Weekend Cultural Highlights Sept. 25-27

Submitted by Seth Rogovoy on September 25, 2009 - 5:52am

by Seth Rogovoy

 

 
It's quite a weekend for art lovers, with several major gallery installations opening throughout the region.
 
 
Here, a group exhibition focused on how North Adams has changed in the last decade, opens this weekend at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts’ Gallery 51.
 
 
"As a result of MASS MoCA being in North Adams for 10 years, there is a corresponding growth of a contemporary arts community in the surrounding region,” says Leslie Ferrin, Here curator. “The effect of MASS MoCA and its programming can be measured by both the increasing numbers of artists choosing to live and work here and the audience that supports their work through attendance and purchases. But is there also an intellectual contribution from the exposure to exhibits, installations, and site-specific commissions in the work that is currently being produced in the region?”
 
 
 
Here features the work of local and national artists whose work in some way examines present-day North Adams and the museum’s impact on the community.
 
 
The artists are Scott Barrow, Kay Canavino, Gordon Chandler, Laura Christensen, Joan Diamante, Wendy James, Jay Fox, Joe Fuser, Wendy Goldberg, Amanda Hartline, J.C. Joggers, Phelan LaVelle, Melanie Mowinski, John Mitchell, David Ricci, Gregory Scheckler, Nicholas Whitman, Thor Wickstrom, and Michael Zelehoski.
 
 
“During the jurying process we reviewed a variety of media, paintings, photography, collage and video,” says Ferrin. “Clearly the presence of MASS MoCA has had an effect on artists’ lives, their choice of subject matter, and in some cases the institution was the means by which the art was produced, as in the case of the videos and photograph series.
 
 
“By bringing the art works together in a group show format, there is a range of viewpoints and presentation of the subject which then offers the viewer a variety of ways to consider 10 years of the MASS MoCA effect,” she says.
 
 
Ferrin moderates a conversation with several artists from the exhibition at Gallery 51 Thursday, October 8, at 6 p.m.
 
 
Here is on exhibit through October 25.
 
MCLA Gallery 51, at 51 Main Street in North Adams, is open every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, call (413) 664-8718, or go to www.mcla.edu/Gallery51.
 
 
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Also in North Adams, the North Adams Artists Co-Op Gallery  presents an exhibit of member artists called Out of the Box, featuring work that uses media that differs from that found in the artists' primary body of work, as a way to encourage them to explore new forms of expression, or to investigate the path of a different creative process
 
 
North Adams Artists’ Co-Operative Gallery (NAACO)
33 Main Street (corner of Main and Marshall Streets / Route 8)
Out of the Box runs through October 18
 
 
The NAACO gallery is open Wednesdays through Saturdays from 11 to 6 and on Sundays from 11 to 4.
www.NAACOGallery.com
413-664-4003
 
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BARBARA NESSIM: THE MODEL PROJECT, a solo exhibition of recent large scale digital collages by the internationally renowned artist and illustrator, opens on Friday, September 25, with a reception from 4 to 6, at Sienna Gallery in Lenox, Mass.
 
 
The culmination of a two-year long project, the work engages and draws in the viewer through Nessim’s distinctive avant-garde style. Opulent jewels, bold colors, and classic beauty come together in these collages to make permanent an ethereal moment.
 
 
Working with a photographer and model, Nessim began this work as an extension of her recent large black and white figural works. The opportunity to collaborate and extend her vision resulted in a series of large aluminum prints. Precious and sleek,  these works exemplify Nessim’s intensity and ability to render and communicate appropriating and elevating refined ornamentation.
 
  
Respected internationally for her groundbreaking use of the computer in the execution of fine art and illustration, Nessim will be honored September 26 as the first Artist Laureate of the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge. A vital contributor and influential visionary in the art world over the past several decades, Barbara Nessim’s work lies on the cusp of art and illustration. A unique and determined career path has placed Nessim at the forefront of artists traversing these two worlds.
 
 
Nessim’s artwork is included in the many private and public collections including the permanent collections of The Victoria and Albert Museum, The Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C  and the Lund Konsthall, Lund, Sweden among others. Her illustrations have appeared in and on the covers of numerous publications including  Time, Rolling Stone and  Ms. magazines.
 
 
A selection of Barbara Nessim's work will also be on view at Norman Rockwell Museum starting Saturday, September 26, and includes Women In Madness, an original work generously donated by the artist for inclusion in the Museum's illustration art collection. Later that day, Nessim will present Graphic Change, an illustrated talk about her evolution as an artist and her creative inspirations. The event starts at 5:30, and is free with regular museum admission.
 
 
SIENNA GALLERY HOURS:  Wednesday – Saturday 11-5:00 pm.

80 MAIN STREET
LENOX, Mass.
413.637.8386
 
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And on Friday night, Berkshire artist Walton Ford signs copies of his new book, Pancha Tantra, at the Bookloft in Great Barrington, Mass., at 7 pm.
 
 
The Bookloft, 332 Stockbridge Rd, Great Barrington, Mass.
(413) 528-1521
 
 
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The Music & More series at the New Marlborough Meeting House presents jazz vocalist Tessa Souter on Saturday, at 4:30.  
 
 
Souter's recent album, Obsession, features a collection of jazz tunes by the likes of Milton Mascimento, Kenny Barron, and Freddie Hubbard, along with jazzy versions of rock classics including Cream's "White Room" and the Beatles "Eleanor Rigby," making for a kind of modern Great Anglo-American songbook.
 
 
The New York-based, England-raised daughter of Afro-Indian-Caribbean parents performs with the Berkshire-based Jason Ennis Trio, featuring guitarist Jason Ennis, bassist Gary Wang and drummer Conor Meehan.
 
 
Tickets are $25 each.
 

(413) 229-2785
www.newmarlborough.org
 
 
Music & More is in its seventeenth year of bringing music, film and literary events to New Marlborough’s Meeting House. All events are held in the newly renovated performance space in the landmark 1839 Greek revival building. The New Marlborough Meeting House and Gallery are located on Route 57 on the village green in the center of New Marlborough. Music & More is sponsored by the New Marlborough Village Association. 
 
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Up at MASS MoCA in North Adams on Friday night, South African composer Philip Miller presents a work-in-progress musical drama based on the tragic tale of the Hottentot Venus.  
 
 
Through song, set and video projection, Miller tells the story of Sara Baartman, aka the Hottentot Venus, who was taken from her hometown and shipped to London in 1810 and put on display for her “unusual, exotic features.” Although Baartman was an accomplished singer, dancer and musician, her only valued quality in Europe was her curious appearance.
 
 
Friday, September 25, 8:00 PM
Box Office: 413.662.2111
 
 
Seth Rogovoy is Berkshire Living's award-winning editor-in-chief and cultural critic.
 
 
 

 

 

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