Chester quilter Linda Diak awarded grant from Vermont Arts Council

| Sep 16, 2025 | Comments 0

‘Ruffled Feathers’ by Linda Diak

The Vermont Arts Council recently announced the 26 recipients of its most competitive grant program, the Creation Grant, which awards Vermont artists up to $5,000 to be used for developing new work.

Linda Diak, an award-winning quilter from Chester, was selected to receive a fiscal year 2026 Creation Grant to support the creation of art quilts that raise awareness about the impact that human activity has on the animal kingdom.

Among this year’s awarded proposals are projects that span the visual and literary arts, dance, music, film and multidisciplinary fields, including a new episode of “Wild Foods” on PBS; the production of a live storytelling show about motherhood; and a six-track musical recording project fusing Ghanaian American vocals with percussion and textures from the African diaspora.

More than 300 applications were received for this highly competitive award. Recipients were selected in two rounds by independent panels comprising 47 practicing Vermont artists and arts professionals with a broad range of artistic disciplines. A total of 48 proposals advanced to the second round of review. Criteria for selection are artistic excellence (60%), impact (25%) and project management (15%).

Creation Grants are made possible through support from private donations, including the Vermont Community Foundation’s Arts Endowment Fund. Thanks to this generous support, more Creation Grants grants were awarded than ever before.

Other Southern Vermont recipients are:

  • Willy Appelman, Dorset, to support the development, rehearsal, and production of a comedic solo show
  • Natasha Haverty, Dummerston, to support the production of a live storytelling show about motherhood
  • Maria Pugnetti, Brattleboro, to support the creation of animation, scenic art, and shadow puppetry for an original intermedia shadow theater performance for youth and adults, “The Buried Moon”
  • Brendan Taaffe, Vernon, to support the creation of an interdisciplinary work titled “The Bucolics Project”
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Filed Under: Community and Arts Life • In the Arts • In the Community

About the Author: This item was edited from one or more press releases submitted to The Chester Telegraph.

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