Art in Expected & Unexpected Places for Amherst Artswalk, Nov. 1, 5 - 8 PM-MAP

All the Amherst Biennial sites will be open for the Amherst Artswalk with Hitchcock Center & Bank of America opening early from 4 - 6 PM. Some of the sites will also be hosting receptions such as Hope & Feathers, The Eric Carle Museum,  The Strong House Museum, Boltwood Gallery (behind Judi's) and of course Amherst Town Hall. Check out Karen Dolmanisth's installation inside the Stearn's Steeple in front of the Mead Art Museum   when you visit the Museum & Frost Library Gallery  while on the Amherst College Campus. Karen will also be on site this weekend from 9 - 5 PM as artist-in-residence at the Stearn's Steeple as well as a final performance on Friday, Nov. 30th at noon inside the Mead Art Museum.

Also we will have a special performance of Samuel Rowlett tomorrow evening starting at UMASS pond at 5 PM. Samuel will be carrying a large canvas on his back through downtown Amherst, visiting other Biennial sites including Amherst College and then onto Hampshire College and ending at The Carle Museum around 8 PM which will be free and open to the public tomorrow night as well as hosting a reception for the artists Carl Calvano & Sandy Litchfield from 5 - 8 PM.

Amherst Biennial Host Site Map
 http://gis.amherstma.gov/stories/maptour/AmherstArts.html 

Art in the Park - Rabbit Stolen!!!!

Matt Evald Johnson, Portal

Lee Hutt, August Rabbit

 One of the gifts of the Amherst Biennial is making public art a permanent part of the landscape of our town. Matt Evald Johnson sculpture Portal was selected by the curators during the first Biennial in 2010 and is installed on a knoll in Kendrick Park. The sculpture acts as a link between downtown Amherst and the UMASS campus.We are in the process of making this a permanent installation and the curators have added another sculpture to this park, Lee Hutt's August Rabbit. Our hope is that this will spark the beginning of a natural playground which our community wanted for this Park. The rabbit is a wonderful tie-in to our community since the author, Howard R. Garis of the famed children's books Uncle Wiggily once lived in Amherst.



As I was checking the public art around town to make sure everything was OK after Sandy's unwelcome visit, it seems Lee Hutt's Rabbit has been stolen from it's perch in Kendrick Park!!!! Any help with helping to retrieve this sculpture would be greatly appreciated.

Hitchcock Center Celebrates 50th with contemporary installations from Biennial

Nancy Winship Milliken's installation at Hitchcock Center

Hitchcock Center for Enviromental Studies has provided a valuable educational and environmental resource in Amherst for 50 years. The Amherst Public Arts Commission is pleased to celebrate this momentous occasion at the Hitchcock Center by bringing contemporary art by adding contemporary art to it's landscape.

Nancy Winship Milliken utilizes natural material including local clay and straw to construct these gestural figures of farmers which rise and fall back to the earth depending on the weather These earthly figures are a reflections of the cycle of crops through the seasons.

Chris Nelson has created a special installation which slices through the forest that changes our way that we look at the forest through the seasons. In working with the conservation commission Nelson raised his yellow ropes to allow deer and moose to pass through his installation unharmed.

Signs leading to Nelson work guide visitors to his installation, continue down the path to the rear of the Hitchcock property to view Milliken's installation near Bramble Hill Farm.

http://nancymilliken.com/news/

Freedom Trails features Installations & Video Room

Freedom Trails which is connected to Valley Frameworks is run by Ani Rivera an artist from the first Amherst Biennial 2010.. His gallery is presenting an installation of Maggie Nowinski's cynotype prints and Alicia Rendette's Cast away both are returning artists from the first Biennial. Also Sarah Bliss's video You Leave Here in the gallery's new video viewing room in the rear of the gallery. Freedom Trails features some of the boldest and colorful artwork of this Biennial with Lourdes Morales's combinations of souring spiritual spaces playing off of comic book figures and Marlene Rye's lyrical landscapes. One of the other surprises in this gallery is one of Jeff Stauder's Buffalo series (in Jeff's other life, he teaches art at Amherst High School!). This are just some of the highlights of local talent featured in the gallery.

