’re a musician, a writer, or whatever you may be. We’re all coming together, and it’s a great feeling.”

Grandin concludes, “Featherstone is very dear to me. I just think the world of the place. Featherstone is going to go for quite a long time. It’s here to stay and to bring people together, which is really needed in the world right now.”

Fan Ogilvie (poet, artist)

Before moving to the Vineyard full-time in 1994, Fan Oglivie was the director at the Folger Shakespeare Library, where she initiated a poetry reading program. “At the Folger, which was well-known to poets, it was wonderful to be able to ask international and national poets to read. But I was ready for something else.”

So now, rooted on Island, Ogilvie considered where to pursue her poetry interests. “I looked around, and Featherstone grabbed my heart. It was first with Peggy Pinney, then with Francine [Kelly]. We just got along. She was interested, and interesting, and wonderful to work with. That’s when I started teaching poetry there.”

“It’s funny to think who was in my class because they’re all wonderful poets now. There was Justen Ahren [poet laureate of Martha’s Vineyard from 2017-19 and founder of Featherstone’s Noepe Center for Literary Arts] and Mike West, Clark Myers, and Sonya Norton.

When Ann Smith became executive director, Ogilvie’s relationship with Featherstone continued. “I started running a poetry program in 1996, similar to the one I began at the Folger. I used the best poets I could find. The one who really stands out was Billy Collins [former U.S. Poet Laureate]. He is an incredible performer. Probably the most read poet in America now. He just loved it here, so he gave his programs for free, which was so nice to have such a strong poetry voice.”

Other poets included Robert Pinsky, Louise Gluck, Frank Bidart, Fanny Howe, Naomi Shahib Nye, Jorie Graham, Sharon Olds, and Carol Musky. “It was easy to bring them to Featherstone because the place is gorgeous. We put them up, and they would give a workshop or reading, which still goes on. Billy Collins is coming in September.”

Poetry wasn’t Ogilvie’s only artistic expression. “I’d been suppressing it for a long time, but I started painting and pastels.” Francine said, ‘Why don’t you have a show here,' which I did in the old building. It was great for my beginning efforts in art. From that time, I’ve mixed visual arts and writing together in all of my books. And it all started at Featherstone.

Asked for her favorite memory, Ogilvie says, “Really, it was building my relationship with Francine and Ann.” She continues, “Featherstone grabbed my heart. It’s been a real force. Over thirty years they have affected so many people in a really good way. I bet many people have learned to handle all kinds of situations in their lives by adding an art, a craft, something they didn’t expect to do, and they’re doing it there.”

Debbie and Dave Brown (Point Way Inn hosts for Featherstone artists and writers, artist)
Debbie and Dave Brown moved to Martha’s Vineyard in 1998, leaving the corporate world behind. “Our son, Justen Ahren, was working at Morning Glory, and we used to spend our vacations here. Of course, like everybody else, we fell in love with the Island,” says Debbie.

Dave recalls, “I was establishing myself on the Island and stumbled upon Featherstone, but I was working full-time and initially didn’t have time to get involved. After a little while, when I was working for myself, I had more time. It was around the time Francine [Kelly] came in [as the executive director], and I started attending more of the openings.”

Dave, a master carpenter and furniture-maker, has also been an artist his whole life. “When Ann [Smith] came along, I did a show of stonework, and I’ve been in a few exhibits since with woodwork.”

Debbie also got involved when she oversaw the visiting artist program at the Point Way Inn, now called the Richard, in Edgartown. The owner, Claudia Miller, ran the inn, an old sea captain’s home, for six years as a bed and breakfast. She was an artist, and in 2004, Claudia shifted focus to a new clientele—artists—and didn’t charge them a dime. “We offered free room and board to artists, and, of course, Featherstone had that need,” Debbie recalls. “I worked with Francine and then Ann, which is when the relationship deepened.”

In 2007, Claudia sponsored the creation of a public seven-circuit, forty-foot-wide Cretan labyrinth at Featherstone, built by Dave and Justen, who also taught poetry at Featherstone.

The couple dearly loves the organization. “I always feel very welcomed, cared about, and cared for from Francine to today,” Debbie explains. “Everyone’s friendly. When you go there, you really feel like it’s a family. It’s an accumulation of a good feeling.” Dave continues, “It always seems like they have the right person running the show for whatever stage of development they are in.”

