Category: Connecticut Travel

This August, from the 7 – 9, the Litchfield Jazz Festival turns twenty! The fest has something for everyone-great music, affordable prices, free parking, excellent food and drink, and free admission and entertainment for kids 12 and under. Fine arts and crafts shopping adds to the fun. Featured top-draw performers include Anat Cohen, Christian McBride, Wycliffe Gordon, Mike Stern, Sean Jones, Bucky Pizzarelli and many more.

Opening night begins with a Litchfield tradition, the Friends of the Festival Party to support Litchfield Jazz Camp scholarships. The Litchfield Fest is supported by the State of Connecticut DECD, National Endowment For The Arts the Les Paul Foundation, Crystal Rock, DownBeat, Telefunken Elektroakustik, and others.

Tickets can be purchased on line at www.litchfieldjazzfest.com. Group rates available. For more information call (860) 361-6285.

For area event information visit www.litchfieldhills.com

‘3-D’ movies were a fad in the 1950s and have made a comeback in recent years. You could call it a “blast from the past.”
But “3-D” fireworks? Seeing is believing when Independence Day fireworks light up the sky in “3-D” over Lake Quassapaug for the 13th consecutive year at Quassy Amusement & Waterpark here. Special “3-D” fireworks viewing glasses will be sold for $1 on July 4th at Quassy to benefit Healthy Eyes Alliance. The glasses will be on sale starting in the afternoon until they are sold out.

The park will again shoot its 10:15 p.m. fireworks display from barges anchored offshore so everyone attending the park that evening will be able to enjoy them. Sponsoring the event are: Pepsi-Cola of Bristol, Price Chopper, Premier Subaru/Volvo of Watertown, and Quassy. Media sponsors are Voices newspaper and WTNH Channel 8. Parking on July 4th is $8 at Quassy with the park opening at 11 a.m. Quassy Beach and Splash Away Bay waterpark will operate until 7 p.m. with the remainder of the park staying open until after the evening fireworks.

107th Year

Quassy Amusement Park is in its 107th year and features more than two-dozen rides and attractions including FRANTIC, a new spectacular thrill ride. The lakeside property is also home to Splash Away Bay waterpark. Quassy also features a new laser maze attraction in its huge arcade building. Rides include the award-winning Wooden Warrior roller coaster, Music Fest, Yo-Yo super swings, Free Fall ‘N’ Drop Tower, Grand Carousel and more.

The park also has a restaurant, redemption arcade, games, live entertainment and special events. Season passes are on sale now at the park office and through the Quassy Web site at www.quassy.com. Company picnics, school fieldtrips and other catered events are also being scheduled through the park office at 203-758-2913. Quassy is located at 2132 Middlebury Road, Route 64, in Middlebury, Conn., on the shores of Lake Quassapaug. For more information visit http://www.quassy.com or call 1-800-FOR-PARK.

For area information www.litchfieldhills.com

Kent has had a long history of being home to a number of camps. The town’s close proximity to New York City, coupled with its natural beauty, made Kent an attractive home to more than a dozen different camps over the years. There are residential camps still thriving in Kent that draw campers and parents to town each summer season.

To celebrate the long history of camping in Kent, the Kent Historical Society will offer a new exhibit “The Camps of Kent: Memories of Summer” at the Seven Hearths Museum. The exhibit is open weekends 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Sept. 27. The Seven Hearths Museum, is located on 4 Studio Hill Road just off of Rte. 7 in Kent.

Camp Po-Ne-Ma, Camp Francis, Camp Kenwood/Kenmont, Camp Leonard/Leonore (now Club Getaway), Camp Kent, Kenico, Geer Mountain Camp, Camp Milford, and others have all been located in Kent’s hills and on its lakes. So many most joyful memories took place right here in Kent, and yet the story and setting of these much-loved places has never been told.

The town is still home to three state parks, two of which offer overnight camping. The phenomenon of exploring the outdoors through camping didn’t come into existence until the early 20th century. The idea grew in popularity with every passing decade and became more widespread and democratic.

Curator Marge Smith and Trustee Melissa Cherniske have worked hard in recent months to create an exhibit that will explore the many facets of camping.
Several of the camp alumni associations are planning reunions around the exhibit this summer and the Historical Society looks forward to welcoming the former campers back to town.

The Kent Historical Society’s mission is to collect, preserve, interpret and present the rich history of Kent as well as to provide educational and research material to enrich the public understanding of Kent’s artistic and cultural heritage. For more information, see www.kenthistoricalsociety.org or call 860-927-4587.

For information on the Litchfield Hills www.litchfieldhills.com

Plein Air Revisited: A Study in Diverse Observations showcases 14 different artists’ paintings in a summer-long exhibition in The Perkin Gallery at Pequot Library that runs through August 28, 2015 during normal library hours (closed Sundays).