Also Freedom Trails Gallery has just put out a Call for Art for Dec/Jan for a small works exhibit with the 30% commission going to the Survival Center and the balance to the artists.
http://www.amherstvalleyframeworks.com/open-call-to-artists-juried-small-works-exhibition-to-benefit-the-amherst-survival-center/

Pope Johanna & Zea Mays Printers at Hope & Feathers Framing & Gallery

Each setting for the Amherst Biennial has it's own character and Hope & Feather's Framing & Gallery is no exception. There's a softness and quiet elegance to the artwork here created by local women artists,several of whom are members of the Zea Mays Printmaking Studio, a non-toxic print studio in Florence, MA. The Founder & Director Liz Chalfin is featured in this Biennial with her sculptural installation of "Day" This ground breaking piece examines the shifting light of a day.

Also Zea May's member, Anne Bissett features prints about money. The artist overlays her father's writings to her while she was in college with slogans about money, This work is so poignant for the times were in.



One of the most striking installations in the Amherst Biennial is Susan Montgomery's 3D installation honoring Pope Joanna's myth/story of a 9th century woman who disguised herself as a man to get an education. She rose in the Catholic Church hierarchy to eventually became pope. The artist is interested as to why her story survives, and in the contadictions within.


Prints of the Zea Mays and gallery's Biennial artists will be available for sale in the gallery this Fall.

http://hopeandfeathersframing.com/

Biennial Opens to Rave Reviews

   Today, Karen Dolmanisth's IN BALANCE performance at Noon,will be inside the Mead Art Museum. Stearns Steeple bells rung by Aaron Hayden will announce the beginning of Karen's performance. Boltwood Gallery at 49 Boltwood Place opens from noon - five today and every Saturday & Sunday in October & November.While you're in the area  check out William Brayton's sculpture in front of the Lord Jeffrey Inn on the green, and if you stop by for brunch or a drink at the Tavern you'll see Dawn Siebel's playful alterations of vintage paint-by-number paintings at the entrance to the tavern today. (and for the rest of the Biennial). Also the one of Peter Kraznekewicz's  little White House series sits at the entrance of Hampshire College. A few more little white houses will dot the landscape of Hampshire College by Columbus Day.

   Challenging weather this week effected the production of Nancy Winship Milliken's production of gestural "cobb" (bricks made of local clay, hay, sand and other organic materials) figures at Hitchock Center which will start in earnest this week with the sun. Also we are rescheduling Samuel Rowlett's performance with walking canvas, dates TBA.

Last night openings at several sites (Emily Dickinson Museum, Boltwood Gallery, Strong House Museum, Hope & Feathers Gallery & Freedom Trails Gallery) created great excitement. So many different parts of our community have come together to support the incredible talent of this fertile valley. Artscope's reporter, Gregory Morell  toured the Biennial on opening day and will be reviewing the Amherst Biennial in Artscope November edition.

If you missed the grand opening last night there will be many more host sites open for the Amherst's Artswalk on November 1st, Thursday from 5 - 8 PM.

49 Boltwood Gallery - Biennial Gallery

Just finished installing our pop-up gallery in a  new LEED building in downtown Amherst, just behind Judi's. We thank the owners IAT Partners who have donated the space to us for the Amherst Biennial. This  brings great exposure to our local artists and this brand new "green" building.

Carl Calvano's, artwork in foreground, yours truly, Terry Rooney next to Sandy Litchfield's work, (she's attending an opening of her work in NYC). Both of these artist's will be honored at the The Carle Museum on Thursday, Nov. 1,  5-8 PM. The  Museum will be free & artists' reception during the Amherst's Artwalk

Today's the Big Day - Update on Biennial

The Amherst Biennial spreads from the little White House at the entrance at Hampshire College in South Amherst  (Matt Johnson's sculpture will be installed by the Admission Office this week) to the Harp with Lynn Peterfreund's video (starting at 8 PM) for the after party!

The majority of the exhibits will be open this evening, the exceptions are: The Eric Carle Museum, The Jones Library, Hitchcock Center and Amherst Town Hall. Also, The Lord Jeffrey Inn is hosting weddings but you can still see Dawn Siebel's paintings at the Tavern entrance and William Brayton's sculpture on it's front lawn. All four of these venues will be hosting receptions during the November 1st Artswalk, Eric Carle museum will be free to the general public and will be hosting reception with the other Biennial sites on Thursday, Nov. 1.
Host sites closed tonight are: Eric Carle Museum, Jones Library, Hitchcock Center, Lord Jeffrey Inn & Amherst Town Hall open for November Artswalk

Performances:

The weather may affect Samuel's Rowlett's performance this evening. But as of this time, it's a go.

Samuel's performance begins at 5 PM at the Pond behind the Fine Arts Center at UMass.

Karen Dolmanisth's performance is scheduled at Stearns Steeple in the quad in front of the Mead Art Museum at noon tomorrow Oct. 7th. Rain brings the performance inside the Mead Museum. Several more performances on weekends will post link and dates soon.

