South West Vermont

There are few places in the Manchester area that offer as much as the Southern Vermont Arts Center. With over ten galleries of local art work for sale and a museum housing a permanent collection and traveling exhibitions, SVAC has a tremendous store of art that will delight visitors.

This season the museum has a number of works from the Art Students League of New York, and will display the work of Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy in the fall. The historic galleries of the Yester House change over every month with a different selection of artist solo shows.

A gift shop can be found in the museum, while the Yester House has the added luxury of the Garden Cafe in the summer and early fall. With views of the valley and nearby Green Mountains, the Garden Cafe is one of the prettiest places to eat lunch in Manchester.

For those who need a break from the arts, the Boswell Botany trail is a shaded mile loop behind the Yester House, complete with signs identifying local plants and trees. A more rugged hiking trail starts behind the studios and eventually connects with the Equinox trail system that runs from Manchester Village.

In the evening SVAC hosts jazz concerts throughout the summer as well as classical concerts such as the Manchester Music Festival and the Vermont Symphony Orchestra.

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