Reflecting on what they want people to know about Featherstone, Dave urges, “If you’re not already part of it, get there. You don’t know what you’re missing. The shows they put on are so well curated. It just keeps getting better and better. Every year, they surpass what they had before, and it’s still so community-based.”

The community includes all the very young children at the Garden Gate preschool on the Featherstone campus. Dave shares a recent touching experience. He was dropping off a work of art for an upcoming show when the youngsters walked by. They were all holding hands, and one kid stopped. He said, ‘I just want to tell you how much I like your art.' As Debbie adds, “You can’t get better than that, right?”

Denys Wortman (former board member and exhibiting photographer)

Former board member and photographer Denys Wortman recalls his initial experience with Francine Kelly, who became the first paid executive director. “We on the board had scheduled two days of interviews, and I remember the third person who came in was Francine. She was like a piece of art walking through the door with this big smile on her face and a great voice. I said to myself, ‘Do we really have to go on with any more interviews?’ I felt bad for all the ones who came after her. We went through with them, of course, but she was just so powerful and wonderful that she got the job. Francine walking in for that interview is a memory that’s just stuck in my head. It was such a beautiful moment. It really grabbed me.”

Wortman adds, “I give Francine so much credit. She really turned the place around and got it going. She was a dynamite lady. She invited people in and made it very warm and welcoming. More artists wanted to become involved, and more programs were started.”
In addition to his 12 years on the board, beginning in the early 2000s, Wortman fondly recalls an exhibition of his father’s work at Featherstone. Denys Wortman, Sr. was a highly respected painter, cartoonist, and comic strip creator. From 1924 to 1954, he drew the comic strip “Metropolitan Movies,” which was published in the New York World and syndicated nationwide.

Wortman himself joined the ranks of exhibiting artists at Featherstone after taking up drone photography in 2016. “I always did photography,” Wortman explains. “I was from an art family, so I was always surrounded by it. Depending on the show, I would have one, two, or three of my works.”
Reflecting on Featherstone today, Wortman shares, “Everything I hear from people is that they love it. Featherstone has become a real art center for the whole Island. It has a wonderful reputation and wonderful classes. It’s become an Island institution for Islanders to gather.”

Genie O’Donnell (former gallery assistant and volunteer)

“It is such a special place,” says Genie O’Donnell, about Featherstone Center for the Arts, where she worked as the gallery assistant from 1998 to 2019. A jack-of-all-trades, she welcomed visitors upon entry, signed up prospective students for art classes, and helped with exhibitions. “In those days, I would call about forty artists to see if they were interested in showing at the next exhibition. I just did whatever had to be done.”

Reflecting back, O’Donnell recalls the day Francine Kelly, Featherstone’s executive director from 2003 to 2010, first came in for an interview. “I remember walking her to the building where the interview was to take place, and there was just something about Francine that was extremely special. As a matter of fact, the next day, we were having our annual pottery sculpture show. It was pouring rain, and many people came to the exhibit. Francine came in her yellow raincoat, and she was like a ray of sunshine. She immediately started talking to everyone and had boundless energy. I think I fell in love with her that day.”

Some of the special events are among O’Donnell’s favorite memories, including the very first Art of Chocolate Festival. “We offered it for free. It was Francine and me, along with Ann and her sister, who had come to help out. We could not believe how many people came. We had chocolates, cakes, ice cream sundaes, and a chocolate fountain, which was extremely popular. Francine ran out to get milk for people to have with their chocolate cake. After drinking the milk, people started stocking their cups with cookies and candies from Chilmark Chocolate to take home.” She continues, “Afterward, we were amazed at the chocolate on the walls, even in the bathrooms. We were all totally exhausted, but it was quite an event that was really loved by the community and the board.”

O’Donnell also remembers how popular the Potters Bowl has always been. At this annual fundraiser, attendees purchase a handcrafted ceramic bowl made by Vineyard artists and fill it with delicious, locally donated soup and bread. “I would talk to the people in line to pick out their bowl, and they were so excited. Some of them had been choosing bowls for years and have quite a collection that they are very proud of.”

O’Donnell stresses, “Featherstone is there for you to engage in the arts. We have people from three years old, and at one point, we had someone over 100. It’s there for any age. And there are so many different media. Give it a try. You don’t have to be great at it.”

