People often say, “Like mother, like daughter.”

There are times when the popular adage rings true — like when viewing the work of Bristol artist Brenda Myrick alongside that of her late mother, Barbara Lane. Lane was a largely self-taught artist who specialized in watercolor, and her love of the craft was something she passed on to her three daughters.

“She would just put everything out on the kitchen table because she didn’t have a space, and she used to use the sink; I remember that as an early memory,” Myrick recalled. “I just grew up seeing her painting.”

Myrick learned all about watercolor from her mother, lessons that became the foundation of her own work as an artist. Today, Lane’s artistic legacy lives on in her daughters and the plethora of paintings she left them.

Community members now have a chance to see several of those pieces in a new exhibition at Bristol Suites, which features art from Lane’s estate along with some of Myrick’s recent work. Lane’s and Myrick’s paintings fill the inn’s lobby and adorn its suites.

Local artist Barbara Lane painted a multitude of watercolors capturing the Vermont landscape throughout her life, including this piece called “Going South.”
Photo courtesy of Brenda Myrick

All are invited to view their work and meet with Myrick during a free open house and artist reception at Bristol Suites at 19 Main St. on Friday, Dec. 12, from 4 to 7 p.m.

“When I heard about this opportunity, I just thought to myself that it was a time really to bring my mother’s artwork forward,” Myrick said.

It was also a chance for the team at Bristol Suites to invite community members into the space, something that owner Justin Sandherr has been looking to do more of since purchasing the Dunshee Block property that houses the inn this past February.

“It’s an opportunity to welcome the community…to connect with other artists,” Sandherr said. “It’s an opportunity to bring warmth during a cold part of the year when the sun goes down early, and we have the lights on, and we have cheese and wine available for people to connect and talk and just see what’s going on in this space.”

Myrick and the Bristol Suites team credit Bristol CORE andfellow artist Lily Hinrichsen of Vermont Marketplace — the inn’s lobby store — with helping connect them. That connection led to a trip to Myrick’s basement, where the group perused a treasure trove ofpaintings made by Lane and Myrick over the years.

“To see the creative space and the passion and the intensity of the time that was spent on so many different types of artwork was not only fun, but for me it was moving,” Sandherr said.

Sandherr and Bristol Suites innkeepers Niko Pruesse and Mark Adams pulled pieces from that collection for the exhibit.

“They curated this grouping that I didn’t even know existed down there,” Myrick said of the process. “I just felt honored, acknowledged for all the work that I’ve done and my mother has done, her life. It felt treasured and so honest.”

Myrick said her mother took up painting in her 30s.

“She literally painted every day,” she said. “Especially once she stopped working; she retired when she was 50, so she was lucky to be able to paint.”

Lane continued to paint up until her death two years ago. She was 93. Mostly self-taught, she’d studied with artists Tom Lynch, Zoltan Szabo and Arthur Healy, Middlebury College’s first “Artist in Residence.”

She was also a member of the local artists’ group known as the Middlebury Artists.

“She would have a show with them, maybe two or three, and a couple (paintings sold), but then she always said, ‘Oh, I’m just keeping all these for my girls,’” Myrick said. “And here we are.”

A favorite subject of Lane’s was the Vermont landscape, capturing barns and farmland that in some cases are long gone.

“She documented barns in Cornwall, Charlotte, Bridport,” Myrick said. “She went around taking photographs, and she was just really inspired by the Vermont scenery.”

Paintings by local artist Brenda Myrick hangs in Bristol Suites, which is hosting an exhibition featuring paintings by Myrick and the artwork of her late mother, Barbara Lane.
Independent photo/Marin Howell

The Bristol Suites team acknowledged how Lane’s paintings encapsulate the place that the inn’s guests have come to visit.

“There’s so much life in them,” Midori Batten, new co-innkeeper at Bristol Suites, said of the paintings. “It’s definitely the medium and the color, but it also feels to me very Vermont-y.”

The artwork not only introduces guests to Addison County, but also to two artists who have called the region home. The exhibition includes 54 paintings, placing Lane’s watercolors alongside Myrick’s oil and acrylic works.

The exhibition includes paintings reflecting Myrick’s first turn toward more abstract pieces, as well as from her bird series.

“I try to do maybe five or six to 10 (paintings) of the same theme, but then I like to move on to something else that’s inspiring me in my life,” Myrick said of her work. “It’s kind of a mirror of whatever is going on in my life.”

Pieces from a series of horse paintings on hand-stretched canvas are also featured in the exhibition. Prior to the series, Myrick had done a lot of commissioned animal portraits.

“That gave me the background to loosen up with the horse paintings,” she said. “I was thinking of geometrics and the spirit of the horse.”

Hanging in the inn’s lobby and suites are some of Myrick’s latest creations — a series of peonies painted on raw canvas. Two of those paintings are displayed next to a watercolor peony piece by Lane, placing mother’s and daughter’s distinct works in conversation.

The Bristol Suites team said the curation process was collaborative and done with an eye for what would work well in the inn.

“One of my favorite spaces… is up in Haymarket (Square Suite) where we’ve got these gold-accented paintings in the kitchen and on the wall, and we’ve got the gold sconces in the kitchen and the natural light coming in from the window,” Sandherr said. “It just gives this effervescent feel to the kitchen and living space.”

All paintings included in the exhibition are available for purchase and will remain on display in the coming months. Community members can also sign up for a chance to win a free print of “Soft Prizes,” a painting from Myrick’s peony series.

Those interested in signing up for the drawing can do so during the Dec. 12 open house, and the winner will be announced before the holidays. Next week’s event will also feature refreshments, snacks and an opportunity to gather with neighbors.

Sandherr said Bristol Suites hopes to host similar collaborations in the future, highlighting other community members and what they bring to the region.

“This is a great first opportunity to see how else can we build on this,” he said. “My hope is that we have these conversations frequently about how we can continue to expand this conversation.”

A collaboration between Bristol Suites and local artist Brenda Myrick has led to new exhibition at the inn, which features paintings by Myrick her late mother, Barbara Lane. All are invited to see their artwork during an open house at Bristol Suites on Dec. 12 from 4 to 7 p.m.
Independent photo/Marin Howell