Category: Connecticut Travel

Carol Peck’s Good News Restaurant and Bar​ located on 694 Main Street South in Woodbury has announced a ​new show, on display through August 14,“A Retrospective Journey of Sebastian DiStefano’s Art” that is an exhibition of the work of the late Sebastian DiStefano’s, a Waterbury native.

Mr. DiStefano spent his life painting abstract and non-objective art, a medium where he felt most comfortable. Color and balance were two focal areas for him. He was inspired by the Abstract Expressionists and Color Field artists but also moved by the Baroque painters. The incorporation of light and dark contrasts can be found weaved into his works; and, as he painted, he continually turned his pieces around to seek balance. Even in the pieces that appear unbalanced, balance is found. This allows many of his works to be viewed from different perspectives, even though he had seen it in one particular orientation and allowing any owner of his works to hang these pieces from their own perspective.
In reflection of the late Sebastian DiStefano’s life and art, the family is showing a broad selection of Sebastian DiStefano’s work from the 1960’s to the present included watercolors, oil on Masonite, and acrylics which depict how he explored color, line, and composition. In being the product of five decades, these paintings depict a full expression of the emotional experiences of his life. As in the words of Mr. DiStefano, “I love the elements of painting; it sets my mind in motion where I am seeking the balance even if the piece ends up unbalanced. I don’t speak for my paintings they speak for me.”

Sebastian DiStefano’s paintings will be on display at Carole Peck’s Good News Restaurant & Bar​ located on 694 Main Street South in Woodbury from June 14th, 2017 – August 14th, 2017. An opening reception will be held on June 18th, 2017. The reception is free to the public. The Good News Restaurant & Bar is open from 11:30am to 10pm daily
Closed Tuesday and open from 12Noon to 10pm Sundays.

​

Once again this summer, Jones Family Farms located on 606 Walnut Tree Hill Road in Shelton is offering a series of summer garden cooking classes that begin on July 20 and run through August 24. The classes focus on farm fresh ingredients that are grown in the farm garden and highlight the preparation of easy, fresh-picked, healthy meals.

At the Kitchen Classroom, participants help the farm chef prepare the seasonal fruits and vegetables which are used in the evening’s recipes. Each summer class includes a “Harvest Tour” of the Kitchen Garden (weather permitting). The evening concludes with a relaxed sit-down supper accompanied by a glass of Jones wine, and an in-season fruit dessert prepared by their kitchen team. Eating together is their favorite way to honor and celebrate farmers and your time on the farm!

The Summer Series begins on July 20 with a Greek Inspired Idyll that includes a menu of Chickpea patties with tzaziki sauce, sautéed zucchini, Greek salad, and a yogurt parfait with honey strawberry sauce. The next class is just in time for prime berry season and is called You Can’t Beat Blueberries! The menu of this class held on July 27 will include: Frittatas with ricotta & blueberry chutney, shaved beets with orange, green salad with seasonal fruit & blueberry vinaigrette, and end with a scrumptious summer blueberry pie.

Jones Family Farms is offering three cooking classes in August. The first, on August 10 is called the “New” All American Cookout and will include: Black bean burger with homemade summer salsa, green bean & potato salad, roasted sweet corn, fresh coleslaw, and Elisabeth Jones’ double good blueberry pie. Get ready to head to the southwest on August 17 when the class will feature a Santa Fe Fiesta. This menu includes: Corn soup with adobo swirl, Santa Fe enchiladas with red & green chili salsa, southwest salad, and ground cherry squares. The final summer class takes place on August 24 and the theme is a Provencal Picnic that includes the following items on the menu: Ratatouille tart, French potato salad, herb salad with artichoke hearts, fresh garden carrots, and an artesian cheese plate.

The cost for each class is $70/person and all classes taught on Thursdays, 6:30-8:30pm. To sign up for a monthly newsletter on things to do and see, special events and travel tips in Litchfield Hills and Fairfield County visit www.litchfieldhills.com or www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com

The Litchfield Historical Society opens its 2017 special exhibit, America’s Pastimes: Sports and Recreation in Litchfield that runs through November 26. Swing a bat with the Tri-State Champion Cowboys. Race your way through the Litchfield Hills. Splash around in Bantam Lake. Ride a high wheel to the town green. Score a basket in the school gym. Play cricket with the students of the Law School.

Sports and recreation are universal experiences. Whether we make it to the big leagues or never leave our backyards, these activities play important roles in our lives. They promote health and wellness as well as leisure and relaxation. They teach us about competition, but also about working together. They help build teams and form lasting relationships. Above all else, they encourage us to move, to think, and to interact.

On April 16, 2016 the Litchfield Historical Society will open to the public its latest exhibition, America’s Pastimes: Sports and Recreation in Litchfield. The exhibit highlights the role of sports and recreation in town from its founding to today, showcasing the stories and experiences of Litchfield residents, players, coaches, fans, and enthusiasts. To communicate the active nature of this history, the exhibit groups together sports, games, and leisure activities of both past and present based on the actions they entail, from swinging a tennis racket to playing a game of chess. The exhibit incorporates several hands-on interactives for visitors to enjoy.