Maps are posted at 49 Boltwood Gallery (behind Judi's) and in the Bank of America which is hosting Fort River students response to Emily Dickinson poems. Reception Nov. 1, Amhest Artswalk

Look forward to seeing you all tonight!

Eric Carle & Biennial Artists - Preview in Amherst Bulletin!

This morning I was up at the crack of dawn to help the artists, Carl Calvano (pictured left) and Sandy Litchfield install at the Carle Museum. Curator and Founding Director Nick Clark gave us a private tour of the galleries. It was wonderful to how Eric Carle's independent work had similarities.to Calvano's arwork. Both Carl and Eric both have used use sculpted painted metal in their art work. 

Sandy's renderings of  buildings appeared in another artist's drawings in the first gallery. It's wonderful to see the links between the artists.

After I can home to continue production on the Biennial, I picked up my morning paper and read this wonderful article in the Amherst Bulletin. Just a reminder you can get a sneak peek of the Biennial at a dozen sites tonight. Hope to see most of you this weekend for the grand opening starting at the Hitchcock Center a little earlier since the installations are outdoors, you can see Nancy Milliken & Chris Nelson's pieces from 4 - 6 PM. 

http://www.amherstbulletin.com/home/2011339-95/amherst-biennial-art-college

Carl Calvano, Spiral now installed at The Carle Museum

Amherst Biennial Map

 http://gis.amherstma.gov/stories/maptour/AmherstArts.html 

 Anne Krauss, Namesake, computer painting at the Frost Library

Sneak Preview at Amherst Artswalk Tomorrow Night 10/4/12

Tomorrow night, 12 sites from the Amherst Biennial will be open during the Amherst ArtsWalk 5 - 8 PM

Amherst College, Frost Library Gallery
Amherst Town Hall, 4 Boltwood, Emily's Rhapsody
Bank of America, 1 S. Pleasant
  Emily's Rhapsody & Biennial Map
Emily Dickinson Museum,  
   260 Main St.
Freedom Trails Gallery, 534 Main
Hastings, 45 South Pleasant.
Hope & Feathers, 319 Main
Jones Library, 43 Amity St.
Lord Jeffrey Inn, 30 Boltwood
Strong House Museum, 67 Amity .
UMass - Banners on Fine Arts Center
Zanna

Annie Bissett, Mixed Feelings, woodblock prints at Hope & Feathers Framing & Gallery (top)
Adele Mattern, installation at Strong House Museum in response to Mabel Todd Loomis artwork.

Strong House Museum- Contemporary Art & Antiques!

Strong House Museum,  67 Amity St., Amherst
(to left of Jones Library) will feature the artwork of Rosemary Barrett, Christin Couture, Adele Mattera & William Hosie amongst historical objects from Amherst's past. Christin's encaustic and ethereal paintings are featured next to Emily Dickinson's white dress and Adele Mattera's installation has a conversation with Mabel Loomis Todd watercolor flowers with her installation gracing the center of Mabel's exhibit. These artists work engages the past with contemporary sensibilities with echos of the past.
Strong House will be participating in this week's Amherst Arts Walk as well as the Grand Opening of the Amherst Biennial on Saturday, Oct. 6, 5 - 8 PM.

See how history speaks to the present!

Painting Amherst with Art

Art is appearing all over Amherst this week for the Biennial, Frost Library Gallery at Amherst College sings with a variety of talent from our fertile valley, Anne Burton newest work combines sand-blasted glass with her graphic monoprints, Kim Carlino's colorful and elegant drawings draws people up to the gallery staircase  (her piece just went up in Hastings window this weekend also). Jeff Stauder's playful works on paper draw the viewer in; Anita Licis Ribak's photograph one of the iconic images (top of page) from the last Amherst Biennial - documents Erika Zekos's Shedding Light (the lighting of the tobacco barn) & Nancy Winship Milliken's Pleiades  (woolen sails)  Dawn Siebel gives the viewer an intimate view of her portraits of the fallen firefighters from 9/11 in burned frames. This is just a small preview of the stimulating work here.

Artists at the Frost Library: Anne Burton, Kim Carlino, Pamela Crawford, Oriole Farb Feshbach, George Greenstein, Anne Krauss, Anita Licis-Riback Charles Miller, Lynn Peterfreund, Marlene Rye, Jeff Stauder, Erika Zekos. This gallery is handicap accessible.

Kim Carlino, Coming From and Going To III, watercolor and ink on vellum