Robert McBride, Director
BIOGRAPHY
A native of California, Robert McBride received his B.A. in Painting from the University of California at Berkeley and then moved to New York City where he received his M.F.A. from Hunter College. He was a founding member in the late 1970’s of PS 122 (Painting Space), an alternative art space on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. He purchased a home in Bellows Falls Vermont in 1982.
He currently lives in Bellows Falls Vermont, and is founder of The Rockingham Arts and Museum Project (RAMP) www.ramp-vt.org committed to integrating artists and the arts into the long-term sustainability of the community by creating effective partnerships that initiate and support: accessibility, affordable housing for artists, artist town meetings and public art initiatives.
Boards of Directors
Preservation Trust of Vermont
Advisor-emeritus to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, currently
State of Vermont Advisory Board for Cultural Heritage Tourism
Steering Committee for the Connecticut River National Byway, currently
Southern Vermont Regional Marketing Program
Great River Arts Institute
Friends of the Rockingham Free Public Library
Main Street Arts
Stone Church Arts
Executive Director of Bellows Falls Downtown Development Alliance
Windham Regional Commission, at-large member
Vermont Performance Lab
Vermont Creative Network, Steering Committee hosted by Vermont Arts Council
Southern Vermont Economy Project
Degrees and Awards
University of California, Berkeley BA Painting
Hunter College, M.F.A. Painting
Founding Member PS 122, NYC
Snelling Leadership Institute
Vermont Arts Council Achievement Award
2008 Vermont Community Leadership Award
2011 New England Foundation for the Arts, Director’s Award
2012 Bernice R. Murray Award presented by VT Community Development Assn
2016 Governor’s Award for Arts in Advocacy – Margaret L. Kannenstine Award