If you love gardens, history and crafts, the 26th annual Hidden Garden Tour scheduled for June 11 from 11 am – 4 pm organized by the Westport Historical Society should be on your bucket list of events to attend this summer. Tour-goers will have a very special opportunity to experience six spectacular, not-to-be-missed gardens in Westport, Southport and Easton. Each garden has been carefully selected in honor of this tour and one garden, a favorite of past tours is being showcased again so tour – goers can see how it has grown and evolved.

Exceptional sights to see include: a property inspired by the gardens of Monet in Giverny, France; a seven-acre estate with a pool and pool house adorned with parterres of pale pink Bonica roses edged in English boxwood; a garden belonging to a Master Gardener which is entered through a honeysuckle-covered arbor; a cottage garden with cast iron ornaments, walls, evergreens and dried grasses; a property set behind the Aspetuck Land Trust with an English Garden with a fountain and several garden areas; and a property with a pool and new Bluestone patio with tulips, lilacs and climbing roses.

To round out the fun, on the day of the tour, there will also be a Garden Market on the WHS Wheeler House lawn from 9am to 5pm. Admission to the Garden Market is free and will feature a variety of local artists offering items such as lavender filled silk pillows, meditation pillows, jewelry, necklace charms, as well as linen tabletop accessories. There will also be vendors selling antique prints and vintage silver, crystal and glass items.

Tickets are $50 for members and $60 for non-members in advance, $75 day of Tour. All proceeds benefit the educational and cultural programs of WHS. Hidden Garden Tour tickets and directions will be available for pick-up at Westport Historical Society on Tour Day starting at 10am. Tickets are available online.

The Oliver Wolcott Library located on 160 South Street just outside the center of Litchfield in the historic district is hosting an art show through June 29 featuring the work of Carol Moore, a lifelong resident of Litchfield, currently residing in Bantam.

Moore is well-know in the area for her colorful, energy-charged paintings and pottery. Carol has always been drawn to the negative spaces apparent in industrial sites and street scenes and her paintings reflect this keen interest. Plein air (painting on location) landscapes and florals are also a favorite in pastel, oil, acrylic, and watercolor mixed media. Her membership to the Renaissance Artists has lead to a series of figure drawings in ink with intriguing backgrounds that can be seen at her studio in Bantam.

Travel is a way of painting new, exciting places which adds to her many collections. Carol paints her way through life creating memories of her many trips. She also creates one-of-a-kind pottery planters, wall decorations, wall sconces, and functional pieces at her home studio and teaches weekly classes in pottery and painting there.

Carol has received numerous awards and prizes and her works are displayed in collections throughout the United States. She has a MA from Wesleyan University and attended the University of Hartford Graduate Studies Art Program, as well as the University of Connecticut and Northwestern Connecticut Community College. She is a member of many art societies, including Artwell, Inc., Washington Art Association, Kent Art Association, The Rogues, and the Connecticut Pastel Society.

​On Wednesday, June 14th at 10am, Schwenke Auctioneers​ presents a main gallery live auction of over 830 lots of estate property from several estates and consignors. The auction includes American country and formal furniture and decorations, American folk art, English and Continental furniture and decorative arts, Asian porcelain and decorative arts, English & other sterling silver, Native American arts, erotica, jewelry, fine art, miscellaneous decorative arts, and a large group of estate oriental rugs. Estate material includes items from estates in New Haven, Guilford, Southbury, Woodbury, Westport, New Fairfield, Bloomfield, Hartford, New Canaan and Fairfield, Connecticut.

The sale is being held at the firm’s auction hall at Middle Quarter Plaza in Woodbury. Preview times are Sunday, June 11th from noon to 5pm; Monday, June 12th and Tuesday, June 13th from 10am – 5pm, and Wednesday, June 14th from 9am to sale time.
One of the most unique American silver lots ever offered by the firm is The Charles Hayden Memorial Trophy, weight 95.75 ozt and made by Gorham Manufacturing Company, which was awarded each year (except the war years 1942-48) from 1940 to 1969 to the winner of an annual golf outing sponsored by Hayden, Stone & Co. for the Chief Executive Officers of the most prominent investment banking firms of that period.

The Trophy was displayed in a glass display case in the entry hall of Hayden, Stone’s executive offices at 25 Broad Street, near Wall Street in New York City, where the consignor was an Executive Vice President, member of the Board of Directors, member of the Executive Board of Eight, and Chairman of the Finance Committee.

