Reception for A Railroad Runs Through It: Livingston Artists Celebrate the Railroad to held June 15, 2017 at 7pm. Exhibit open from May 12 – September 24, 2017.
FOR THE SUMMER OF 2017 and celebrating the thirtieth anniversary of the museum, the Livingston Depot Foundation is unveiling a landmark exhibition entitled: “A Railroad Runs Through It: Livingston Artists Celebrate Trains.” A special artist reception will be held June 15, 2017 at 7pm. Music by the Park High School Jazz Band and poetry by Marc Beaudin will set the stage as artists and the public celebrate trains and our enduring, interconnected, and spirited relationship with the railroad. The evening will include light fare passed by the Sister City Cultural Exchange, and refreshments provided by Neptune’s Brewery.
Painters, photographers, and sculptors celebrate both the historic Depot and the dynamic train activity that passes daily. A poetic Montana reminiscence made into a captivating movie, A River Runs Through It has its own connections to Livingston, with memorable scenes filmed in nearby locations. In an obvious play on words, we titled the exhibition A Railroad Runs Through It, reflecting the reality that is Livingston. This can be taken quite literally—a railroad does run through our town.
But [and perhaps because of its source], it is pleading to be elevated to higher ground. Norman Maclean has set a high bar….
Guest curators Tandy Miles Riddle and Adrienne Pollard note that the exhibit takes the form in a range of images, abstract or literal, allegorical, obvious, abstruse, anything reflecting diversity and artistic insight. From a quilt pieced together with scraps of silk kimonos and gingham (a subtle allusion to the thousands of Asian laborers who helped build the western railway system and to the emigrants brought west via that system to settle the frontier) to the telegraph and its interdependent relationship with the railroad (both linking distant places and kindling the railroad’s concept and development of standardized time!).
Featured artists include Jim Barrett, Marc Beaudin, Storrs Bishop, Eleanor Williams Clark, Edd Enders, Malou Flato, Doris Davis Gallagher, Sheila Hrasky, Bob Newhall, Adrienne Pollard, Parks Reece, Tandy Miles Riddle, Robert Spannring, Colleen Story, Mark Strand, David Swanson, Joe Wayne, and John Zumpano. Historic photos from the A. Gill collection of Wellington Brouse, as well as the iconic railroad images from Historian Warren McGee, will be juxtaposed with the contemporary art. Depot Museum Director, Diana Seider, stated, “A Railroad Runs Through It special exhibit is a colorful celebration for the 30th anniversary of the Depot Museum. The powerful work in this exhibition affirms the connection between the railroad and Livingston’s robust artist community.”
In connection with the exhibit, the Depot will host a variety of classes throughout the season. The first class will be taught by Eleanor Clark who will be sharing her expertise in naturalist journaling and mixed media art. Clark will instruct an adult class in afternoon of July 13th from 1-3 pm. She will also host a youth oriented class in the morning from 9-11 am. The Movies on the Lawn series will celebrate the 25th anniversary of “A River Runs Through It” on August 17 to compliment the show.
The Depot Museum exhibits in 2017 will run from Friday, May 12 through September 24. Located at 200 West Park, the Depot is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. There is a nominal admission, and group visits are also welcome by special arrangement. Additional information can be obtained by contacting the Depot office at (406) 222-2300 or visiting 
