About the Center
The VCA is dedicated to the advancement and integration of the arts within the Saint Vincent College community. The Center devotes 5,000+ square feet to hosting rotating exhibitions that present work by contemporary artists as well as selections from Saint Vincent’s impressive holdings. The Center cares for over 4,000 objects ranging from ancient to contemporary in a variety of media that form the permanent art collections of Saint Vincent College and Saint Vincent Archabbey.
Mission
The VCA serves as an educative and inspirational hub for students, faculty, researchers, and the surrounding community. Exhibiting work by contemporary artists and objects from the Saint Vincent permanent collections, the Center provides opportunities for its constituents to engage with diverse perspectives, cultures, and ideas. In keeping with Saint Vincent College’s liberal arts mission, special focus is given to exhibitions and programming that draw from interdisciplinary sources.
Vision
The Saint Vincent galleries (the McCarl Coverlet Gallery and Verostko Center for the Arts) aspire to serve as a dynamic cultural hub that enriches the Saint Vincent College experience by fostering an appreciation for the arts, promoting creativity, and encouraging critical thinking. Aligned with the college's Benedictine mission to cultivate a community of learning, faith, and service, the galleries will showcase diverse artistic expressions that connect people to art, history, and one another. Engaging audiences through exhibitions, programs, and education, we aim to inspire our community members to explore the transformative power of art, thereby enriching the intellect and nourishing the spirit.
The Center aims to:
- Enliven academic exploration with exhibitions and programming drawn from a variety of disciplines
- Facilitate a space of inquiry
- Provide direct contact with artists and their work
- Foster respect for historic and contemporary practice in the arts
- Feature works at the nexus of art and spirituality
Elizabeth E. Barker, Ph.D.
Director, Verostko Center for the Arts Curator, Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collection A native of Brunswick, Maine, Lizzie received her BA in the history of art from Yale College, and her MA and PhD from the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, where her research focused on Italian Renaissance drawing and British Romantic painting. Barker began her career as a curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art before moving into directorship roles at Colgate University’s Picker Art Gallery, Amherst College’s Mead Art Museum, the Boston Athenæum, and the Frick Pittsburgh. She is a recipient of the New York State Historical Association’s Henry Allen Moe Prize, The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Theodore Rousseau Fellowship, New York University's Robert Lehman Fellowship, Yale University’s A. Conger Goodyear Award in the History of Art and others. She was a finalist for the William M. B. Berger Prize for British Art History and for the Art Newspaper/AXA Art Exhibition Catalogue Award. |
Amy L. Roadman
Public Outreach and Programming Coordinator With over two decades of experience as a PreK–12 certified art educator, Amy has taught visual arts in schools and community settings since her college years. She is the founder of Igniting Creativity LLC, an organization dedicated to providing creative classes for children, hosting artistic experiences for adults and integrating creativity into classrooms. Roadman also served as a teaching artist in Pennsylvania’s artist-in-residence program, collaborating with educators across disciplines to incorporate art into various curricula. Her approach emphasizes the belief that creativity can be nurtured through practice and exploration, making art an inclusive experience for all. In addition to her responsibilities at the Verostko Center for the Arts, Roadman will collaborate with Dr. Emily Barth, curator of the Foster and Muriel McCarl Coverlet Gallery, to develop a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) initiative. |
Agnes-Rose Fischer
Student Intern, Class of '26 
Chyonna Blango-Symms
Student Intern, Class of '26 |
Jonah Weaver
Student Intern, Class of '27 
Ava Tine
Student Worker, Class of '29 |
|
|
Jeffrey Martin
Student Worker, Class of '29 |
Verostko Center Dedication
A formal dedication of the Verostko Center for the Arts was held Wednesday, November 17, 2021 with remarks offered by Rt. Rev. Martin de Porres Bartel, O.S.B., archabbot of the Saint Vincent monastic community, Saint Vincent College President, Rev. Paul Taylor, O.S.B., and Roman Verostko, professor Emeritus at Minneapolis College of Art and Design. The event assembled members of the Saint Vincent academic community, donors and benefactors, as well as representatives from regional arts organizations. A recording of the program is available here.