Community Calendar

Beyond Blue and White: the Hidden History of Delftware and the Women Behind the Iconic Ceramic

In-Person & on Zoom:

An absorbing work of cultural history that reveals the stories behind one of the world's most coveted and beloved ceramicists.

When over seventy-five pieces of rare and intriguing 17th and 18th century Delftware are rediscovered in an historic Manhattan townhouse, decorative art advisor and writer Genevieve Wheeler Brown quickly recognized that, together, these pieces tell an amazing story. What begins as a curatorial exercise quickly evolves not only into an exploration of this colorful, expressive, and sometimes even humorous decorative art, coveted for hundreds of years, but also an unexpected uncovering of forceful female lives yet untold.

With illustrations of period objects, documents, maps, paintings, prints and drawings, Beyond Blue and White is a colorful celebration of an iconic decorative art and dynamic women living in extraordinary times. 

As a decorative art advisor and writer with over thirty years in the art world, including a decade with Christie’s in New York and London, Genevieve Wheeler Brown has been actively involved in the community of Delftware. She has also participated on the Antiques Roadshow as an appraiser with an eye out for overlooked “treasure.” In her role, she has held innumerable objects, from fake Stradivari violins to gold-mounted Faberge eggs, considering their value but also the stories they can tell.

Registration required only to attend in-person. Zoom link at owlibrary.org

Global artists have sent in their wildest images, film, music and poems for Personaland's online art show

Personaland is an artist-driven global village transforming the world of art by using technology to bridge time zones and cultural boundaries. Our mission is to promote humanity, creativity, and community through a mix of entertainment, enchantment, and imagination.

Since its 2018 launch, Personaland, in its global reach, has showcased over 800 visual artists, filmmakers, musicians, and poets from 68 countries in 32 group art shows and 55 individual exhibitions, many with videos of artist profiles.  https://www.personaland.com

The Merwinsville Hotel is excited to be continuing the Glass Orb Scavenger Hunt thanks to a generous donation from the New Milford Commission on the Arts.

There are 25 area historic sites and organizations that are participating with the Hotel. Each site is hiding four numbered and dated one-of-a-kind glass orbs (three clear and one colored) either inside or outside on their property. Participants can search for and keep any glass orb that they find, but please limit one orb per person/family so everyone has a chance! Be sure to register your orb on the Merwinsville Hotel website where you can also upload a photo. Share your find on social media and don't forget to tag the organization where you found it!

The blown glass orbs that are numbered, dated for 2025, and stamped with “MHR 50”. In addition to the clear glass orbs, there are 25 colored orbs for 2025. Reminder: Because each organization's hours vary, be sure to check their websites before you head out on your hunt.

PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS BY TOWN:

Bantam:

Bantam Cinema

Brookfield:

Brookfield Craft Center

Danbury:

Danbury Museum & Historical Society; Danbury Railway Museum

Gaylordsville - Celebrating its 300th Anniversary!

Browns Forge; Little Red Schoolhouse; Merwinsville Hotel Restoration, Inc.; The Washington Oak Park (DAR Roger Sherman Chapter)

Kent:

Connecticut Antique Machinery Association; Eric Sloane Museum; Kent Historical Society

Litchfield:

Litchfield Historical Society

New Fairfield:

New Fairfield Historical Society (at the Little Red Schoolhouse); Preserve New Fairfield

New Milford:

Gallery 25 & Creative Arts Studio; Harrybrooke Park; Merryall Center for the Arts; New Milford Historical Society; Pratt Nature Center; The Silo @ Hunt Hill Farm Trust; TheatreWorks; Village Center for the Arts

Sherman:

Sherman Historical Society

Washington:

Gunn Historical Museum

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We’ve turned our entryway into a mini art studio! Stop by anytime this month to participate in our community collage project. The theme of this month’s collage is “Summer” — the rest is up to you! Use our supplies or add your own. Participate once or multiple times. Just don’t forget to sign the guest book so we know which artists we have to thank for the final product!

The finished piece will be displayed at Off the Trail Cafe.

The Judy Black Memorial Park and Gardens is pleased to present an art exhibition, “A Frayed Edge,” featuring the works of Stace Dillard. This show is on view beginning Friday, August 29.

An opening reception will be held at the park on Saturday, August 30 from 3 to 5 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.

Dillard’s collage work is composed of vibrant, abstract mixed-media compositions characterized by geometric structures, overlapping elements, and a layering of colors, patterns, and textures. 

This show will remain on view through Sunday, September 21. Check our social media for weekly open hours: @judyblackpark on Instagram and Facebook.

The Gunn Memorial Library is pleased to present the captivating floral photography of Nina McKitty, on view in the Stairwell Gallery from August 9th to October 4th.

Drawing inspiration from nature, travel, and the artistic traditions of both East and West, Nina McKitty brings a joyful and thoughtful lens to her digital photography. Her work explores the delicate beauty of flowers—each image carefully composed, captured, and refined in her studio to evoke both surprise and delight in the viewer.

Originally gifted a digital camera by her husband, McKitty transformed a curiosity into a profound creative journey. Over the past 15 years, she has immersed herself in the art and craft of digital photography, studying under acclaimed artists and continuously evolving her techniques. Her photographs are printed and framed by hand using archival materials, merging technical precision with artistic expression.

A former nurse practitioner and consultant, McKitty turned to photography in retirement, channeling her lifelong passions for nature and visual storytelling into a rich new chapter as a digital artist. Since 2019, her work has been featured in numerous exhibitions, including shows at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Employee Gallery, Kent Art Association, and Washington Art Association.

Get ready to go big! The New Hartford Artisans Guild is thrilled to announce our upcoming Big

Works Art Show, celebrating artwork that makes a bold statement. This is your chance to showcase

your largest, most impactful pieces—the only requirement is that one dimension must be at least

24 inches. Whether it’s towering canvases, sweeping landscapes, or grand sculptural forms, we

want to fill the gallery with work that commands attention. Don’t miss this opportunity to take up

space and let your creativity shine on a larger scale!

 The Gunn Museum announces a new exhibit American Perspectives: Peril and Possibilities. This exhibit is part of our American Revolution 250 celebrations.

The exhibit tells the story of the impossible dream, a revolution against the world’s mightiest Empire that would create a new nation built on the ideals of freedom, liberty and opportunity. The exhibit discusses Connecticut and our community including during the war.

Online exhibition curated by Lani Ming Holloway with artwork by Maya Tihtiyas Attean, Laura Barr, Jordann McKenna, and Benoît Trimborn

exhibition dates:  August 1 – September 30, 2025, on www.kbfa.com

Stories told in light and silence

Poetry will make me violent

Violets outside our yard…

Why does the world have to be so hard?

Encompassing the hidden truths

 Of things unseen in what we view.

-       LMH

Kenise Barnes Fine Art is pleased to present the online exhibition Stories told in light and silence curated by Lani Ming Holloway featuring Maya Tihtiyas Attean, Laura Barr, Jordann McKenna, and Benoît Trimborn.

Maya Tihtiyas Attean is a Wabanaki artist raised on the Penobscot Reservation in Maine. Excerpted from her artist statement: “Through the lens of Wabanaki history and culture, my photographs intertwine forgotten truths within the landscape of what is now called Maine. My work explores the deep, complex relationships between the land, its people, and the lasting impact of colonization. The energy embedded in the landscape reverberates through my creations and reveals the scars left on both the earth and our bodies. My work invites contemplation on occupation and ownership, prompting reflection on who exploits the land and how systems of oppression have disrupted its balance.”

Maya’s work expresses the dichotomy the artist exists within, marrying mediums and different cultural techniques. “Does the Land Remember?” is an ongoing series photographing landscapes that hold the history of devastating events of colonization. The power of that residuum is felt in the images in a supernatural way, as the dualism of her lived experience is pronounced in the contrast of light and dark. Sunlight shimmers through the leaves as bright stars overhead look down upon the land, a fire burns. Maya’s work calls us to remember that nature feels the spirits.

Maya Tihtiyas Attean lives and works in Portland, Maine or Machigonne. She earned a BFA in Photography from Maine College of Art & Design, Portland. Her work is in the permanent collection of the Portland Museum of Art, Portland, ME and the Abbe Museum, Bar Harbor, ME.

Laura Barr’s work explores impermanence through oil paintings and oil pastel drawings on paper capturing passing moments in color, reflection on water, and light. Simplifying forms and illuminating the scale of special glimmers, her work considers the preservation of water and the protection of our environment. In Laura’s paintings in the exhibition, fireflies gleam in a starlit field and remind us that fireflies may not continue to glow on our planet, while a surfer catches the last evening wave the ocean offers, an Aurora Borealis dances in the night sky.

Laura Barr lives by the Thimble Islands in Branford, Connecticut. She earned her BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA and a BA in Fine Arts from Tufts University in Medford, MA and has studied at Tyler School of Art in Rome, Italy.

From Ithaca, NY, Jordann McKenna paints and photographs the quiet beauty in everyday life in work that contemplates mundanity and the softly fleeting feeling within light and shadows around her. In lushly applied oil paint, flames flicker and shadows play across the scene. Jordann’s work in this exhibition reflects the peaceful, ephemeral moods of interiors and intimate still lifes, either staged or spontaneous. Jordann McKenna works from photographs and from memory to create images that serve to process rather than recreate, expressing not only what is seen but what is felt, and celebrating the beauty in the ordinary.

Jordann McKenna earned a BS in Visual Arts from State University of New York at New Paltz, New Paltz, NY, and an MFA from Maine College of Art & Design in Portland, ME. She lives and works in Portland, ME.

Born in Strasbourg, France, and trained as an architect, Benoît Trimborn describes his work as “contemporary impressionism”. Viewing the world as an architect, Benoît’s large-scale oil paintings evoke what his artist statement calls the “morphology of the landscapes… like an architect, I see in it a breath, a light, a rhythm, which alone can constitute a principle of beauty. The elements represented compose atmospheres of which I try to faithfully convey the impression, as the musician faithfully follows the score. In this process, the contemplative attitude prevails, much more than the adventurous attitude. No message, no story should disturb the projection of the viewer...”

In Benoît’s meticulously painted large-scale landscapes, the absence of the figure instills a quietude in the story while light is the present form in all its magic. Reflections play like a musical score on the surface of the water and golden glimmers illuminate the forest and emanate from a sunset sky.

Benoît Trimborn’s work is in the permanent collection of Galerie Ariel Sibony in Paris, France, Absolute Art Gallery in Bruges, Belgium, and Galerie Bertrand Gillig in Strasbourg, France. He lives and works in Strasbourg, France.

