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