Category: Connecticut Travel

Immigrants now comprise approximately 13 percent of the total U.S. population (41.3 million), of which over a fourth are undocumented (11.4 million) and close to a fifth live in poverty. Despite numerous roadblocks, many in the United States have called for an overhaul of the immigration system, seeing it as a necessary and crucial step in the development of a more humane and just American society. Yet many others still fail to acknowledge immigrant hardships or to empathize with their conditions, prompting individuals, such as community activists and artists like those in Acting on Dreams, to attempt to fill the enormous gaps in immigration services and knowledge.

With a recent surge in border crossings on the one hand, and stalled legislation in Congress and increased deportations on the other—the work of community and grassroots groups to raise awareness and ease immigrant living conditions has become more essential. The works included in this exhibition chronicle several efforts of immigrants and their advocates, while drawing connections between various communities and concerns within this highly complex issue. The artists apply their creative skills to further compassionate and respectful policies, and strive to communicate the immigrant experience in the United States—the frequent sense of isolation and uncertainty, but also courageousness, pride, and anticipation.

The projects presented in Acting On Dreams include installation, sculpture, and video. Together, these artists present informed perspectives on U.S. immigration today via strategies such as research, storytelling and activism. Acting on Dreams explores the work of artists who use creative, often process-oriented, strategies and community collaborations to advocate for authorized and undocumented immigrants and propose innovative alternatives to immigration reform.

Exhibiting artists are: Andrea Bowers, CultureStrike & JustSeeds, Chitra Ganesh and Mariam Ghani, Ghana ThinkTank, Marisa Morán Jahn (Studio REV-) in collaboration with National Domestic Workers Alliance and Caring Across Generations, Jenny Polak, QUEEROCRACY in collaboration with Carlos Motta, and Favianna Rodriguez.

The gallery, located on 41 Franklin Street in Stamford is closed Monday and Tuesday and is open Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday: noon – 5:00PM Thursdays: noon – 7:00PM.

For more information http://www.franklinstreetworks.org
For area information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com

Families can escape the heat this summer at the Stamford Museum & Nature Center’s new exhibition – Nature’s Numbers. This cool, colorful, and interactive exhibition, developed and produced by the Franklin Institute, stimulates numerical thinking, builds math skills, and promotes a positive attitude towards math through play with math concepts in nature. Four themes: Repeating Patterns, Basic Shapes and Structures, Designs in Nature, and Nature’s Puzzles make it fun to learn about math in the natural world.

Concept-driven content is designed to introduce, explain, or reinforce concepts and skills for visitors from preschool through middle school. Games, puzzles, and live animals make it fun for everyone. Exhibits from the Natural History Collections of the Stamford Museum & Nature Center will reinforce math skills including counting, ordering, patterning, measurements, and classification. Insects, reptiles, birds, plants, shells, crystals, and fossils illustrate the amazing role math plays in nature.

The Stamford Museum Galleries are open, Monday – Saturday 9 am – 5 pm; Sundays 11 am – 5 pm. Members: Free /Non-Members: Free with gate admission. For more information visit www.stamfordmuseum.org or call 203.977.6521.

Related Programming:
NATURE IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE NUMBER…
Thursdays, June 25 – August 20, 3:30 – 4:30 pm
Discover the wondrous ways that numbers play a role in nature. Each week we will focus on a different number and will include live animal visits, field experiences, or hikes to explore a natural numeral. Six will introduce us to the world of the insect and the bee’s honeycomb, eight to the world of spiders and arachnids, 21 to fabulous flowers and more. Meet at the Museum Building.
Members: FREE | Non-Members: FREE with gate admission

PATTERNS & FORMS: NUMBERS IN NATURE
Sunday, August 2, 11 am – 3 pm
Join us for a special celebration of the summer exhibition, Nature’s Numbers, with a look at the patterns and sequences of numbers in nature. Explore the spirals in seeds and shells, discover the family tree of our honeybees with an “open hive” (weather permitting), and take a closer look at our favorite fruits and veggies to see their patterns. Discover the Fibonacci sequence in nature and learn about the animals that he studied by meeting our rabbits and cows. Plant seeds to take home, create great Fibonacci-inspired art, and learn about this special numbers pattern through some Fibonacci hopscotch. A schedule of events will be posted at stamfordmuseum.org closer to the event.
Members: FREE | Non-Members: FREE with gate admission

Stamford Museum & Nature Center
Stamford Museum & Nature Center, a 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization, is dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of art and popular culture, the natural and agricultural sciences, and history. The Museum is a vital cultural and educational resource for the community, and a focal point for family activity and interaction, seeking to inspire creativity, foster self-discovery, promote environmental stewardship, and nurture an appreciation for lifelong learning through exhibitions, educational programs, and special events that enhance the visitor’s experience of its unique site.