Please contact Lani@kbfa.com, 860 560 3085 with inquiries.

Shipping is available worldwide throughout the exhibition.  

Enjoy the works of

Photographer Sarah Blodgett & Basket Weaver Tina Puckett

About the Artists 

Sarah Blodgett

Sarah Blodgett is a photographer from the Hudson Valley in New York. Born in New York City, daughter of a professional advertising photographer, she bought her first camera at the age of ten and has been shooting ever since. A commercial & portrait photographer professionally since 1993, her passion now lies with creating images of wildlife and natural areas. Her primary focus is on birds as well as landscapes, seascapes, still lives and florals. She also offers speaking programs to accompany her work with a focus on ecology and preservation of the natural world around us.

 https://westernconnecticut.blogspot.com/2025/07/art-lovers-covered-bridge-woven-hand_30.html

Tina Puckett

American Master Weaver Tina Puckett is a self-taught Artist. who has been weaving since 1981. For over 40 years the woven arts have been evolving and each one is indescribably dynamic and colorful. The character of each piece is an expression of Tina's imagination and her sense of color that she applies to the weaving and structural form. Throughout Tina’s career she has exhibited her woven arts at museums, art galleries, libraries and art shows. Also, has been featured in magazines, books, newspapers, TV and on different platforms on the web.

Artist Statement

My woven pieces from baskets to wall sculptures, ceiling hangers, to furniture has evolved and is the way I define myself as an artist, and as a woman. I am fulfilling my dreams that started out with my imagination as a set designer. My creative path took a turn. It was not set design—but the woven arts with its many forms and functions where I found the passion for my life’s work.

The natural beauty of Bittersweet always sparks my imagination and is at the heart of the many pieces I weave. My imagination guides all that I do and it has become very attuned to the harmony of shapes, forms, and colors of the vines and reeds. I am also influenced by the beauty of our natural world and wonder how to weave it.

My palette for color is very much influenced by this experience of growing up in South America. I mix my own dyes and enjoy building a palette for the reeds that will shape textures and forms with color into a

​ one of a kind woven art!

Kenise Barnes Fine Art is thrilled to announce our midsummer exhibition focused on three artists whose keen observation and connection to the natural world invites us to pause and appreciate.

Margot Glass focuses primarily on drawing, using various traditional methods and materials as a foundation for her work, including traditional silverpoint and 14k goldpoint, homemade organic inks and oil and acrylic painting with mixed mica using fine point crow quill pens in place of brushes.

Glass is inspired by the tradition of idealizing nature in art and design as ornament across cultures while seeking to observe and represent her subjects as accurately as possible in all their irregularity and imperfection.

Central to her work is the exploration of ephemeral, fragile subjects, focusing primarily on weeds or ‘waste plants’, and other plants generally considered to be undesirable, to recognize their beauty in all their imperfection and asymmetry. Her focus on these marginal plants is guided by the question of what we value, what we consider ‘belonging’ to mean, and to highlight the beauty of what is present in the disrupted landscape that we find ourselves in today.

Margot Glass grew up in New York City, and studied art at The Art Students' League, Brown University, Rhode Island School of Design, and Fashion Institute of Technology. Glass’s work has been widely exhibited in the United States and internationally. She is a recipient of a Massachusetts Cultural Council STARS Artist Residency; Lost and Found Lab Artist-in-Residence and an Oak Spring Garden Foundation Interdisciplinary Fellowship. Her work is in private and public collections including the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation at Carnegie Mellon, PA, Weatherspoon Art Museum, NC, Oak Spring Garden Foundation, VA, Fidelity Investments Corporate Art Collection, MA, Hotel Del Coronado Collection, CA, Allentown Art Museum, PA, Midwest Museum of American Art, Elkhart, IN, the Beth Rudin deWoody Collection, among others. She currently lives and works in Western Massachusetts.

Richard Klein has been copper plating organic objects for over three decades utilizing found objects that are intrinsically fragile and impermanent. The process allows Klein to encase natural objects in a thin coating of metallic copper, permanently preserving them. The alchemical transformation being both practical and poetic. 

In his most recent work, the artist juxtaposes electroplated natural findings with photo gravures of urban landscapes addressing our relationship with nature simultaneously reminding us that we are nature and that our detachment from nature is the source of much of the destruction to our planet. In particular, the artist’s interest in both fungi and copper hint at the convergence of natural and technological evolution: fungi, through their mycelium, connect virtually all terrestrial plant life, acting as natural communication networks; while copper is the material that the human-made electrical and digital networks depend on. 

Richard Klein is the former exhibitions director of The Aldrich of Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield, CT. His work has been shown widely in US and is in the public collections of Norton Family Collection, Santa Monica, CA, De Cordova Sculpture Park and Museum, Lincoln, MA, Connecticut Artists Collection, Hartford, CT and has been featured in The New Criterion, Two Coats of Paint, Hyperallergic, Art Forum, The Brooklyn Rail and Art New England to name a few. The artist lives and works in CT.

Francis Sills’s work is grounded in the perceptual-based, realist tradition. The artist works directly from observation in nature. In dealing with the intricacies and challenges of working from observation and the sustained experience of intense, visual scrutiny, the artist comes to understand and know his world. The flora series is an ongoing group of paintings utilizing the flowers and plants from the artist’s home garden. Sills recently been adding various shaped mirrors to the set ups, which both multiply the forms and fracture the space. Sills’ paintings are dense and subtle, revealing specific nuances of color, light, and form. Often, the underlying geometry and architecture of the composition are apparent in the application of paint, the artist’s analytic thinking about structure and his methodology still evident in the finished work.

Sills’s work has been exhibited throughout the United States, has been featured in publications such as Wall Street International Magazine, American Art Collector, The New York Times, I Like Your Work Podcast, and can be found in The Fine Art Program and Collection at Montefiore Einstein, New York, NY. Francis Sills earned his MFA at Parsons School of Design, New York, NY and BFA at Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY. The artist lives and works in South Carolina.

Please contact Lani Holloway, Associate Director, Lani@kbfa.com, 860 560 3085 with inquires or to arrange a preview of the exhibition.

Bismuth is a Boston-based artist known for her self-portrait photographs. Her work explores and challenges ideas surrounding identity and its fragile nature, politics and trans expression through a satirical and spontaneous approach. 

Recently, Bismuth has taken up oil painting as her primary medium, in which she creates numeric and interactive landscapes. 

Dismembered, showing at Peggy Mercury, will be her debut solo exhibit and will showcase her self-portrait images alongside painted works. Co-curated with James Boehmer and Gregory Fricke, the show will display Bismuth's current fascination with fragmentation and isolation, and so much more.

Peggy Mercury

Kent Barns

9 Maple Street, Unit 2

Kent, CT 06757

IG @itspeggymercury

For more information email us at hithere@peggymercury.com

Join us in celebrating the incredible talent of photographers from near and far at this year’s EXPOSURES 2025 at Gallery 25 in the Historic Train Station from August 21-Sept 7!

We’re honored to showcase a stunning collection of photographs that capture moments, moods, and stories through the lens of truly gifted artists.

Opening Reception

Saturday, August 23

2–4 PM

Gallery 25 | 11 Railroad Street, Downtown New Milford

Come support local art, meet the photographers, and enjoy an inspiring afternoon surrounded by creativity. All are welcome! Bring your friends and family!

Let’s fill the gallery with community and appreciation for the power of photography. See you there!

Join us in watching a movie at the Library! Popcorn and drinks will be served. Bring a lunch and join us at 1:00pm before the movie starts! Registration is suggested.

DRIFTLINES, a dual exhibition featuring new works by painter Heather Neilson and photographer Babs Perkins, explores the meditative connections between memory, place, premonition, and afterthought. The two artists are local to the Northwest Corner of Connecticut with studios at Whiting Mills in Winsted. DRIFTLINES will be on display through Friday, September 12.

A reception for the artists will take place on Saturday, August 16, 5-7PM and an artist’s talk featuring the two artists in conversation is scheduled for Thursday, September 4 at 5:30PM. 

🎨✨ August Light: A Sherman Artists Exhibition @ Kent Art Association

🗓 August 8–30

🎉 Opening Reception: Friday, August 8 | 6–8 PM

Celebrate the glow of late summer at August Light, a stunning exhibition presented by Sherman Artists at the Kent Art Association. This show features an inspiring collection of artwork in all genres and mediums—from painting and photography to sculpture and fused glass.

Join us for the opening reception on August 8 to meet the artists, enjoy refreshments, and explore this vibrant showcase of creativity.

🖼️ See something you love? Take it home!

Purchasing a piece directly supports local artists and helps keep the creative spirit thriving in our community.

Free and open to the public. Come be inspired—and maybe leave with something beautiful.

Opening Reception. Friday, July 25 6-8 PM

7 Water ST, Torrington, CT

Fridays from end of May through mid-October. 3:00 TO 6:00 PM Rain* or Shine!

Held at the KENT LAND TRUST FIELD, 37 South Main Street (Route 7 just south of the traffic light) and across the road from Kent Greenhouse & Gardens

Fresh produce, baked goods, homemade preserves, fresh poultry, gourmet mushrooms, herbal teas & products, honey, maple syrup, salsa, guacamole & chips, and more!!

*In case of heavy rains or storms we will be located at CT Antique Machinery Association, 31 Kent Cornwall Rd (Route 7 North) - advance notice will be given.

Friday, August 29, 2025

You don’t have to be a kid to participate in this fun event! Put on your favorite jammies and take an easy stroll (geared towards kids) around the main area. Look out for bats! Perhaps you’ll hear frogs, owls, and katydids. Our destination is Ongley Pond, a cozy campfire, S’Mores, and family fun!.6:00 p.m., Meet in the A. B. Ceder Room. Suggested donation: $5.00. Please pre-register: Pajama Parade Registration

We encourage you to carry a festive flashlight or lantern and bring a picnic supper on the Ceder Room lawn before our parade!

Come join me in listening to this country cover band outside on a hill with food and drinks.

Our ‘Friends Friday’ Summer Concert Series is sure to be a huge hit!

LOCATION ~ The Hilltop’ @ March Farm. Drive past the farm store (farm store on left), continue up the road bearing to the right at the top of the hill and look out for a ‘HILLTOP’ sign on your left. Head up the drive to park.

TICKETS ~ Your receipt is your ticket. Print it out or show us digitally on the day of each concert.

FOOD & DRINKS ~ We do not forbid outside food or drinks but ask that you PLEASE support our vendors. To be a food/beverage vendor at these events takes a lot of prep, time and energy. Help make it all worth it!

PETS ~ We ask that you leave you precious pooches at home.

