If you are looking for an unusual way to welcome spring, head to the Ridgefield Theater Barn and attend the annual Piano Barn on Friday April 24th and Saturday April 25th. This event will bring the Manhattan club scene to Ridgefield with what is certain to be a lively and sassy way to say goodbye to Ol’ Man Winter.
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. www.ridgefieldtheaterbarn.org
For area information www.litchfieldhills.com
WPA:JOBS is the current exhibition at CCP, focusing on prints and archival materials from the Works Project Administration (WPA), founded on May 6, 1935, by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The WPA was intended to put America back to work. Federal Project Number 1 (The Federal Arts Project) was the visual arts component of this New Deal program and supported tens of thousands of artists. By the end of the program, project artists from across the country produced approximately 200,000 prints. The Opening Reception will be Sunday, April 19th from 2 – 5pm.
CCP is hosting the WPA:JOBS Lecture Series along with this exhibition. The lecture series is funded by Connecticut Humanities.
Sunday, April 19, 3pm: Opening Reception and Introductory Lecture by Susan Teller, Susan Teller Gallery, NYC, which specializes in American paintings, prints and drawings of the 1920s to 1950s featuring Urban/Industrial Realism, Modernism, and Surrealism.
Sunday, May 3, 3pm: Wendy Jeffers, Chairman of the Archives of American Art, will provide insights on Holger Cahill and his directives as the National Director of the Federal Arts Project during the New Deal.
Thursday, May 14, 7pm: Richard Baiano, President of Childs Gallery, will conclude the lecture series with a discussion of WPA era original prints from Childs Gallery.
The WPA:JOBS Lecture Series will be held in the Grace Ross Shanley Gallery at the Center for Contemporary Printmaking. All events are free and open to the public.
A new exhibit entitled, Tropical Luxuriance: The Mansion’s Conservatory, 1868 to 1880 will open on April 8, 2015 at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum, 295 West Avenue, Norwalk, CT. This Gilded Age Conservatory, with its ribbed half glass dome and Minton tiles, is a great example of early domestic conservatory architecture in the United States.
Accessed directly from the Library, this small yet distinctive glass room has been brought to life with a rich installation of silk plants designed by Danna DiElsi of the Silk Touch, and pots and furnishings of the era. The Conservatory provides a glimpse into the beauty and diversity of, and passion for, the plant world as seen through the vision of the original owners of the Mansion. Visitors can also take guided tours that showcase the decorative botanical details of architect Detlef Lienau’s original mansion design and view displays of selected artifacts throughout the museum from LMMM collections of–dresses, fashion accessories, silver, ceramics, books and more– with motifs inspired by flora and fauna.
On April 9, 2015, 12-4pm a new exhibition entitled, Full Bloom: The Artist’s View on Gilded Age Botanicals, in collaboration with Center for Contemporary Printmaking (CCP), will opened at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum, 295 West Avenue, Norwalk, CT. This exhibition explores the beauty and relevance of botanical art, through the medium of printmaking, in connection with the newly refurbished Conservatory. Curated by Trustee Gail Ingis-Claus, this exhibition includes renowned printmakers and members of CCP, Margot Rocklen, who began making prints at Carnegie Mellon University, Betty Ball, Jane Cooper, Deidre de Waal, Sheila Fane, Sally Frank, Cynthia MacCollum, Joan Potkay, Eve Stockton and Ruth Kalla Ungerer. The works included cover a variety of techniques including: etching, monotype, intaglio, woodblock, and solarplate, to name a few. The exhibition will run through May 3, 2015.
General Admission April 9 through May 3, 12-4 p.m.: $10 for adults, $8 for seniors, $6, 8-18. The exhibit, Full Bloom: The Artist’s View on Gilded Age Botanicals is sponsored in part by Investmark. The Museum’s 2015 cultural and educational programs are made possible in part by generous funding from LMMM’s Founding Patrons: The Estate of Mrs. Cynthia Clark Brown, and the Museum’s Distinguished Benefactors: Klaff’s and The Maurice Goodman Foundation.
The restoration of the Conservatory was made possible in part by the Norwalk Historical Commission and the City of Norwalk. The Conservatory exhibit curated by Kathie Bennewitz is sponsored in part by Paul and Hadley Veeder and the LMMM Foundation.
The Conservatory exhibit opens on April 8 and runs through Jan. 3. General Admission: $10 for adults, $8 for Seniors, $6, 8-18.
