Berkshire Botanical Garden’s “Shimmer” exhibit to open April 1
STOCKBRIDGE — Berkshire Botanical Garden will present a new exhibition, “Shimmer,” a group show curated by Sue Muskat and Phil Knoll. Representing 38 artists from around the country, the exhibition runs April 1–May 1, in the Garden’s Anna and Frederick Henry Leonhardt Galleries. An opening reception will be held Friday, April 1, from 5–7 p.m.
The exhibition includes drawings, paintings, prints, photographs, and sculptures, each of which was created against the backdrop of dark times but that “inspires hope and transcendence, reminding us of our shared humanity,” Muskat said.
JoAnne Carson created “Sunny” (acrylic on museum board), which depicts “invented worlds, portals reflecting the instability of life. They also serve as a testament to the belief that, despite the fearsome decline of our environment, life continues, and often with exuberance.” Amanda Mason’s “Crow With Heart” (metallic print on aluminum) was inspired by paying attention to the present and gazing at objects, watching them come to life with light.
Ann Wolf’s “The Whole Magic Universe Is Dying” (gouache on paper) immerses the viewer within the high meadows and deep, wooded ravines of her enchanted homeland west of the Hudson River. Ashley Garrett’s “Weaver” (oil on canvas) is an intimate overture to the nuance of changes in light. “For her, nature is a conduit through which her paintings can shape spaces that open to spiritual experience.”
In Caleb Weintraub’s “Secret Sap” (gouache and acrylic on paper), “blinding sunlight turns solids to splotches and makes nonsense of knowing. The light can become so bright that twigs turn to torches, and flowers are fireworks.” Karin Shaefer’s “Move the Needle” (archival pigment print) provides clear-eyed testimony to the effects from climate change. Depicting a Berkshire County creek in winter, Shaefer captures the formation of needle ice, a freezing process that occurs during extreme temperature changes.
Jim Butler has been painting about behavior, how we posture, preen, and strut our confidence. He delights in the posturing and preening of squirrels putting up their dukes in sun-splashed backyards in “South Paw” (acrylic on panel).
Additional artists include: Stephanie Anderson, Leslie Carmin, Mary Chatham, Katherine Dykman, Art Evans, Michael Glier, Guzman, Daniel Herwitt, Jennifer Hunold, Lisa Kernan, Sabrina Marques, Donna Moylan, Laini Nemett, Kathy Osborn, Ellen Letcher, Katia Santibanez, Michael St. John, Tara Tucker, Ricky, Caitlin MacBride, Noah Post, Kay Rosen, Jo Ann Secor, Cary Smith, Audrey Stone, Austin Thomas, Julie Torres, Thomas Whitridge, Eric Wolf, Geoffrey Young, and Chris Zitelli.
—A.K.
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Change to BerkShares local currency exchange rate
GREAT BARRINGTON — Beginning this week, BerkShares can be exchanged 1:1 for federal dollars. The BerkShares Board of Trustees believes this change will enable the participation of a wider range of businesses in the BerkShares local economy. More participation will mean Berkshire citizens will have more places to spend BerkShares. More participation will also mean that businesses accepting BerkShares (B$) will have more places to recirculate them.
If businesses need to convert excess B$ back to dollars, a fee of 1.5% will be charged, rather than the earlier 5%. This exchange rate is the same as the new mobile payments app.
For example, at participating bank locations, you may now:
- Acquire B$100 in exchange for $100 USD
- Redeem B$100 in exchange for $98.50 USD
Much credit for making the BerkShares program run smoothly goes to the participating local banks: Lee Bank, Pittsfield Co-op Bank, and Salisbury Bank and Trust. These banks have made a remarkable commitment to the idea of a local economy. Please be patient with their tellers as the new exchange rate is put into effect. Credit also goes to the 400 local businesses that accept BerkShares. Their support and creativity have been critical to keeping BerkShares circulating through our community.
Over 10 million BerkShares have been circulated since the program’s inception in 2006. Increasingly, people are looking to BerkShares as a model for a stable, localized, value-added economy and as an alternative to a slumping national economy. The BerkShares board and staff are committed to growing the project at a sensible rate and give onlookers even more to talk about.
—A.K.
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Interfacing: Poetry, Mental Illness & Mental Health
STOCKBRIDGE — The Stockbridge Library, Museum & Archives and The Erikson Institute of the Austen Riggs Center will present Interfacing: Poetry, Mental Illness & Mental Health, Saturday, April 9 from 2–4 p.m. Four Berkshire County poets, all connected to mental health professions, will discuss ideas on the powerful relationship between poetry, mental illness, and mental health, and read selected works.
Owen Lewis of Stockbridge, a practicing psychiatrist, author of three collections of poetry, and teacher of Narrative Medicine, will chair the seminar. He will be joined by Richard Berlin of Richmond, a practicing psychiatrist and author of four collections of poetry, as well as the essay collection “Poets on Prozac”; Hannah Fries of Sandisfield, author of a volume of poetry and “Forest Bathing Retreat,” which explores mindfulness and nature; and Patty Crane of Windsor, a former nurse and the translator of the Nobel Prize-winning poet-psychologist Tomas Transtromer. The seminar will be moderated by Kate Daniels, author of six collections of poetry and most recently, “Slow Fuse of the Possible, A Memoir of Poetry and Psychoanalysis.”
This program is free and open to the public. The discussion will be held in person at the Stockbridge Library. For more information, email info@stockbridgelibrary.org.
—A.K.
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Spencertown Academy offers spring break art camp with Jacqueline Rogers
SPENCERTOWN, N.Y. — Spencertown Academy Arts Center will present Character Kaboom spring break art camp with children’s book illustrator Jacqueline Rogers, on April 19–21 from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. each day. The workshop is for young people ages 10–15. Tuition is $100 and scholarships are available. To inquire about financial support, email info@spencetownacademy.org and to register, click here.
A New York Times bestselling children’s book illustrator, Rogers will host three days of character creating and story building. Campers will draw and paint their own characters and settings, which will culminate in a final large project ready to display. All art supplies will be provided, as well as snacks and bottled water.
Jacqueline Rogers has been writing and illustrating picture books for over 35 years. In 2012, she illustrated Beverly Cleary’s beloved Ramona series, as well as “The Mouse and the Motorcycle” and the Henry Huggins books. Her other works include illustrations for New York Times bestsellers “Our Great Big Backyard” written by Laura Bush and Jenna Bush Hager (2016) and “Little Ree” written by Ree Drummond (2017). In 2019, HarperCollins published “Goblin Moon,” a Halloween poem that Rogers both wrote and illustrated.
—A.K.