EQUIPMENT ~ BYO Chairs, blankets, soccer balls, footballs, and of course dancing shoes or bare feet!!!

https://www.facebook.com/CTRakesBand/videos/1823434407704056/?mibextid=rS40aB7S9Ucbxw6v

Join us for some cream as we celebrate the end of summer! For kids entering Grades 5 and above only, please.

Registration is appreciated, please email the Junior Room (kmljuniorroom@biblio.org) to register or for more information, or register online.

Friday, August 29th, at 7:00 PM, Ian Campbell (https://iancampbellmusic.com/home) returns to 2nd Home, and we are excited to have him back. Ian grew up in Connecticut with seventeen entertaining and musical brothers and sisters. Outrageous family dinner time jam sessions, with instruments like "salt shaker" and "nose" gave Ian a love for music and performance. Ian is a director and teacher for the National Guitar Workshop, and a full time, traveling singer/songwriter, He has honed the sound, communication, experience, and feels, of a powerful live performance. His goal is to have you leave with your spirits raised.

For reservations (encouraged but not required) call 860-238-4500 or email us at momanddad@2ndhomelounge.com

See our complete event list - https://2ndhomelounge.com/events/

Google Street View

https://goo.gl/maps/eC7A4ZDEjenNqzpb6

https://goo.gl/maps/NWGK4NRyk6MNfmWZ6

2nd Home Lounge

524 Main Street, Winsted

2dhomelounge.com

Join our mailing list - https://2ndhomelounge.com/email-sign-up/

Paint and sip located above Toothpick on Water Street in Torrington!

BYOB! Painting new types of still life's every week.

All materials included in price

RSVP online

Ditch the swiping and come meet real, local singles in person!

If you're tired of the same old routine, this is your chance to mix things up, meet new people, and have fun putting yourself out there! Our speed dating events make it easy and natural to spark connections—without the pressure of a full date.

Note on Age Range: While this event is primarily focused on singles in the age range specified in the title, this is only a suggestion—not a strict requirement. If you're slightly outside this range but feel you'd connect well with this group, you're welcome to join! Our goal is to create well-balanced events where everyone can meet compatible matches.

How the Evening Unfolds

Casual Mixer Kickoff: The night starts with a relaxed mingle where you can grab a drink (not included, but encouraged) and ease into the atmosphere before the dating rounds begin.

Guided Conversations: Not great at starting conversations? No worries! We provide an icebreaker question each round, and our high-energy host keeps things flowing smoothly.

Perfect-Length Connections: You'll have just enough time with each person to feel out their vibe before moving on to meet someone new—all in a positive, supportive, lighthearted, pressure-free atmosphere.

Simple Matching System: After each round, simply mark "friend," "date," or "none" on our easy matching system. Mutual matches receive contact info the next day!

Important Details

⏰ Arrive 15–30 minutes early to settle in! We start promptly, and late arrivals may not be accommodated.

💡 Remember: This event is all about active listening, learning, and exploring connections. While many attendees do meet someone special, the key to enjoying the experience is focusing on meeting new people without specific expectations.

Space is limited to ensure quality interactions and a balanced group. Reserve your spot now!

Follow us @sipsandsparks on social media for event updates, sneak peeks, and surprise promo codes! 🎉

Event Terms & Policies

Age Guidelines & Inclusivity

The age range for this event is a general recommendation. We welcome all participants regardless of age or gender and do not verify this information at check-in. We do not perform background checks on participants, so please exercise your own judgment when meeting new people, just as you would on any dating platform. Our goal is to create a welcoming and enjoyable environment for everyone.

Gender Balance & Attendance Disclaimer

We work hard to maintain a balanced ratio of male and female attendees by carefully managing ticket releases. However, we cannot guarantee exact gender ratios at the event, as last-minute no-shows are beyond our control.

No refunds will be issued due to uneven gender balance.

To reduce no-shows, we have a three-strike policy — anyone who misses three events without notice may be banned from attending future events.

We believe a positive mindset goes a long way — your experience is what you make of it, and many guests have a great time regardless of the final numbers.

Attendance & Community Disclaimer

We’re proud to host events that celebrate and welcome all identities within the LGBTQ+ community. Because of the diversity in gender identities and preferences, these events are not structured around a traditional pairing or ratio system.

Event Changes & Cancellations

We reserve the right to postpone or cancel events with insufficient registrations. If this happens, you'll receive either a full refund or the option to transfer your ticket to another event.

Waitlist Information

When events sell out, join our waitlist through Eventbrite. You'll receive an email notification when spots become available and can then secure your ticket through our Eventbrite page.

Important: Tickets must be purchased through Eventbrite only. We do not accept payment at the venue on event day.

Accessibility Notice

Some venues may not have elevators or full accessibility features. If you need specific accommodations, please contact us at sipsandsparksevents@gmail.com before purchasing your ticket so we can confirm availability at that location.

Safety & Liability

By attending, you agree that participation is at your own risk. You release Sips and Sparks LLC, our team, venues, and partners from liability for any accidents, injuries, or damages that may occur during or after the event, including from interactions with other participants.

Photography & Social Media

We may take photos and videos during events for promotional purposes. By attending, you consent to being photographed and having your image used in our marketing materials.

Don't want to be in photos? Simply let our event host know when you arrive, and we'll make sure to respect your privacy.

Refund Policy

1+ week before event: Full refund guaranteed (minus Eventbrite processing fees). For refunds, email us at sipsandsparksevents@gmail.com.

Join the Sherman Chamber Ensemble for Bartók’s World, the music of Béla Bartók and his influencers.

Inspired on one hand by the folk music of eastern Europe, and on the other by Strauss and Debussy, Bartok created his own unique style and is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century. The Piano Quintet, written when he was just 22, is richly scored with a virtuoso piano part and is a post-Romantic masterpiece.

• Suite Paysanne Hongrois for flute and piano (trans. Paul Arma)

• Piano Quintet, Sz 23 in C

Performing are Margaret Kampmeier (piano), Eliot Bailen (cello), Susan Rotholz (flute), Doori Na (violin) and Sarah Adams (viola).

Tickets $30. Children ages 16 and under free. As seating is limited, we recommend purchasing tickets in advance at https://www.scemusic.org/ticketsandprograms. Tickets available at the door, subject to availability.

ACCLAIMED MAGICIAN BELINDA SINCLAIR PERFORMS HER THEATRICAL MAGIC WITH CAPTIVATING SLEIGHT OF HAND, FUSING ALLEGORY WITH HISTORICAL STORIES ABOUT MAGIC IN THE HANDS OF WOMEN, AND HOW THEY CONVINCED US ALL THAT MAGIC WAS REAL AND THAT OUR POTENTIAL IS GREATER THAN WE THINK IT IS

Global artists have sent in their wildest images, film, music and poems for Personaland's online art show

Personaland is an artist-driven global village transforming the world of art by using technology to bridge time zones and cultural boundaries. Our mission is to promote humanity, creativity, and community through a mix of entertainment, enchantment, and imagination.

Since its 2018 launch, Personaland, in its global reach, has showcased over 800 visual artists, filmmakers, musicians, and poets from 68 countries in 32 group art shows and 55 individual exhibitions, many with videos of artist profiles.  https://www.personaland.com

The Merwinsville Hotel is excited to be continuing the Glass Orb Scavenger Hunt thanks to a generous donation from the New Milford Commission on the Arts.

There are 25 area historic sites and organizations that are participating with the Hotel. Each site is hiding four numbered and dated one-of-a-kind glass orbs (three clear and one colored) either inside or outside on their property. Participants can search for and keep any glass orb that they find, but please limit one orb per person/family so everyone has a chance! Be sure to register your orb on the Merwinsville Hotel website where you can also upload a photo. Share your find on social media and don't forget to tag the organization where you found it!

The blown glass orbs that are numbered, dated for 2025, and stamped with “MHR 50”. In addition to the clear glass orbs, there are 25 colored orbs for 2025. Reminder: Because each organization's hours vary, be sure to check their websites before you head out on your hunt.

PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS BY TOWN:

Bantam:

Bantam Cinema

Brookfield:

Brookfield Craft Center

Danbury:

Danbury Museum & Historical Society; Danbury Railway Museum

Gaylordsville - Celebrating its 300th Anniversary!

Browns Forge; Little Red Schoolhouse; Merwinsville Hotel Restoration, Inc.; The Washington Oak Park (DAR Roger Sherman Chapter)

Kent:

Connecticut Antique Machinery Association; Eric Sloane Museum; Kent Historical Society

Litchfield:

Litchfield Historical Society

New Fairfield:

New Fairfield Historical Society (at the Little Red Schoolhouse); Preserve New Fairfield

New Milford:

Gallery 25 & Creative Arts Studio; Harrybrooke Park; Merryall Center for the Arts; New Milford Historical Society; Pratt Nature Center; The Silo @ Hunt Hill Farm Trust; TheatreWorks; Village Center for the Arts

Sherman:

Sherman Historical Society

Washington:

Gunn Historical Museum

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We’ve turned our entryway into a mini art studio! Stop by anytime this month to participate in our community collage project. The theme of this month’s collage is “Summer” — the rest is up to you! Use our supplies or add your own. Participate once or multiple times. Just don’t forget to sign the guest book so we know which artists we have to thank for the final product!

The finished piece will be displayed at Off the Trail Cafe.

Goshen Community Care will host their annual Water Sale Fundraiser at the Goshen Fair beginning Saturday August 30 through Monday September 1. 

The Goshen Fair has supported Goshen Community Care’s longstanding mission to provide supportive care services to the members of the Goshen community by allowing GCC to be the exclusive seller of bottled water at the Goshen Fair each year.  All proceeds from this water sale will go directly to benefit Goshen Community Care programs and services

Bottles of water will be available for purchase for $3.00 each, or 4 bottles for $10.00. You can find water bottles for sale at Goshen Community Care’s booth, as well as through their partner vendors, the American Legion and Steak Tips and Tenders.

For more information about GCC Goshen Fair Water Sale or Goshen Community Care and its efforts, visit GoshenCommunityCare.org or call 860-491-4673.

Come join us for a Saturday on the Arethusa Farm. Enjoy the animals, be creative with a farm related craft/game, and story time with author & illustrator Ms. Parmelee! 

Saturday's starting 7/19

9:00 - 11:00 AM

Ages 5 & under

$35 per family

For questions, email: erikae@arethusafarmfoundation.org

To register and pay, please visit: www.arethasatarmcoamdation.org

The Judy Black Memorial Park and Gardens is pleased to present an art exhibition, “A Frayed Edge,” featuring the works of Stace Dillard. This show is on view beginning Friday, August 29.