One can follow the golfing lives of many CEOs of the well-known great firms of that time, as documented by the yearly winners of the tournament which were annually engraved on the Trophy. When the space on the main trophy was exhausted, a sterling bound wooden extension base was made to accommodate additional winning entries, and the trophy was then mounted on that base. Most of the firms whose names appear on the trophy have been merged into successor organizations and other large banks.
Fine American furniture is included in the sale, notable among those offerings is a fine New York carved mahogany breakfast table, attributed to the shop of Duncan Phyfe, with cloverleaf drop leaf top with reeded edge, one working drawer, acanthus carved central column and four acanthus carved and reeded legs ending in brass paw casters. The table measures 28 1/2″ high, 36″ long, 24 1/2″ wide, 46″ wide open and carries provenance from a Connecticut collector.

American country furniture and folk art abound, including a fine American red painted early pewter cupboard, having two shelves and plate rail over two cupboard doors below, measuring 67 1/2″ high, 54 1/2″ wide, 17 1/2″ deep with provenance from a Danbury, Connecticut estate. Folk art items include a fine folk art carved powder horn, a Mahantongo Valley paint decorated Sheraton chest, several early hooked rugs including an unusual example depicting aloe and cactus plants, measuring 53″ long, 24 1/2″ wide, many early trade signs, and a gilded patinated copper fish weathervane standing 12 1/2″ high, 26 1/2″ long.

A substantial number of fine English and Continental decorative arts items and furniture are being sold, including a fine George III carved mahogany three tier dumbwaiter, a pair of inlaid George III knife boxes, an early William & Mary walnut veneered chest of drawers, an extremely rare George III inlaid mahogany bird cage, and a fine pair of Queen Anne walnut veneer balloon seat side chairs with the crests and splats with burled walnut veneers, the front cabriole legs with carved leaves and rosette returns ending in ball and claw feet, the slip seats now covered in silk damask, and measuring 38″ high, 21″ wide, 18″ deep. The lot includes the original bill of sale from Frank Partridge, London, and carries provenance of a New York City estate.

From a Fairfield County collector the sale features an early William & Mary walnut drop front secretaire, several pairs of French period arm chairs including a pair of transitional gilt Louis XVI fauteuils, French provincial fruitwood armoire, and a fine George III satinwood console table with inlaid swags and bellflowers, measuring 32 1/2″ high, 56″ wide, 21″ deep.
The sale also features a large number of fine arts items, including Polish artworks most notably a female nude portrait by Miecislaw Reyzner, (Poland, 1861-1941) oil on canvas, signed upper right, measuring 26 3/4″ high, 21 1/4″ wide, consigned by a local Woodbury, Connecticut estate.

American art includes a parian bust of Abraham Lincoln, worked by Martin Milmore, (American, 1844-1883), signed in casting verso “M. Milmore Sculptor”, and measuring 14 1/2″ high, 6 3/4″ wide. A paining of unique local interest is a work by William H. Wordler, “Sunset At Quassapaug Lake, Middlebury, Conn.” oil on panel, initialed, dated ” ’77” lower left, with a paper label verso, measuring 11 1/4″ high, 12 3/4″ wide.

The diversity of the sale is illustrated by a group of mid-century modern lots, including a LeCorbusier type chrome and upholstered armchair from a New York City estate, a modernist brass and marble coffee table, an Arco marble and chrome “arc” form floor lamp, a pair of modern chrome “Z” stools, a fine pair of modernist chrome double arm counter-balance lamps, and a modernist six light brass chandelier, possibly Stuart Barnes for Robert Lamp, measuring 29″ high, 22 1/2″ diameter. Modern art includes a rare size Yacoub Agam, framed seriagraph, numbered, signed in pencil “42/54″, sized 33″ high, 75” wide, with provenance from a Hartford, Connecticut collector. Finally, the modern era lots include an Andy Warhol watercolor of Marilyn Monroe, (American, 1928-1987), on paper, signed lower right “Andy Warhol”. Verso two estate stamps, indistinct pencil notation “VF231.69? Molly Barnes Gallery Label – 631 North La Cienega Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90069″, the sheet size 12 5/8″ high, 8 1/2″ wide.

An interesting jewelry lot is a 14K gold jeweled cross pendant, on a chain and mounted with 6 oval faceted dark blue sapphires weight approximately .25 carat each, and 19 faceted red rubies, weight approximately .03 carats each, total sapphire weight approximately 1.5 carats, total ruby ruby weight approximately .57 carats, gross weight 1dwt. 1 1/4″ high, 1” wide, being sold for a Rhode Island collector.

This sale also will feature a large selection of over 50 estate oriental carpets including Persian and Caucasian room and scatter sized rugs, including a very fine and brilliantly colored geometric antique Shirvan Chi Chi rug, measuring 5′ long, 7’ wide.

The catalog for the sale is viewable at http://www.woodburyauction.com​. Absentee and phone bidding are available for this live gallery auction by registering directly with Schwenke Auctioneers, and the sale will be broadcast live on Live Auctioneers, Invaluable and Auction Zip. To register or arrange for absentee or phone bidding, please call Schwenke Auctioneers at 203-266-0323.

​