Flanders to hold program on VanVleck’s birthday

WOODBURY — A program on the transition of Flanders Nature Center founder, American Modernist artist Natalie VanVleck from artist to agrarian, will be held Oct. 19 at 5:30 p.. The program is held in conjunction with the exhibit “Natalie Van Vleck: True to Her Art, Life and Land” at the Mattatuck Museum, running from Dec. 2-Feb. 28.

The Flanders program will focus on how VanVleck transitioned to working 200 acres of land that surrounded her family’s Van Vleck Farm after her move to Woodbury in 1927. From 1935 to 1953, she raised turkeys on a commercial scale and shipped her plucked, frozen birds across the country. In the years during World War II, she started raising sheep and become known as a top breeder of Hampshire sheep, with her flock considered one of the five best east of the Mississippi.

Guests will hear a short presentation on Natalie’s farming by Dianne Parmalee, Flanders education coordinator and farm manager, and a short talk on her natureinspired art by Flanders curator Marc Chabot in the studio on the Van Vleck sanctuary in Woodbury. Then celebrate Natalie’s birthday (Oct. 19) with cake and refreshments. Weather permitting, the visit will end a 5-minute walk to Flanders North Barn to see barnyard animals, including Dwarf Nigerian goats, and to visit Flanders’ Buzz Russell antique farm tool museum.

The program will be held at the Flanders Studio, located at the corner of Flanders and Church Hill Roads in Woodbury. The cost is $10 for all Flanders members and Mattatuck Museum members, $15 for non-members. Those interested may register online at www.flandersnaturecenter.org or call 203-263-3711, ext. 10, for information.