An opening reception will be held at the park on Saturday, August 30 from 3 to 5 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.

Dillard’s collage work is composed of vibrant, abstract mixed-media compositions characterized by geometric structures, overlapping elements, and a layering of colors, patterns, and textures. 

This show will remain on view through Sunday, September 21. Check our social media for weekly open hours: @judyblackpark on Instagram and Facebook.

The Gunn Memorial Library is pleased to present the captivating floral photography of Nina McKitty, on view in the Stairwell Gallery from August 9th to October 4th.

Drawing inspiration from nature, travel, and the artistic traditions of both East and West, Nina McKitty brings a joyful and thoughtful lens to her digital photography. Her work explores the delicate beauty of flowers—each image carefully composed, captured, and refined in her studio to evoke both surprise and delight in the viewer.

Originally gifted a digital camera by her husband, McKitty transformed a curiosity into a profound creative journey. Over the past 15 years, she has immersed herself in the art and craft of digital photography, studying under acclaimed artists and continuously evolving her techniques. Her photographs are printed and framed by hand using archival materials, merging technical precision with artistic expression.

A former nurse practitioner and consultant, McKitty turned to photography in retirement, channeling her lifelong passions for nature and visual storytelling into a rich new chapter as a digital artist. Since 2019, her work has been featured in numerous exhibitions, including shows at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Employee Gallery, Kent Art Association, and Washington Art Association.

The Litchfield Farmers Market is one of the few year-round markets in the Connecticut. The weekly Saturday market offers fresh seasonal produce, fruit, berries, herbs, sustainably sourced fish; artisanal cheeses, breads and baked goods, local honey, maple syrup and gifts - all raised, grown or crafted by 15+ local vendors. 

The market occasionally hosts live music and supports non-profits from throughout the Litchfield area.

INDOOR MARKET - November through mid-June (intermittent Saturdays through the winter months -- check the website for dates.) Open Saturdays 10am - 1pm at the Litchfield Community Center located at 421 Litchfield Road, Litchfield, CT.

OUTDOOR MARKET - mid- June through October located at Center School, Litchfield.

Get ready to go big! The New Hartford Artisans Guild is thrilled to announce our upcoming Big

Works Art Show, celebrating artwork that makes a bold statement. This is your chance to showcase

your largest, most impactful pieces—the only requirement is that one dimension must be at least

24 inches. Whether it’s towering canvases, sweeping landscapes, or grand sculptural forms, we

want to fill the gallery with work that commands attention. Don’t miss this opportunity to take up

space and let your creativity shine on a larger scale!

 The Gunn Museum announces a new exhibit American Perspectives: Peril and Possibilities. This exhibit is part of our American Revolution 250 celebrations.

The exhibit tells the story of the impossible dream, a revolution against the world’s mightiest Empire that would create a new nation built on the ideals of freedom, liberty and opportunity. The exhibit discusses Connecticut and our community including during the war.

Online exhibition curated by Lani Ming Holloway with artwork by Maya Tihtiyas Attean, Laura Barr, Jordann McKenna, and Benoît Trimborn

exhibition dates:  August 1 – September 30, 2025, on www.kbfa.com

Stories told in light and silence

Poetry will make me violent

Violets outside our yard…

Why does the world have to be so hard?

Encompassing the hidden truths

 Of things unseen in what we view.

-       LMH

Kenise Barnes Fine Art is pleased to present the online exhibition Stories told in light and silence curated by Lani Ming Holloway featuring Maya Tihtiyas Attean, Laura Barr, Jordann McKenna, and Benoît Trimborn.

Maya Tihtiyas Attean is a Wabanaki artist raised on the Penobscot Reservation in Maine. Excerpted from her artist statement: “Through the lens of Wabanaki history and culture, my photographs intertwine forgotten truths within the landscape of what is now called Maine. My work explores the deep, complex relationships between the land, its people, and the lasting impact of colonization. The energy embedded in the landscape reverberates through my creations and reveals the scars left on both the earth and our bodies. My work invites contemplation on occupation and ownership, prompting reflection on who exploits the land and how systems of oppression have disrupted its balance.”

Maya’s work expresses the dichotomy the artist exists within, marrying mediums and different cultural techniques. “Does the Land Remember?” is an ongoing series photographing landscapes that hold the history of devastating events of colonization. The power of that residuum is felt in the images in a supernatural way, as the dualism of her lived experience is pronounced in the contrast of light and dark. Sunlight shimmers through the leaves as bright stars overhead look down upon the land, a fire burns. Maya’s work calls us to remember that nature feels the spirits.

Maya Tihtiyas Attean lives and works in Portland, Maine or Machigonne. She earned a BFA in Photography from Maine College of Art & Design, Portland. Her work is in the permanent collection of the Portland Museum of Art, Portland, ME and the Abbe Museum, Bar Harbor, ME.

Laura Barr’s work explores impermanence through oil paintings and oil pastel drawings on paper capturing passing moments in color, reflection on water, and light. Simplifying forms and illuminating the scale of special glimmers, her work considers the preservation of water and the protection of our environment. In Laura’s paintings in the exhibition, fireflies gleam in a starlit field and remind us that fireflies may not continue to glow on our planet, while a surfer catches the last evening wave the ocean offers, an Aurora Borealis dances in the night sky.

Laura Barr lives by the Thimble Islands in Branford, Connecticut. She earned her BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA and a BA in Fine Arts from Tufts University in Medford, MA and has studied at Tyler School of Art in Rome, Italy.

From Ithaca, NY, Jordann McKenna paints and photographs the quiet beauty in everyday life in work that contemplates mundanity and the softly fleeting feeling within light and shadows around her. In lushly applied oil paint, flames flicker and shadows play across the scene. Jordann’s work in this exhibition reflects the peaceful, ephemeral moods of interiors and intimate still lifes, either staged or spontaneous. Jordann McKenna works from photographs and from memory to create images that serve to process rather than recreate, expressing not only what is seen but what is felt, and celebrating the beauty in the ordinary.

Jordann McKenna earned a BS in Visual Arts from State University of New York at New Paltz, New Paltz, NY, and an MFA from Maine College of Art & Design in Portland, ME. She lives and works in Portland, ME.

Born in Strasbourg, France, and trained as an architect, Benoît Trimborn describes his work as “contemporary impressionism”. Viewing the world as an architect, Benoît’s large-scale oil paintings evoke what his artist statement calls the “morphology of the landscapes… like an architect, I see in it a breath, a light, a rhythm, which alone can constitute a principle of beauty. The elements represented compose atmospheres of which I try to faithfully convey the impression, as the musician faithfully follows the score. In this process, the contemplative attitude prevails, much more than the adventurous attitude. No message, no story should disturb the projection of the viewer...”

In Benoît’s meticulously painted large-scale landscapes, the absence of the figure instills a quietude in the story while light is the present form in all its magic. Reflections play like a musical score on the surface of the water and golden glimmers illuminate the forest and emanate from a sunset sky.

Benoît Trimborn’s work is in the permanent collection of Galerie Ariel Sibony in Paris, France, Absolute Art Gallery in Bruges, Belgium, and Galerie Bertrand Gillig in Strasbourg, France. He lives and works in Strasbourg, France.

Please contact Lani@kbfa.com, 860 560 3085 with inquiries.

Shipping is available worldwide throughout the exhibition.  

This solo exhibition marks Brewster’s return to public exhibition after a significant studio hiatus, shaped by the pandemic and the arrival of his two young children.

Spanning two to six feet in width, Brewster’s latest works are immersive and meditative, exploring vast, perhaps virtual, landscapes. These meticulously layered oil paintings hint at human presence through subtle traces—a balanced stone, a resting stick—evoking a haunting stillness. In his signature style, Brewster uses old-master techniques and translucent glazes to explore the tension between presence and absence, clarity and ambiguity. “Some of these paintings verge on the apocalyptic while others suggest eerie calm or quiet hope,” Brewster notes. “They balance loneliness and community, action and avoidance. They are tightly tied to the physicality and geometry of the canvas itself.”

Brewster studied at Yale University and received his MFA from the Hoffberger School of Painting at the Maryland Institute College of Art. He has held solo exhibitions in New York City, North Carolina, and Newfoundland, and has participated in numerous curated group shows including Icons of the 21st Century in New York and Academy 2003 at Conner Contemporary in Washington, D.C. His work has been featured in New American Paintings and reviewed in publications such as ForbesLife and The National Post.

Join us in celebrating the incredible talent of photographers from near and far at this year’s EXPOSURES 2025 at Gallery 25 in the Historic Train Station from August 21-Sept 7!

We’re honored to showcase a stunning collection of photographs that capture moments, moods, and stories through the lens of truly gifted artists.

Opening Reception

Saturday, August 23

2–4 PM

Gallery 25 | 11 Railroad Street, Downtown New Milford

Come support local art, meet the photographers, and enjoy an inspiring afternoon surrounded by creativity. All are welcome! Bring your friends and family!

Let’s fill the gallery with community and appreciation for the power of photography. See you there!

Enjoy the works of

Photographer Sarah Blodgett & Basket Weaver Tina Puckett

About the Artists 

Sarah Blodgett

Sarah Blodgett is a photographer from the Hudson Valley in New York. Born in New York City, daughter of a professional advertising photographer, she bought her first camera at the age of ten and has been shooting ever since. A commercial & portrait photographer professionally since 1993, her passion now lies with creating images of wildlife and natural areas. Her primary focus is on birds as well as landscapes, seascapes, still lives and florals. She also offers speaking programs to accompany her work with a focus on ecology and preservation of the natural world around us.

 https://westernconnecticut.blogspot.com/2025/07/art-lovers-covered-bridge-woven-hand_30.html

Tina Puckett

American Master Weaver Tina Puckett is a self-taught Artist. who has been weaving since 1981. For over 40 years the woven arts have been evolving and each one is indescribably dynamic and colorful. The character of each piece is an expression of Tina's imagination and her sense of color that she applies to the weaving and structural form. Throughout Tina’s career she has exhibited her woven arts at museums, art galleries, libraries and art shows. Also, has been featured in magazines, books, newspapers, TV and on different platforms on the web.

Artist Statement

My woven pieces from baskets to wall sculptures, ceiling hangers, to furniture has evolved and is the way I define myself as an artist, and as a woman. I am fulfilling my dreams that started out with my imagination as a set designer. My creative path took a turn. It was not set design—but the woven arts with its many forms and functions where I found the passion for my life’s work.

The natural beauty of Bittersweet always sparks my imagination and is at the heart of the many pieces I weave. My imagination guides all that I do and it has become very attuned to the harmony of shapes, forms, and colors of the vines and reeds. I am also influenced by the beauty of our natural world and wonder how to weave it.

