Wilton Library will present “Rust and Resolve: The Last Days of Wilton’s Industrial North” as its October art exhibition, opening on Friday, Oct. 3. The exhibit features photographs of the Gilbert and Bennett Wire Mill, 1982-2007, taken by Elyse Shapiro and Bruce Ando.
For more than 150 years, the Gilbert & Bennett Wire Mill in Georgetown shaped both industry and community in Wilton’s Industrial North. The “Rust and Resolve” art exhibition uniquely blends fine art photography with the history of Wilton. Presenting more than 40 photographs, local photographers Shapiro and Ando have successfully captured the mill in its final working years and in the quiet aftermath of its closure.
In addition to hauntingly beautiful photos, there is an historical exhibit sourced from the G&B Wire Mill Collection (Town of Redding) and curated by Julie Hughes, PhD, archivist at the Wilton History Room in Wilton Library.
Shapiro, a former photojournalist and longtime photography teacher, and Ando, a Marine Corps combat photographer turned corporate and commercial photographer, document not only a vanishing workplace but also the values forged there — hard work, resilience and community spirit. As today’s workforce shifts from industry to service and digital economies, these images ask: What do we carry forward, and what do we allow to fade?
The “Rust and Resolve” Opening Reception on Friday, Oct. 3 from 6-7:30 p.m. is free and open to the public. The exhibition runs through Friday, Oct. 31. A majority of the works will be available for purchase with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the library. Wilton Library hours are Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; and Sunday 1-5 p.m. The library will be closed on Monday, Oct. 13, in observance of Columbus Day/Indigenous Peoples’ Day.