Stationery Factory to host ‘The Climate Issue Is a Human Issue’ environmental exhibition
Dalton — In a collaborative effort to present a collective expression of human impact on and connection to the environment, Berkshire Environmental Action Team, Living the Change Berkshires, Berkshire Magazine and WordXWord will present the environmental exhibition “The Climate Issue Is a Human Issue” at the Stationery Factory, which will debut with an opening event Saturday, April 7, from 4 to 7 p.m.
The exhibition will feature more than 70 photos and paintings from over 30 Berkshire-based artists and photographers including John Stanmeyer, Scott Barrow, Sally Eagle and Dan Mead, Scott Taylor, Keith Emerling, and JD Logan. The opening event will include an art workshop with Jana Laiz from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.; music by PL Mack from 4 to 5 p.m.; opening remarks from BEAT, Berkshire Magazine, Eagle and Mead, Laiz, and others at 5 p.m.; and a spoken-word performance from WordXWord at 5:30 p.m.
The show will run through the Berkshire Earth Expo Saturday, April 21. All the artwork will be on sale with proceeds supporting Living the Change and BEAT. For more information, contact BEAT at (413) 230-7321 or team@thebeatnews.org.
–E.E.
* * *
Stephen Sagarin to speak on the future of education
Salisbury, Conn. — On Saturday, April 7, at 4 p.m., Scoville Memorial Library will present educator Stephen Sagarin, Ph.D., for the talk “The Perpetual Crisis in U.S. Education: Past, Present & Future.”
Sagarin will discuss the topics of decreasing enrollment, burgeoning costs, standardized testing, the role of technology, budget cuts and more and offer solutions and remedies. He will also show how the history of education in the United States has led to today’s schools and the challenges confronting those who live in rural areas.
Sagarin received his doctorate in U.S. history from Columbia University in New York City and his bachelor’s degree in art history and fine art from Princeton University in New Jersey. He is executive director and faculty chair at Berkshire Waldorf High School in Stockbridge, Massachusetts; associate professor in Waldorf teacher education at Sunbridge Institute in Chestnut Ridge, New York; and former editor of the Research Institute for Waldorf Education’s Research Bulletin. He has taught at Columbia University Teachers College as well as Berkshire Community College in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. He maintains a blog titled “What is Education?” and his most recent book, “The Story of Waldorf Education in the United States: Past, Present, and Future,” was published in 2011.
For more information, contact the Berkshire Waldorf High School at (413) 298-3800.
–E.E.
* * *
Music on Main to present JoAnne Redding and Robert Kelly
Stockbridge — The Music on Main series at the First Congregational Church of Stockbridge will present JoAnne Redding and Robert Kelly Saturday, April 7, at 7 p.m. for the performance “Swingin’ Jazz, Smokey Blues, and a Touch of Twang.”
Redding has performed from New Orleans to New England, opening for country acts such as Asleep at the Wheel, Hank Williams Jr. and the Mavericks. On the folk scene, she has played at the Guthrie Center in Great Barrington and at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, where she was chosen to showcase from over 400 applicants. Though she’s written and performed jazz-flavored tunes in the past, with Kelly she fulfills a longing to add jazz standards and torch songs to her repertoire. Redding’s three albums include songs featured in TV and film, and earned her three months in the top 10 of Roots Music Report‘s blues chart.
Kelly is a performer, accompanist, bandleader, arranger and teacher who began studying jazz, ragtime and classical music at age 5. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston and traveled to many parts of the globe as pianist for the U.S. Coast Guard Band. Kelly has performed with such artists as Roberta Flack, Cheryl Bentyne, Joan Rivers, and jazz pianists Dick Hyman and Dave McKenna. He runs the weekly Berkshire Sings workshop at Berkshire South Regional Community Center in Great Barrington, encouraging singers of all ages and experience to find their voices.
There is a suggested donation of $20 for the general public and $15 for seniors and students at the door. Desserts will be served during the performance and are included with admission. Proceeds from the concert series help support the music ministry of the church, including a 2015 refurbishment of its 1908 Steinway B piano.
–E.E.
* * *
Roe Jan Library to host book discussion with R.O. Blechman, Jennifer Berne
Hillsdale, N.Y. —The Roeliff Jansen Community Library will host a discussion and book-signing with Ancram residents illustrator R.O. Blechman and author Jennifer Berne about their book “God: 48 Famous and Fascinating Minds Talk About God” Saturday, April 7, at 5 p.m.
The first collaboration between Blechman and Berne, “God” is a compilation of 48 carefully chosen quotes from interesting historical minds–including Homer, Galileo, Einstein, Pope Francis, John Lennon, Rumi and Maya Angelou– about pondering a higher power.
Blechman is an award-winning illustrator, graphic designer and art director. Best known for his covers for the New Yorker, he has been the subject of a retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
Berne is the award-winning author of “On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein” and “Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau.” Her books have been among the New York Times Editors’ Choice and NPR’s Great Reads.
For more information, contact the Roe Jan Library at (518) 325-4101.
–E.E.