My palette for color is very much influenced by this experience of growing up in South America. I mix my own dyes and enjoy building a palette for the reeds that will shape textures and forms with color into a

​ one of a kind woven art!

Join us for an hour of story time hosted in our Children's Section at Honeybee Books & Tea!

Our story selection is thoughtfully curated including Caldecott Honor books and Newberry Medal winners. Our staff brings excitement to reading through their storytelling, and all books that are read are available for purchase for you to bring the magic home. The readings can be curated by age group, offering an assortment of reading-level material.

For more information, visit our website or speak to an associate in-store.

Specializing in making the perfect burger or sandwich for you, The Mobile Meltdown has a variety of hand-cut, gourmet burgers and chicken sandwiches!

Kenise Barnes Fine Art is thrilled to announce our midsummer exhibition focused on three artists whose keen observation and connection to the natural world invites us to pause and appreciate.

Margot Glass focuses primarily on drawing, using various traditional methods and materials as a foundation for her work, including traditional silverpoint and 14k goldpoint, homemade organic inks and oil and acrylic painting with mixed mica using fine point crow quill pens in place of brushes.

Glass is inspired by the tradition of idealizing nature in art and design as ornament across cultures while seeking to observe and represent her subjects as accurately as possible in all their irregularity and imperfection.

Central to her work is the exploration of ephemeral, fragile subjects, focusing primarily on weeds or ‘waste plants’, and other plants generally considered to be undesirable, to recognize their beauty in all their imperfection and asymmetry. Her focus on these marginal plants is guided by the question of what we value, what we consider ‘belonging’ to mean, and to highlight the beauty of what is present in the disrupted landscape that we find ourselves in today.

Margot Glass grew up in New York City, and studied art at The Art Students' League, Brown University, Rhode Island School of Design, and Fashion Institute of Technology. Glass’s work has been widely exhibited in the United States and internationally. She is a recipient of a Massachusetts Cultural Council STARS Artist Residency; Lost and Found Lab Artist-in-Residence and an Oak Spring Garden Foundation Interdisciplinary Fellowship. Her work is in private and public collections including the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation at Carnegie Mellon, PA, Weatherspoon Art Museum, NC, Oak Spring Garden Foundation, VA, Fidelity Investments Corporate Art Collection, MA, Hotel Del Coronado Collection, CA, Allentown Art Museum, PA, Midwest Museum of American Art, Elkhart, IN, the Beth Rudin deWoody Collection, among others. She currently lives and works in Western Massachusetts.

Richard Klein has been copper plating organic objects for over three decades utilizing found objects that are intrinsically fragile and impermanent. The process allows Klein to encase natural objects in a thin coating of metallic copper, permanently preserving them. The alchemical transformation being both practical and poetic. 

In his most recent work, the artist juxtaposes electroplated natural findings with photo gravures of urban landscapes addressing our relationship with nature simultaneously reminding us that we are nature and that our detachment from nature is the source of much of the destruction to our planet. In particular, the artist’s interest in both fungi and copper hint at the convergence of natural and technological evolution: fungi, through their mycelium, connect virtually all terrestrial plant life, acting as natural communication networks; while copper is the material that the human-made electrical and digital networks depend on. 

Richard Klein is the former exhibitions director of The Aldrich of Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield, CT. His work has been shown widely in US and is in the public collections of Norton Family Collection, Santa Monica, CA, De Cordova Sculpture Park and Museum, Lincoln, MA, Connecticut Artists Collection, Hartford, CT and has been featured in The New Criterion, Two Coats of Paint, Hyperallergic, Art Forum, The Brooklyn Rail and Art New England to name a few. The artist lives and works in CT.

Francis Sills’s work is grounded in the perceptual-based, realist tradition. The artist works directly from observation in nature. In dealing with the intricacies and challenges of working from observation and the sustained experience of intense, visual scrutiny, the artist comes to understand and know his world. The flora series is an ongoing group of paintings utilizing the flowers and plants from the artist’s home garden. Sills recently been adding various shaped mirrors to the set ups, which both multiply the forms and fracture the space. Sills’ paintings are dense and subtle, revealing specific nuances of color, light, and form. Often, the underlying geometry and architecture of the composition are apparent in the application of paint, the artist’s analytic thinking about structure and his methodology still evident in the finished work.

Sills’s work has been exhibited throughout the United States, has been featured in publications such as Wall Street International Magazine, American Art Collector, The New York Times, I Like Your Work Podcast, and can be found in The Fine Art Program and Collection at Montefiore Einstein, New York, NY. Francis Sills earned his MFA at Parsons School of Design, New York, NY and BFA at Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY. The artist lives and works in South Carolina.

Please contact Lani Holloway, Associate Director, Lani@kbfa.com, 860 560 3085 with inquires or to arrange a preview of the exhibition.

Bismuth is a Boston-based artist known for her self-portrait photographs. Her work explores and challenges ideas surrounding identity and its fragile nature, politics and trans expression through a satirical and spontaneous approach. 

Recently, Bismuth has taken up oil painting as her primary medium, in which she creates numeric and interactive landscapes. 

Dismembered, showing at Peggy Mercury, will be her debut solo exhibit and will showcase her self-portrait images alongside painted works. Co-curated with James Boehmer and Gregory Fricke, the show will display Bismuth's current fascination with fragmentation and isolation, and so much more.

Peggy Mercury

Kent Barns

9 Maple Street, Unit 2

Kent, CT 06757

IG @itspeggymercury

For more information email us at hithere@peggymercury.com

Join the Junior Room staff at the Golden Falcon Field for snow cones and tons of fun activities!

Sip and Paint at Casa VALIJO Torrington CT

Join us for a vibrant afternoon of creativity and fun at Casa Valijo’s Sip & Paint on Saturday, August 30, 2025 from 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM!

Whether you’re a seasoned artist or just looking for a new experience, this event is perfect for anyone who enjoys great drinks, good company, and a splash of color.

• 🎟️ Tickets: $45 (available on Eventbrite)
• 🎨 Includes:
• One signature craft drink
• All painting supplies (canvas, brushes, paints)
• Step-by-step guidance from our art instructor
• 🪑 Limited seating — Reserve early!

📍 Casa Valijo | 131 Water St, Torrington, CT

📞 For questions, call 860-618-2706

Expect a lively, welcoming environment with music, cocktails, and laughs — plus you’ll leave with your very own painted masterpiece! Bring a friend or come solo and meet new people!

Join the Sherman Chamber Ensemble as the musicians "let their hair down" to bring you a hand-clapping, toe-tapping free Bluegrass concert.

Featuring The SCE Bluegrass Band, fiddler Paul Woodiel, plus special guests. Free Admission. Donation of $10 per person suggested. Tickets available at https://www.scemusic.org/ticketsandprograms

By the Gazebo at the Sherman Town Center, across from the Daily Market. Please park to the rear of the field.

Opening Reception. Friday, July 25 6-8 PM

7 Water ST, Torrington, CT

🎨✨ August Light: A Sherman Artists Exhibition @ Kent Art Association

🗓 August 8–30

🎉 Opening Reception: Friday, August 8 | 6–8 PM

Celebrate the glow of late summer at August Light, a stunning exhibition presented by Sherman Artists at the Kent Art Association. This show features an inspiring collection of artwork in all genres and mediums—from painting and photography to sculpture and fused glass.

Join us for the opening reception on August 8 to meet the artists, enjoy refreshments, and explore this vibrant showcase of creativity.

🖼️ See something you love? Take it home!

Purchasing a piece directly supports local artists and helps keep the creative spirit thriving in our community.

Free and open to the public. Come be inspired—and maybe leave with something beautiful.

Welcome back, fellow Spartans! Join us for an afternoon of reminiscing, catching up, and making new memories at the 10 Year Reunion of SVHS Class of 2015 at Housatonic River Brewing on Saturday, August 30th from 1-4pm. Don't miss out on this special event - mark your calendars and spread the word! We can't wait to see you there!

Kindly RSVP / purchase your ticket(s) by August 1, 2025.

A Community Tradition! Dine outside (weather permitting) on Slow roast Roast Beef, Local fresh picked corn, baked potato, cole slaw, bread, finished off by ice cream and homebaked cookies, and brownies. Bring your family and neighbors. If it rains, it will be inside.

Tickets at the door, Adults: $25, Seniors: $20, and children under 10:$5

All proceeds support the good work of the church.

DRIFTLINES, a dual exhibition featuring new works by painter Heather Neilson and photographer Babs Perkins, explores the meditative connections between memory, place, premonition, and afterthought. The two artists are local to the Northwest Corner of Connecticut with studios at Whiting Mills in Winsted. DRIFTLINES will be on display through Friday, September 12.

A reception for the artists will take place on Saturday, August 16, 5-7PM and an artist’s talk featuring the two artists in conversation is scheduled for Thursday, September 4 at 5:30PM. 

Saturday, August 30th, at 7:00 PM, 2nd Home welcomes back GypsySole (formerly Carm & St. George). Gypsysole is a guitar and vocals group consisting of Carmine Matrascia, Michael St. George, and Brian and Paul Buckles. They specialize in four-part harmony Americana. A unique blend of folk, rock, and a little country. We're looking forward to having them, and hope you'll join us to make them feel welcome.

For reservations (encouraged but not required) call 860-238-4500 or email us at momanddad@2ndhomelounge.com

See our complete event list - https://2ndhomelounge.com/events/

2nd Home Lounge

524 Main Street, Winsted

2ndhomelounge.com

Join our mailing list - https://2ndhomelounge.com/email-sign-up/

PAUL WINTER: BRAZILIAN JOURNEY

Tickets: $50-65, Under 19 Free

Musicmountain.org or 860-824-7126 for tickets and more information

New Milford's Concerts on the Green is a free music series held every Saturday evening at 7 p.m. during August.

Residents are invited to gather around our historic bandstand with blankets and lawn chairs. There's something for everyone, as the music ranges from blues to country to pop classics.

Go to artsnewmilfordct.org for more information.

Concert Line Up:

August 2nd - Nina Et cetera

August 9th - Ace & Friends

August 16th - The Afro-Semitic Experience

August 23rd - Mike Burns and Highway 53

August 30th - The Red Dirt Girls

*In the event of rain, concerts will be held at First Congregational Church, 36 Main Street, New Milford.

Join the Sherman Chamber Ensemble for Bartók’s World, the music of Béla Bartók and his influencers.

Inspired on one hand by the folk music of eastern Europe, and on the other by Strauss and Debussy, Bartok created his own unique style and is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century. The Piano Quintet, written when he was just 22, is richly scored with a virtuoso piano part and is a post-Romantic masterpiece.