Stamford Museum & Nature Center is located at 39 Scofieldtown Road, Stamford, CT (3/4 mile North of Merritt Parkway Exit 35.) For more information call 203.322.1646 or visit www.tamfordmuseum.org.. For area information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com

The galleries of the Bruce Museum will be bursting with pride this summer, and into fall: The Museum opens The Seven Deadly Sins: Pride through October 18 part of a groundbreaking series of area exhibitions exploring the Seven Deadly Sins. Presented by seven members of the Fairfield/Westchester Museum Alliance (FWMA), the Seven Deadly Sins exhibitions represent the group’s first ever collaborative effort.

The Seven Deadly Sins have played a significant role in theology, literature and art since the Middle Ages. The exhibition’s curators point out that the show is intended not only to put the sin of pride within a historical context, but also to encourage discussion, raising questions about the history of morality and moralizing.

The Bruce Museum exhibition places the sin of Pride within a historical context, presenting nearly 50 works ranging from Dürer works on paper from as far back as 1498 to Fay Ku’s 2014 graphite and oil on mylar. Susan Ball and Co-Curator Amanda Skehan have selected paintings, engravings, etchings, lithographs, illustrated books, magazines, three-dimensional objects and more from private collections, galleries, and institutions that include Yale University Art Gallery, Minneapolis Institute of Art, National Gallery of Art, Princeton Art Museum, Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Brooklyn Museum, and The Clark Art Institute.

The Pride exhibition at the Bruce will be complemented by some unique programming, including the Superbia Soirée at the Museum on Friday, July 17, and a Puppet Show Family Day on Sunday, July 19.

The Superbia Soirée, a lively after-hours event open to the public, will take place on Friday, July 17 from 6 to 8 pm. The event will offer special evening access to the exhibition, as well as a variety of activities to celebrate the show including a grown-up scavenger hunt and a special curator’s tour that includes an opportunity to hear from some of the featured artists. Admission is $15 for Museum members and $20 for non-members. Reservations are recommended, visit https://brucemuseum.org.

On Sunday, July 19, the Museum presents a Puppet Show Family Day from 1 to 4 pm. At 2 pm, Magpie Puppets will entertain children and adults alike with the interactive puppet show The Emperor’s New Clothes. Craft activities will be available in the Museum’s Education Workshop. No reservations are necessary, and the event is free with Museum admission.

For area event information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com.

The Fairfield Museum has organized two fun events on July 18 and 19 that brings history to life while getting some fresh air and exercise in the bargain!

On Saturday, July 18, take a walk around the historic town green from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Participants will walk on the site of Fairfield’s 1639 colonial settlement and find out more about Roger Ludlow, Fairfield’s Puritan roots, and the 17th century “witch ducking experiments.” You will also stroll by the 1780 Burr Homestead where John Hancock married Dorothy Quincy. These stories and more await you on this fascinating journey. The walking tour is limited to 30 people and advanced, online registration is required

On Sunday, July 19, the Fairfield Museum and the Town of Fairfield Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee, have teamed up and are offering a unique cycling tour that will cover approximately 10 miles, starting and ending at the Museum and the historic Town Green, site of the town’s founding in 1639.
The cycling tour will explore several historic Fairfield locations including the 1750 Ogden House and the Southport setting of the Pequot Indian Swamp Fight. Bicycle tour participants are required to wear helmets and the group is limited to the first 25 people who sign up in advance.

Both tours will be led by Walter D. Matis, Program Volunteer Coordinator for the Fairfield Museum. The walking tour and the cycling tour are each priced at $5 for museum members and $8 for non-members, which includes admission to the Museum. Children interested in the cycling tour must be age 14 or older, capable of riding 10 miles and must be accompanied by a parent. Rain dates will be announced as needed.

To register and for more information http://www.fairfieldhistory.org. For area information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com

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