O’Donnell smiles when recalling driving to the gorgeous campus from Aquinnah every week. “I would just really look forward to who I was going to meet and greet at work that day. In my lifetime, I really consider Featherstone one of my happy places. I’ve always loved it. It’s the people who make it. The artists are there to encourage you to express your creativity.”

Thomas Dresser (former office assistant)

Thomas Dresser began as the office assistant at Featherstone in 2002. Reflecting on his time working with then-executive director Francine Kelly, who started in 2003, Dresser comments, “My whole time with her was just a treat.” Whether it was data entry or helping at art exhibition openings, Dresser was always involved.

One of his favorite memories was at the annual Art of Chocolate Festival. “Anyone on Island who sold chocolate was invited to come and give it away. This one woman had a chocolate maker with a big mixing bowl. They were about to start when the bowl slipped off the wheel and spun around, sending chocolate everywhere! It was a major mishap, but it was so funny and fun because everyone was licking their hands. It was probably the most exciting event of my career at Featherstone. Of course, we cleaned it up and carried on.”

Among the many art teachers Dresser remembers is Kathy Rose. “She taught her class in the house that is now used for the preschool [Garden Gate]. And Scott Campbell had a pottery program where the brick kiln is now. He would get high school kids to spend a weekend, twenty-four hours, camping out and keeping the fire going. It was very exciting to know what was going on.”

Speaking about Featherstone’s thirty years, Dresser says, “I’m big on anniversaries. I think it has done so well in a relatively short time. They have had a no-lose situation. Who’s going to argue with art, argue with a field out in the woods away from everything with a beautiful atmosphere and environment, and having the preschool—all elements of it are just so positive. I started when Featherstone was six years old until it was sixteen. I was there for its pre-teen and teenage years.”

Dresser talks about his recent experience selling his history books about the Vineyard at the Holiday Gift Show. “I felt that the people who volunteer and who are part of the support system have a dedication, love, and interest in supporting this gallery. It’s a great part of the Vineyard experience.” He adds, “My wife has taken photography and pottery classes there. We’re both very happy they are celebrating thirty years, and there are no signs of slowing down. I’m looking forward to seeing it in another ten or twenty years.”

Richard Paradise (Founder/Executive Director of the Martha's Vineyard Film Society)

Some twenty years ago, Richard Paradise, Founder/Executive Director of the Martha’s Vineyard Film Society, lit upon the idea of screening movies on Featherstone’s green campus during the summer. “This was way before the Film Center was created and before there were any renovations at Featherstone,” Paradise recalls. Then executive director Francine Kelly embraced the idea, and the summer movie program ran from 2004 to 2006. “It was primarily classic sci-fi films, like ‘The Day the Earth Stood Still’ and ‘Forbidden Planet’, because I thought it would be just wonderfully crazy to show them under the stars with people lying on blankets and sitting in lawn chairs. I enjoyed introducing these films, and they were quite popular, with anywhere from fifty to eighty people showing up to watch a film together.”

After three years, Kelley and Paradise decided to end the program because of logistical challenges, having to wait until 8:30 or 9 pm (so it was dark enough to start the film, but then ending late at night), and the looming worry about possible rain.

In 2013, the Film Society now had a permanent home in Vineyard Haven. Paradise reached out to Paul Brissette, head of the art department at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School, to help him curate art at the M.V. Film Center. "From the get-go, one of our missions was to create a space for local artists in the Feldman Family Artspace in our lobby. When he retired, I reached out to Ann Smith to see if Featherstone, being the premium place for art and artists on the Vineyard, would be interested in curating. Ann wholeheartedly agreed to it and has been doing so for ten years.” Paradise emphasizes, “They do a great job curating and installing the work, bringing in new artists every year.”

The COVID pandemic reignited the outdoor film screening partnership between the Film Center and Featherstone. In the summer of 2020 and 2021, pods of affiliated viewers, sitting at least six feet apart inside painted circles on the lawn, gathered again under the stars to watch movies—one of the few safe communal activities available at the time. Paradise recalls, “People would bring picnics, and we’d get a crowd of 100 or 120.”
He concludes, “Ann and I share a good friendship. We’re both big supporters of the arts on the Vineyard and each other’s organizations. It’s been a wonderful, warm collaboration over many years.”

​Voices of Featherstone

Voices of Featherstone