• Suite Paysanne Hongrois for flute and piano (trans. Paul Arma)

• Piano Quintet, Sz 23 in C

Performing are Margaret Kampmeier (piano), Eliot Bailen (cello), Susan Rotholz (flute), Doori Na (violin) and Sarah Adams (viola).

Tickets $30. Children ages 16 and under free. As seating is limited, we recommend purchasing tickets in advance at https://www.scemusic.org/ticketsandprograms. Tickets available at the door, subject to availability.

ACCLAIMED MAGICIAN BELINDA SINCLAIR PERFORMS HER THEATRICAL MAGIC WITH CAPTIVATING SLEIGHT OF HAND, FUSING ALLEGORY WITH HISTORICAL STORIES ABOUT MAGIC IN THE HANDS OF WOMEN, AND HOW THEY CONVINCED US ALL THAT MAGIC WAS REAL AND THAT OUR POTENTIAL IS GREATER THAN WE THINK IT IS

Global artists have sent in their wildest images, film, music and poems for Personaland's online art show

Personaland is an artist-driven global village transforming the world of art by using technology to bridge time zones and cultural boundaries. Our mission is to promote humanity, creativity, and community through a mix of entertainment, enchantment, and imagination.

Since its 2018 launch, Personaland, in its global reach, has showcased over 800 visual artists, filmmakers, musicians, and poets from 68 countries in 32 group art shows and 55 individual exhibitions, many with videos of artist profiles.  https://www.personaland.com

The Merwinsville Hotel is excited to be continuing the Glass Orb Scavenger Hunt thanks to a generous donation from the New Milford Commission on the Arts.

There are 25 area historic sites and organizations that are participating with the Hotel. Each site is hiding four numbered and dated one-of-a-kind glass orbs (three clear and one colored) either inside or outside on their property. Participants can search for and keep any glass orb that they find, but please limit one orb per person/family so everyone has a chance! Be sure to register your orb on the Merwinsville Hotel website where you can also upload a photo. Share your find on social media and don't forget to tag the organization where you found it!

The blown glass orbs that are numbered, dated for 2025, and stamped with “MHR 50”. In addition to the clear glass orbs, there are 25 colored orbs for 2025. Reminder: Because each organization's hours vary, be sure to check their websites before you head out on your hunt.

PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS BY TOWN:

Bantam:

Bantam Cinema

Brookfield:

Brookfield Craft Center

Danbury:

Danbury Museum & Historical Society; Danbury Railway Museum

Gaylordsville - Celebrating its 300th Anniversary!

Browns Forge; Little Red Schoolhouse; Merwinsville Hotel Restoration, Inc.; The Washington Oak Park (DAR Roger Sherman Chapter)

Kent:

Connecticut Antique Machinery Association; Eric Sloane Museum; Kent Historical Society

Litchfield:

Litchfield Historical Society

New Fairfield:

New Fairfield Historical Society (at the Little Red Schoolhouse); Preserve New Fairfield

New Milford:

Gallery 25 & Creative Arts Studio; Harrybrooke Park; Merryall Center for the Arts; New Milford Historical Society; Pratt Nature Center; The Silo @ Hunt Hill Farm Trust; TheatreWorks; Village Center for the Arts

Sherman:

Sherman Historical Society

Washington:

Gunn Historical Museum

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We’ve turned our entryway into a mini art studio! Stop by anytime this month to participate in our community collage project. The theme of this month’s collage is “Summer” — the rest is up to you! Use our supplies or add your own. Participate once or multiple times. Just don’t forget to sign the guest book so we know which artists we have to thank for the final product!

The finished piece will be displayed at Off the Trail Cafe.

Goshen Community Care will host their annual Water Sale Fundraiser at the Goshen Fair beginning Saturday August 30 through Monday September 1. 

The Goshen Fair has supported Goshen Community Care’s longstanding mission to provide supportive care services to the members of the Goshen community by allowing GCC to be the exclusive seller of bottled water at the Goshen Fair each year.  All proceeds from this water sale will go directly to benefit Goshen Community Care programs and services

Bottles of water will be available for purchase for $3.00 each, or 4 bottles for $10.00. You can find water bottles for sale at Goshen Community Care’s booth, as well as through their partner vendors, the American Legion and Steak Tips and Tenders.

For more information about GCC Goshen Fair Water Sale or Goshen Community Care and its efforts, visit GoshenCommunityCare.org or call 860-491-4673.

The Judy Black Memorial Park and Gardens is pleased to present an art exhibition, “A Frayed Edge,” featuring the works of Stace Dillard. This show is on view beginning Friday, August 29.

An opening reception will be held at the park on Saturday, August 30 from 3 to 5 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.

Dillard’s collage work is composed of vibrant, abstract mixed-media compositions characterized by geometric structures, overlapping elements, and a layering of colors, patterns, and textures. 

This show will remain on view through Sunday, September 21. Check our social media for weekly open hours: @judyblackpark on Instagram and Facebook.

Online exhibition curated by Lani Ming Holloway with artwork by Maya Tihtiyas Attean, Laura Barr, Jordann McKenna, and Benoît Trimborn

exhibition dates:  August 1 – September 30, 2025, on www.kbfa.com

Stories told in light and silence

Poetry will make me violent

Violets outside our yard…

Why does the world have to be so hard?

Encompassing the hidden truths

 Of things unseen in what we view.

-       LMH

Kenise Barnes Fine Art is pleased to present the online exhibition Stories told in light and silence curated by Lani Ming Holloway featuring Maya Tihtiyas Attean, Laura Barr, Jordann McKenna, and Benoît Trimborn.

Maya Tihtiyas Attean is a Wabanaki artist raised on the Penobscot Reservation in Maine. Excerpted from her artist statement: “Through the lens of Wabanaki history and culture, my photographs intertwine forgotten truths within the landscape of what is now called Maine. My work explores the deep, complex relationships between the land, its people, and the lasting impact of colonization. The energy embedded in the landscape reverberates through my creations and reveals the scars left on both the earth and our bodies. My work invites contemplation on occupation and ownership, prompting reflection on who exploits the land and how systems of oppression have disrupted its balance.”

Maya’s work expresses the dichotomy the artist exists within, marrying mediums and different cultural techniques. “Does the Land Remember?” is an ongoing series photographing landscapes that hold the history of devastating events of colonization. The power of that residuum is felt in the images in a supernatural way, as the dualism of her lived experience is pronounced in the contrast of light and dark. Sunlight shimmers through the leaves as bright stars overhead look down upon the land, a fire burns. Maya’s work calls us to remember that nature feels the spirits.

Maya Tihtiyas Attean lives and works in Portland, Maine or Machigonne. She earned a BFA in Photography from Maine College of Art & Design, Portland. Her work is in the permanent collection of the Portland Museum of Art, Portland, ME and the Abbe Museum, Bar Harbor, ME.

Laura Barr’s work explores impermanence through oil paintings and oil pastel drawings on paper capturing passing moments in color, reflection on water, and light. Simplifying forms and illuminating the scale of special glimmers, her work considers the preservation of water and the protection of our environment. In Laura’s paintings in the exhibition, fireflies gleam in a starlit field and remind us that fireflies may not continue to glow on our planet, while a surfer catches the last evening wave the ocean offers, an Aurora Borealis dances in the night sky.

Laura Barr lives by the Thimble Islands in Branford, Connecticut. She earned her BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA and a BA in Fine Arts from Tufts University in Medford, MA and has studied at Tyler School of Art in Rome, Italy.

From Ithaca, NY, Jordann McKenna paints and photographs the quiet beauty in everyday life in work that contemplates mundanity and the softly fleeting feeling within light and shadows around her. In lushly applied oil paint, flames flicker and shadows play across the scene. Jordann’s work in this exhibition reflects the peaceful, ephemeral moods of interiors and intimate still lifes, either staged or spontaneous. Jordann McKenna works from photographs and from memory to create images that serve to process rather than recreate, expressing not only what is seen but what is felt, and celebrating the beauty in the ordinary.

Jordann McKenna earned a BS in Visual Arts from State University of New York at New Paltz, New Paltz, NY, and an MFA from Maine College of Art & Design in Portland, ME. She lives and works in Portland, ME.

Born in Strasbourg, France, and trained as an architect, Benoît Trimborn describes his work as “contemporary impressionism”. Viewing the world as an architect, Benoît’s large-scale oil paintings evoke what his artist statement calls the “morphology of the landscapes… like an architect, I see in it a breath, a light, a rhythm, which alone can constitute a principle of beauty. The elements represented compose atmospheres of which I try to faithfully convey the impression, as the musician faithfully follows the score. In this process, the contemplative attitude prevails, much more than the adventurous attitude. No message, no story should disturb the projection of the viewer...”

In Benoît’s meticulously painted large-scale landscapes, the absence of the figure instills a quietude in the story while light is the present form in all its magic. Reflections play like a musical score on the surface of the water and golden glimmers illuminate the forest and emanate from a sunset sky.

Benoît Trimborn’s work is in the permanent collection of Galerie Ariel Sibony in Paris, France, Absolute Art Gallery in Bruges, Belgium, and Galerie Bertrand Gillig in Strasbourg, France. He lives and works in Strasbourg, France.

Please contact Lani@kbfa.com, 860 560 3085 with inquiries.

Shipping is available worldwide throughout the exhibition.  

Join us in celebrating the incredible talent of photographers from near and far at this year’s EXPOSURES 2025 at Gallery 25 in the Historic Train Station from August 21-Sept 7!

We’re honored to showcase a stunning collection of photographs that capture moments, moods, and stories through the lens of truly gifted artists.

Opening Reception

Saturday, August 23

2–4 PM

Gallery 25 | 11 Railroad Street, Downtown New Milford

Come support local art, meet the photographers, and enjoy an inspiring afternoon surrounded by creativity. All are welcome! Bring your friends and family!

Let’s fill the gallery with community and appreciation for the power of photography. See you there!

Enjoy the works of

Photographer Sarah Blodgett & Basket Weaver Tina Puckett

About the Artists 

Sarah Blodgett

Sarah Blodgett is a photographer from the Hudson Valley in New York. Born in New York City, daughter of a professional advertising photographer, she bought her first camera at the age of ten and has been shooting ever since. A commercial & portrait photographer professionally since 1993, her passion now lies with creating images of wildlife and natural areas. Her primary focus is on birds as well as landscapes, seascapes, still lives and florals. She also offers speaking programs to accompany her work with a focus on ecology and preservation of the natural world around us.

 https://westernconnecticut.blogspot.com/2025/07/art-lovers-covered-bridge-woven-hand_30.html

Tina Puckett

American Master Weaver Tina Puckett is a self-taught Artist. who has been weaving since 1981. For over 40 years the woven arts have been evolving and each one is indescribably dynamic and colorful. The character of each piece is an expression of Tina's imagination and her sense of color that she applies to the weaving and structural form. Throughout Tina’s career she has exhibited her woven arts at museums, art galleries, libraries and art shows. Also, has been featured in magazines, books, newspapers, TV and on different platforms on the web.