En plein air is a French expression which means “in the open air” and is particularly used to describe the act of painting outdoors. Exhibiting artists include: Britt Bair – Darien, Helene Brier – (Deceased) Fairfield, Frank Bruckmann – New Haven, Leslie Concannon – NYC, Wilton, David Allen Dunlop – Wilton, Katrina Franzen – Fairfield, Dana Goodfellow – Darien, Fran Henry Meehan – Southport, Judith Orsatz Katz – Westport, Missy Savard – Fairfield, Rebecca F. Stock – NYC, Wilton, Jane Sutherland – Fairfield, Diane Weeks – Darien, Jarvis Wilcox – NYC, Easthampton, NY and Southport.

The exhibition is curated by Nancy McTague-Stock BFA, MFA. Ms. McTague-Stock says, “In this exhibition I present a diverse group of Connecticut artists, both in age and in methodology. The face of plein air is evolving and this exhibition seeks to introduce the viewer to these current observations.”
There will be a “Meet the Curator Coffee” from 11am – 12pm on July 15th. Nancy McTague-Stock BFA, MFA will walk and talk through the gallery to discuss the paintings, the artists and how the work was chosen.

Please visit www.pequotlibrary.org to learn more about this vibrant library, educational, arts and cultural institution. All classes and programs are open to everyone. For information: (203) 259-0346 ext. 15.

For area event information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com

Litchfield’s “Art Night Out” returns Thursday, July 2nd, on the Town Green in Litchfield, CT from 5:00 – 8:00pm. The stores on the Green will be transformed into “Art Spaces” featuring artist lectures, live painting, and art openings. Merchants will remain open until 8:00 pm, hosting receptions for all of the featured artists. Bring your family and friends for a stroll along West Street, viewing some of the best of our local talent, with live music and refreshments along the way. The summer series will continue with “Music Night Out” on July 30th and conclude with “Fashion Night Out” on August 27th.

ART

Andrea S. Keogh Art & Design will be hosting an exhibition entitled “Sea/Shore” featuring the worksofJamesButterworth,GeorgeNoyes&FairfieldPorter. JeffreyTillouAntiqueswillbe featuring he works of Winfred Rembert. P.S. Gallery presents a preview show of “Water, Skies & Field” featuring new works from Anda Styler. Serendipity Gallery will be hosting a lecture from featured artist Anna Mastropolo. R. Derwin Clothiers Ladies and Men’s stores will be hosting artist receptions for Joan Morosani and Michael Quadland.

MUSIC

The Collette Hurst Quartet will be performing Jazz standards from 5:30-7:30 pm outside the West St. Grill. Soliel will be performing Rock n’ Roll renditions in Cobble Court from 6:00-8:00. Barbed Wire will be performing Folk/Country covers inside @ the Corner’s bar from 8:00-11:00.

WINE TASTING

Casa Bacchus will be hosting an organic wine tasting from select regions around the world.

OPENINGS & ACTIVITIES
Grand Opening celebration of R. Derwin Clothiers Men’s new store location at 33 West St., serving Litchfield County crafted cocktails prepared with Krofters Gin & Bourbon Whiskey. Kitchenworks will be hosting the “The Art of Entertaining”: creative ideas for outdoor tablescapes, featuring floral arrangements by Sara Worden Natural Design. The Litchfield Historical Society invites our youngest attendees to join them at 7 West St, to participate in creating a community mural.

https://www.facebook.com/LitchfieldsNightOut

The City of Norwalk Parking Authority’s Maritime Garage Gallery presents “Boom,” a new exhibit at the Maritime Gallery, through July 31, 2015.

“Boom” will showcase art that looks at prosperity and the overindulgences that have become the norm in a group show of artists that includes Ben Quesnel from Stamford, Ruth Kalla Ungerer from Westport and Sue Benton from Stratford, Sue Benton from Stratford, as well as Charmaine Rawsthorne and Michael Thron, of Norwalk, among others.
Maritime Garage Gallery Curator Sooo-z Mastropieto describes the concepts that fuel the art in the exhibit. “Eat. Sleep. Work. Spend. BOOM explores lofty aspirations and striving for goals, while making our mark in the world. It questions, how much is enough and are we ever happy once those endeavors are met?”

The Maritime Garage Gallery is part of the Parking Authority’s “Art in Parking Places” initiative, an effort to support art in public spaces making Norwalk a more vibrant destination. The gallery is located at 11 North Water Street in South Norwalk in the Maritime Garage. It is free and open to the public from 9:00am -5:00pm Monday through Friday. For more information, call 203- 831-9063, or visit www.norwalkpark.org/public-art.

For area information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com