For more information http://www.lockwoodmathewsmansion.com/
A Taste of Wilton’ is a premier occasion that will bring together more than 350 attendees to sip, swirl and savor the best that local chefs, culinary personalities, mixologists and restaurateurs have to offer. This year the Taste of Wilton is being held on Monday, April 20 from 5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. at the Wilton Historical Society on 224 Danbury Road.
Organized by the Wilton Chamber of Commerce, this annual spring event attracts food and beverage purveyors from throughout the area who showcase samples of their specialties to hundreds of attendees. It is the quintessential venue for restaurants and caterers to showcase their products to the Wilton community and beyond.
A delectable array of cuisine will be available beginning at 5:30pm and lasting until 8:30pm, so gather at the Wilton Historical Society to nosh with friends, meet new people who share a passion for food and experience an evening of the best bites, wine and specialty cocktails Wilton caterers, mixologists, bakeries and restaurants have to offer. The tickets are available at http://www.wiltonchamber.com/2015/02/a-taste-of-wilton/
Make it a National Park Weekend on April 18 and 19, from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm with your neighbors at Weir Farm National Historic Site. Whether you’re looking for family fun, a unique glimpse into the past, or just a relaxing weekend outing, Weir Farm National Historic Site is the place to be.
American Impressionist Julian Alden Weir not only left the world a treasure-trove of beautiful paintings, his story clues us into the power of light and color in everyday life. “National Park Weekend is the first of many opportunities to “Find Your Park” – a national movement to connect all Americans with their public lands before the National Park Service Centennial anniversary in 2016. As the only national park dedicated to American painting, Weir Farm National Historic Site is a fabulous reminder of how varied national parks can be. We can be your first stop as you plan to get outside and see them all, in-person or online!
April 18 and 19 marks the start of the park’s 2015 season, with two full days of special access to the Weir House, Weir Studio, and Young Studio, followed by regularly scheduled tours beginning in May. Each nationally acclaimed building features one-of-a-kind furniture, décor, and art from generations of influential and inspiring artists. To celebrate the park’s 25th anniversary, the visitor center will feature a new exhibition of 25 paintings by Artists-in-Residence.
Get out of the house, stretch your legs and experience the place that prompted Connecticut residents to save Weir Farm 25 years ago. Take your time as you enjoy a stroll through the spring landscape that inspired Julian Alden Weir and other famous American artists. Help the National Park Service inspire a new generation of park enthusiasts when you earn your Junior Ranger Badge on Junior Ranger Day, April 18! Stay a while and plan a picnic or help yourself to free-to-use art supplies and laid back instruction from local professional artists.
Be sure to bring you web-enabled devices and share your unique experience using #findyourpark.
Please note, there will be no parking available at the park during National Park Weekend. All parking will be at nearby Branchville Elementary School, 40 Florida Road in Ridgefield, CT 06877. Free park and ride service will run continuously between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm each day.
For more information www.nps.gov/wefa For area information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com
In the bucolic hamlet of Falls Village, the David M. Hunt Library is presenting an exhibit by Gail Jacobson, Cut Flowers from Paper Roads through May 9.
The artist’s work in this exhibit was created from old books bought at library and tag sales and then cut up, treated, and shaped into natural subjects such as flowers and insects.
Jacobson, a self-described crafter, recently discussed her source of material and inspiration, “Today atlases and maps pile up at library sales, tag sales and in boxes marked “free” along the sides of the road. These documents of how to get places resulted from hundreds of years of work, adventure, and skill by thousands of explorers, travelers, and artists. Paper artists rejoice at this bounty, knowing that they are saving these relics from landfills. A bath of tea ages and helps to obscure their previous lives. Flowers, leaves and butterflies are cut from their pages and reassembled as Victorian bouquets full of cabbage roses, spiky mums and fantasy flowers that Mother Nature never imagined. No longer hidden away in seat pockets, the maps adorn our walls and remind us of our past and the miles we have traveled to get where we are.”
Gail Jacobson grew up in California where her father owned a printing business and scraps of paper were plentiful. She graduated from college with a BA in art. After her marriage to her husband Jeff they proceeded to move across the country and to England, settling in Cornwall, CT almost 20 years ago when they bought a 100-year-old hay barn and converted it into their home. Creating art has been a constant activity no matter where she is.
After visiting the exhibit, stop in at the Falls Village Inn for lunch or dinner. This historic inn built more than 175 years ago has shaped the rich history of this quaint village nestled in the Litchfield Hills. For more information visit http://thefallsvillageinn.com
For area information visit www.litchfieldhills.com
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