Artist Statement

My woven pieces from baskets to wall sculptures, ceiling hangers, to furniture has evolved and is the way I define myself as an artist, and as a woman. I am fulfilling my dreams that started out with my imagination as a set designer. My creative path took a turn. It was not set design—but the woven arts with its many forms and functions where I found the passion for my life’s work.

The natural beauty of Bittersweet always sparks my imagination and is at the heart of the many pieces I weave. My imagination guides all that I do and it has become very attuned to the harmony of shapes, forms, and colors of the vines and reeds. I am also influenced by the beauty of our natural world and wonder how to weave it.

My palette for color is very much influenced by this experience of growing up in South America. I mix my own dyes and enjoy building a palette for the reeds that will shape textures and forms with color into a

​ one of a kind woven art!

Smoked meats and wine on the last “unofficial” weekend of summer? Sign me up!

Day of, from scratch, pit fresh, and smoked onsite, Que operation. F. Que BBQ, will be here at the vineyard serving a variety of BBQ meals for you to enjoy! **MENU TO COME SOON**

We didn’t forget the live music either! Mike Wilson will be performing 1-4pm!

Join us for this unforgettable end of summer bash with you favorite drinks in hand and a hot sizzling BBQ meal!

Bismuth is a Boston-based artist known for her self-portrait photographs. Her work explores and challenges ideas surrounding identity and its fragile nature, politics and trans expression through a satirical and spontaneous approach. 

Recently, Bismuth has taken up oil painting as her primary medium, in which she creates numeric and interactive landscapes. 

Dismembered, showing at Peggy Mercury, will be her debut solo exhibit and will showcase her self-portrait images alongside painted works. Co-curated with James Boehmer and Gregory Fricke, the show will display Bismuth's current fascination with fragmentation and isolation, and so much more.

Peggy Mercury

Kent Barns

9 Maple Street, Unit 2

Kent, CT 06757

IG @itspeggymercury

For more information email us at hithere@peggymercury.com

Kenise Barnes Fine Art is thrilled to announce our midsummer exhibition focused on three artists whose keen observation and connection to the natural world invites us to pause and appreciate.

Margot Glass focuses primarily on drawing, using various traditional methods and materials as a foundation for her work, including traditional silverpoint and 14k goldpoint, homemade organic inks and oil and acrylic painting with mixed mica using fine point crow quill pens in place of brushes.

Glass is inspired by the tradition of idealizing nature in art and design as ornament across cultures while seeking to observe and represent her subjects as accurately as possible in all their irregularity and imperfection.

Central to her work is the exploration of ephemeral, fragile subjects, focusing primarily on weeds or ‘waste plants’, and other plants generally considered to be undesirable, to recognize their beauty in all their imperfection and asymmetry. Her focus on these marginal plants is guided by the question of what we value, what we consider ‘belonging’ to mean, and to highlight the beauty of what is present in the disrupted landscape that we find ourselves in today.

Margot Glass grew up in New York City, and studied art at The Art Students' League, Brown University, Rhode Island School of Design, and Fashion Institute of Technology. Glass’s work has been widely exhibited in the United States and internationally. She is a recipient of a Massachusetts Cultural Council STARS Artist Residency; Lost and Found Lab Artist-in-Residence and an Oak Spring Garden Foundation Interdisciplinary Fellowship. Her work is in private and public collections including the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation at Carnegie Mellon, PA, Weatherspoon Art Museum, NC, Oak Spring Garden Foundation, VA, Fidelity Investments Corporate Art Collection, MA, Hotel Del Coronado Collection, CA, Allentown Art Museum, PA, Midwest Museum of American Art, Elkhart, IN, the Beth Rudin deWoody Collection, among others. She currently lives and works in Western Massachusetts.

Richard Klein has been copper plating organic objects for over three decades utilizing found objects that are intrinsically fragile and impermanent. The process allows Klein to encase natural objects in a thin coating of metallic copper, permanently preserving them. The alchemical transformation being both practical and poetic. 

In his most recent work, the artist juxtaposes electroplated natural findings with photo gravures of urban landscapes addressing our relationship with nature simultaneously reminding us that we are nature and that our detachment from nature is the source of much of the destruction to our planet. In particular, the artist’s interest in both fungi and copper hint at the convergence of natural and technological evolution: fungi, through their mycelium, connect virtually all terrestrial plant life, acting as natural communication networks; while copper is the material that the human-made electrical and digital networks depend on. 

Richard Klein is the former exhibitions director of The Aldrich of Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield, CT. His work has been shown widely in US and is in the public collections of Norton Family Collection, Santa Monica, CA, De Cordova Sculpture Park and Museum, Lincoln, MA, Connecticut Artists Collection, Hartford, CT and has been featured in The New Criterion, Two Coats of Paint, Hyperallergic, Art Forum, The Brooklyn Rail and Art New England to name a few. The artist lives and works in CT.

Francis Sills’s work is grounded in the perceptual-based, realist tradition. The artist works directly from observation in nature. In dealing with the intricacies and challenges of working from observation and the sustained experience of intense, visual scrutiny, the artist comes to understand and know his world. The flora series is an ongoing group of paintings utilizing the flowers and plants from the artist’s home garden. Sills recently been adding various shaped mirrors to the set ups, which both multiply the forms and fracture the space. Sills’ paintings are dense and subtle, revealing specific nuances of color, light, and form. Often, the underlying geometry and architecture of the composition are apparent in the application of paint, the artist’s analytic thinking about structure and his methodology still evident in the finished work.

Sills’s work has been exhibited throughout the United States, has been featured in publications such as Wall Street International Magazine, American Art Collector, The New York Times, I Like Your Work Podcast, and can be found in The Fine Art Program and Collection at Montefiore Einstein, New York, NY. Francis Sills earned his MFA at Parsons School of Design, New York, NY and BFA at Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY. The artist lives and works in South Carolina.

Please contact Lani Holloway, Associate Director, Lani@kbfa.com, 860 560 3085 with inquires or to arrange a preview of the exhibition.

Join the Sherman Chamber Ensemble as the musicians "let their hair down" to bring you a hand-clapping, toe-tapping free Bluegrass concert.

Featuring The SCE Bluegrass Band, fiddler Paul Woodiel, plus special guests. Free Admission. Donation of $10 per person suggested. Tickets available at https://www.scemusic.org/ticketsandprograms

Opening Reception. Friday, July 25 6-8 PM

7 Water ST, Torrington, CT

Visit 3 historic sites in Gaylordsville on Sundays in July and August. The Gaylord School (one room schoolhouse), Browns Forge and Merwinsville Hotel all welcome visitors from 2 pm to 4 pm each Sunday in July and August. Gaylord School is located on Gaylord Rd and the Forge and Hotel are on Browns Forge Rd. While exploring keep your eyes peeled for the elusive orbs hidden at these sites.

Gaylord School in Gaylordsville is open for visitors every Sunday in July and August from 2pm to 4pm. The one room schoolhouse is the longest running schoolhouse in Connecticut. It was opened in 1740 and was in use until 1967.

Historic 1842 railroad hotel open for tours every Sunday. See our newly restored ballroom, museum and gallery spaces, and period decorated rooms. Lovingly restored since the restoration began in 1971.

Jessie MONTGOMERY "Voodoo Dolls"

Mieczysław WEINBERG Capriccio, Opus 11

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN String Quartet in B Flat Major, Opus 18/6, "La Malinconia"

César FRANCK Piano Quintet in F Minor, Opus 14

Tickets: $30-65, Under 19 Free

Musicmountain.org or 860-824-7126 for tickets and more information

Come early for a free family concert at 2PM

Family Concert with the Ulysses Quartet: "Around the World"

Free 45-minute Event. Including brief engaging presentations, short performances, and Q&A. This program introduces young people to music from different parts of the world, exploring concepts of rhythm, harmony, style, and stringed instrument techniques. Listeners will enjoy selections from well-known composers, as well as rare discoveries! All Welcome. REGISTER TODAY. All attendees get free ice cream!

Join the Sherman Chamber Ensemble as the musicians "let their hair down" to bring you a hand-clapping, toe-tapping free Bluegrass concert.

Featuring The SCE Bluegrass Band, fiddler Paul Woodiel, plus special guests. Free Admission. Donation of $10 per person suggested. Tickets available at https://www.scemusic.org/ticketsandprograms

ACCLAIMED MAGICIAN BELINDA SINCLAIR PERFORMS HER THEATRICAL MAGIC WITH CAPTIVATING SLEIGHT OF HAND, FUSING ALLEGORY WITH HISTORICAL STORIES ABOUT MAGIC IN THE HANDS OF WOMEN, AND HOW THEY CONVINCED US ALL THAT MAGIC WAS REAL AND THAT OUR POTENTIAL IS GREATER THAN WE THINK IT IS

Global artists have sent in their wildest images, film, music and poems for Personaland's online art show

Personaland is an artist-driven global village transforming the world of art by using technology to bridge time zones and cultural boundaries. Our mission is to promote humanity, creativity, and community through a mix of entertainment, enchantment, and imagination.

Since its 2018 launch, Personaland, in its global reach, has showcased over 800 visual artists, filmmakers, musicians, and poets from 68 countries in 32 group art shows and 55 individual exhibitions, many with videos of artist profiles.  https://www.personaland.com

Goshen Community Care will host their annual Water Sale Fundraiser at the Goshen Fair beginning Saturday August 30 through Monday September 1. 

The Goshen Fair has supported Goshen Community Care’s longstanding mission to provide supportive care services to the members of the Goshen community by allowing GCC to be the exclusive seller of bottled water at the Goshen Fair each year.  All proceeds from this water sale will go directly to benefit Goshen Community Care programs and services

Bottles of water will be available for purchase for $3.00 each, or 4 bottles for $10.00. You can find water bottles for sale at Goshen Community Care’s booth, as well as through their partner vendors, the American Legion and Steak Tips and Tenders.

For more information about GCC Goshen Fair Water Sale or Goshen Community Care and its efforts, visit GoshenCommunityCare.org or call 860-491-4673.

EXHIBIT TO FEATURE THREE LOCAL ARTISTS

(New Preston, Connecticut) – The Smithy Café & Market is pleased to announce an art exhibit to be displayed September 1 to October 31, 2025, titled Perception and Perspective: Three Artists-Becky Butler, Sandra Daignault and Lucy C. Pierpont.

Join us for a collaboration of three women and their varying forms of artwork, style, and perspectives.

The three artists have painted together for several years using a variety of mediums.They have formed friendships and enjoy working together while sharing ideas and support.

Becky Butler founded the not-for-profit, Arts Escape in Southbury in 2012. Arts Escape’s mission was to focus on arts education for adults. After witnessing firsthand how art created camaraderie and joy with those who participated, it was time for Becky to do the same. She retired in 2022 to follow her own art journey. She has been taking painting classes in Abstract, Pastel and Acrylics for the past two years and is excited to keep learning and exploring new mediums. Her pastel, Tethered Beauty, was accepted into a National Pastel show and she also won Best in Show for mixed media in Roxbury’s Art at the Meeting House show in 2024 for Somewhere Out There. Becky lives in Woodbury, Connecticut with her husband Paul.

“I love working in pastels – the colors are limitless and immediate. My pastel paintings are primarily painted realistically. Breaking the barriers of painting realistically has been a challenge. My love for color has recently launched my exploration in creating abstract work. Using color and mark making intuitively is exciting and challenging as well as inspiring. During my exploration I found the medium of oil and cold wax. While having no expectations as to the outcome of my work, my eyes have opened to a whole new world of creativity. I love the freedom of experimentation and the joy of playing. I want my work to reflect my emotional insight into today’s world while uncovering the beauty that still exists,”  explains Becky.

Sandra Daignault, a Woodbury resident, was the Fine Arts Director at Arts Escape, Inc in Southbury, CT and teaches classes in acrylic painting. Her artwork has been shown in galleries and organizations across CT (Stamford, Litchfield, Washington, New Milford, Brookfield, Bantam, Ridgefield, West Hartford, Southbury, Rowayton, Newtown), as well as having a permanent piece at the US Headquarters of Jägermeister in Westchester County. In addition, she has published two books of poetry with illustrations and has recently published a climate change fiction novel. Visit her website at sdaignaultfineart.com.

“My painting process is all about creating an open mind and letting go. While I often do not have a predetermined subject I am always influenced by my fascination with our place in the universe. Letting go of preconceived forms allows for the mystery and essence that makes up everything around us. While my influences are abstract artists such as Richard Diebenkorn, contemporary Peter Wileman as well as English romantic artist (JW Turner) I strive to create from the words of favorite poets (Pablo Neruda, Wislawa Szymborska, Mary Oliver). It will please me if viewers respond with wonder and wanting( not knowing what),” states Sandra.

Woodbury resident, Lucy C. Pierpont has worked in the marketing/graphic design field ever since graduating from Hartwick College as an art major. She has created art her whole life and has had her photographs and paintings displayed in exhibits at the Mattatuck Museum, Majors Inn, Hartwick College, Oneonta Art Association, Kent Art Association, Washington Art Association, Burnham Library, Kent Memorial Library Art at the Meetinghouse, Ridgefield Art Walk, Flanders Nature Center and now, The Smithy. She currently works part-time with the Kent Memorial Library and the Washington Depot Office of Klemm Real Estate doing graphic design & public relations. Her artwork can be viewed at lucypierpont.carrd.co. Her graphic designs for the Kent Memorial Library have been the recipient of eight Connecticut Library Association Publicity Awards in recognition of design, marketing, and publicity created to promote a Library service or event.

“From my earliest recollections, art has always been in the forefront. I chose the graphic design route and spent my career in it. Now art embodies my life- through friends, work, play, and travel!” claims Lucy.

Please join us for a reception on Saturday, October 11 from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. For more information, please call the Smithy at (860) 868-9003 or go to their website at thesmithymarket.com.

10 Main Street New Preston CT 06777

#         #         #         #

caption: Heat by Lucy C. Pierpont, Parade by Sandra Daignault, and Opening Night by Becky Butler are a few of many paintings in an exhibit titled Perception and Perspective: Three Artists-Becky Butler, Sandra Daignault and Lucy C. Pierpont. The show will be on display from September 1 to October 31, 2025.

The Judy Black Memorial Park and Gardens is pleased to present an art exhibition, “A Frayed Edge,” featuring the works of Stace Dillard. This show is on view beginning Friday, August 29.

An opening reception will be held at the park on Saturday, August 30 from 3 to 5 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.

Dillard’s collage work is composed of vibrant, abstract mixed-media compositions characterized by geometric structures, overlapping elements, and a layering of colors, patterns, and textures. 

This show will remain on view through Sunday, September 21. Check our social media for weekly open hours: @judyblackpark on Instagram and Facebook.

The Gunn Memorial Library is pleased to present the captivating floral photography of Nina McKitty, on view in the Stairwell Gallery from August 9th to October 4th.

Drawing inspiration from nature, travel, and the artistic traditions of both East and West, Nina McKitty brings a joyful and thoughtful lens to her digital photography. Her work explores the delicate beauty of flowers—each image carefully composed, captured, and refined in her studio to evoke both surprise and delight in the viewer.

Originally gifted a digital camera by her husband, McKitty transformed a curiosity into a profound creative journey. Over the past 15 years, she has immersed herself in the art and craft of digital photography, studying under acclaimed artists and continuously evolving her techniques. Her photographs are printed and framed by hand using archival materials, merging technical precision with artistic expression.

A former nurse practitioner and consultant, McKitty turned to photography in retirement, channeling her lifelong passions for nature and visual storytelling into a rich new chapter as a digital artist. Since 2019, her work has been featured in numerous exhibitions, including shows at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Employee Gallery, Kent Art Association, and Washington Art Association.

Online exhibition curated by Lani Ming Holloway with artwork by Maya Tihtiyas Attean, Laura Barr, Jordann McKenna, and Benoît Trimborn

exhibition dates:  August 1 – September 30, 2025, on www.kbfa.com

Stories told in light and silence

Poetry will make me violent

Violets outside our yard…

Why does the world have to be so hard?

Encompassing the hidden truths

 Of things unseen in what we view.

-       LMH

Kenise Barnes Fine Art is pleased to present the online exhibition Stories told in light and silence curated by Lani Ming Holloway featuring Maya Tihtiyas Attean, Laura Barr, Jordann McKenna, and Benoît Trimborn.

Maya Tihtiyas Attean is a Wabanaki artist raised on the Penobscot Reservation in Maine. Excerpted from her artist statement: “Through the lens of Wabanaki history and culture, my photographs intertwine forgotten truths within the landscape of what is now called Maine. My work explores the deep, complex relationships between the land, its people, and the lasting impact of colonization. The energy embedded in the landscape reverberates through my creations and reveals the scars left on both the earth and our bodies. My work invites contemplation on occupation and ownership, prompting reflection on who exploits the land and how systems of oppression have disrupted its balance.”

Maya’s work expresses the dichotomy the artist exists within, marrying mediums and different cultural techniques. “Does the Land Remember?” is an ongoing series photographing landscapes that hold the history of devastating events of colonization. The power of that residuum is felt in the images in a supernatural way, as the dualism of her lived experience is pronounced in the contrast of light and dark. Sunlight shimmers through the leaves as bright stars overhead look down upon the land, a fire burns. Maya’s work calls us to remember that nature feels the spirits.

Maya Tihtiyas Attean lives and works in Portland, Maine or Machigonne. She earned a BFA in Photography from Maine College of Art & Design, Portland. Her work is in the permanent collection of the Portland Museum of Art, Portland, ME and the Abbe Museum, Bar Harbor, ME.

Laura Barr’s work explores impermanence through oil paintings and oil pastel drawings on paper capturing passing moments in color, reflection on water, and light. Simplifying forms and illuminating the scale of special glimmers, her work considers the preservation of water and the protection of our environment. In Laura’s paintings in the exhibition, fireflies gleam in a starlit field and remind us that fireflies may not continue to glow on our planet, while a surfer catches the last evening wave the ocean offers, an Aurora Borealis dances in the night sky.

Laura Barr lives by the Thimble Islands in Branford, Connecticut. She earned her BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA and a BA in Fine Arts from Tufts University in Medford, MA and has studied at Tyler School of Art in Rome, Italy.

From Ithaca, NY, Jordann McKenna paints and photographs the quiet beauty in everyday life in work that contemplates mundanity and the softly fleeting feeling within light and shadows around her. In lushly applied oil paint, flames flicker and shadows play across the scene. Jordann’s work in this exhibition reflects the peaceful, ephemeral moods of interiors and intimate still lifes, either staged or spontaneous. Jordann McKenna works from photographs and from memory to create images that serve to process rather than recreate, expressing not only what is seen but what is felt, and celebrating the beauty in the ordinary.

Jordann McKenna earned a BS in Visual Arts from State University of New York at New Paltz, New Paltz, NY, and an MFA from Maine College of Art & Design in Portland, ME. She lives and works in Portland, ME.

Born in Strasbourg, France, and trained as an architect, Benoît Trimborn describes his work as “contemporary impressionism”. Viewing the world as an architect, Benoît’s large-scale oil paintings evoke what his artist statement calls the “morphology of the landscapes… like an architect, I see in it a breath, a light, a rhythm, which alone can constitute a principle of beauty. The elements represented compose atmospheres of which I try to faithfully convey the impression, as the musician faithfully follows the score. In this process, the contemplative attitude prevails, much more than the adventurous attitude. No message, no story should disturb the projection of the viewer...”

In Benoît’s meticulously painted large-scale landscapes, the absence of the figure instills a quietude in the story while light is the present form in all its magic. Reflections play like a musical score on the surface of the water and golden glimmers illuminate the forest and emanate from a sunset sky.

Benoît Trimborn’s work is in the permanent collection of Galerie Ariel Sibony in Paris, France, Absolute Art Gallery in Bruges, Belgium, and Galerie Bertrand Gillig in Strasbourg, France. He lives and works in Strasbourg, France.

Please contact Lani@kbfa.com, 860 560 3085 with inquiries.

Shipping is available worldwide throughout the exhibition.  

Global artists have sent in their wildest images, film, music and poems for Personaland's online art show

Personaland is an artist-driven global village transforming the world of art by using technology to bridge time zones and cultural boundaries. Our mission is to promote humanity, creativity, and community through a mix of entertainment, enchantment, and imagination.

Since its 2018 launch, Personaland, in its global reach, has showcased over 800 visual artists, filmmakers, musicians, and poets from 68 countries in 32 group art shows and 55 individual exhibitions, many with videos of artist profiles.  https://www.personaland.com