Leverett Crafts & Arts
A community center for making & sharing art in Leverett Massachusetts.
Coming up in 2023
Monthly Exhibits April through November
Regular Open Hours: Saturdays and Sundays 1-5pm
April in the Galleries
TWINE: Tapestry Weavers in New England
Over Under and Through the Warp
The Art of Tapestry Weaving
Featuring 40 recent works by established tapestry weavers and newcomers to the fiber arts, the show emphasizes the versatility and adaptability of this age-old medium for a modern audience. “When we tell people we are tapestry weavers the first image that comes to mind is a medieval wall covering with unicorns hanging in a castle,” said Martha May from TWiNE. “Our goal is to dispel this thinking and treat the viewer to a contemporary body of work using the same techniques used by weavers of the past.”
Opening Reception: Sunday April 2, 2023 from 1-4PM
Open Hours include Wednesdays 1-5pm for this show only.
May in the Galleries
Engaging Nature: Recent Work by the Amherst Plein Air Society
Nearly 35 APAS artists will exhibit over 140 paintings that are the result of directly engaging with the natural world. Some were painted completely en plein air, while others were started in the field and completed in the studio, and studio artists’ paintings were inspired by their sketches, studies, and photographs of nature.
Most paintings are for sale. In addition, one section of the show is a fundraiser for the Kestrel Land Trust, with plein air paintings of the four seasons at Sweet Alice Pond.
Opening Reception: Sunday May 7, 2023 from 2-5PM
June in the Galleries
Fiberistas:
FIBER CONNECTIONS
The Fiberistas, also known as the Fiber Artists of Western MA, is a group comprised of eight women who all love to work with fiber. The members work in many different fiber media, including quilting, weaving, felting, knitting, crocheting, stitchery, surface design and paper collage.
Their individual approaches range from traditional to contemporary to cutting edge techniques incorporating illumination and digital design.
Opening Reception: Sunday June 4, 2023 from 2-4PM
July in the Hall Gallery
LORI LYNN HOFFER New Paintings
This LCA resident artist presents new paintings – local florals/botanicals as well as plein air landscapes from Florida. Her focus on plants and landscape reflects her deep love of nature – of the colors, dramatic shapes and patterns of light and shadow that surround one in the garden, woods and fields. Of flowers that twist and curve and twine around in each in an abundant display. Of trees that bend in strong winds and lean over to shade dappled rivers.
Working with oils Lori Lynn applies thick layers of highly saturated paint on a black canvas. This vibrant colorist genre can be reminiscent of stained glass, also with connections to art deco/art nouveau graphic styles.
Opening Reception: July 9, 3-5pm
July in the Barnes Gallery
JESSE CONNOR New Paintings
Jesse Connor’s paintings develop in conversation with the miraculous and quotidian moments of his daily life, in which every experience—talking with family, running errands, noticing animals or architecture—evoke joy, humor, and mystery. Visions of paintings may emerge from interactions between shadow, light, and color, configurations of clouds, and other phenomena that catalyze the liminality in time, place, and memory within which Connor’s paintings live.
A dedicated mentor to artists developing their craft, Connor has taught at a number of colleges in the Northeast, as well as working as co-owner and founder of Boat Yard Art Space in Leverett, MA, where he paints and curates small exhibitions featuring emerging artists.
Opening Reception: July 9, 3-5pm
August in the Galleries
ROBERT MACE BENT • process
Rob Bent works from his studio in a converted manufacturing space in Greenfield, Massachusetts. He’s primarily a self-taught painter and creates colorful, abstract work that is often described as energetic
and giving the impression of movement.
Rob’s work begins with spontaneous gestural markings of lines and shapes. Background and foreground will eventually be revealed. As he continues, a search for rhythm in color, shape and line evolves. Rob looks for the emergence of tensions which could suggest movement or relationships of the objects within the spaces created.
His hope is that the work will begin to suggest action in the world as well as within the self.
October in the Galleries
SUSAN VALENTINE Annual Exhibit
My work represents the world around me in a pretty realistic way. I begin with photography and end with layers of thin paint. I very much enjoy working on large projects and need to cleanse my palate by then working small. In previous years I have tended to look closely and bring forth the details of small characters from my garden, then needed to balance that with sweeping landscapes.
Currently I am deeply curious about capturing the spirit of that which sustains our bodies. The food we keep ourselves healthy and sated with. Like a portrait painter, I'm telling the truth, often with a note of whimsy.
Opening Reception: Sunday, October 8, 1-5pm
Open Hours: Thursdays & Fridays 3-6pm,
Saturdays & Sundays 1-6pm
September in the Galleries
AD TINKHAM Seascapes & Landscapes
Tinkham’s work is subtle by design. He uses values that are so close that the eye needs time to adjust to the image. This element of time and patience built into the work forces the simultaneity of analysis and synthesis. The power and subtlety of the paintings operate on more than one level, and as we, the viewers, relinquish ourselves to the work, it begins to reveal itself. In this way, a viewer builds a relationship with Tinkham’s paintings, and like in a relationship, the more time spent with them the more you come to know and to love. In my experience, the longevity of Tinkham’s paintings is unparalleled. Although minimal to near abstraction, Tinkham’s landscapes convey a depth of movement and light and a sense of place that is undeniable. Tinkham has been painting for many years. He has been getting to know nature for as many years. A.D. has combined intimate knowledge of nature (how clouds move, and the nuances of light through a fog, etc.) with fine technique, to create paintings that do what fine art is supposed to do: surpass superficial beauty in a way that is moving and accessible, intelligent and minimal.
Opening Reception: Saturday, September 23, 3-5pm
November in the Galleries
Oh Beautiful Glass • Annual Show
Susan Mulholland • New Paintings
Oh Beautiful Glass is an yearly exhibition curated by local glass artist Sally Prasch that features glass works from artists that range from realism to surrealism to abstraction.
LCA's resident artist Sue Mulholland will show colorful new paintings focusing on local scenes of lake and woods as well as animal friends.
Opening Reception: Sunday, November 5, 4-6pm
Open Hours: Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays & Mondays 10am-6pm
December at the LCA
HOLIDAY STORE +
Art Show and Open Studios
Please join us for our annual holiday extravaganza featuring fabulous gifts and art from local vendors. This event features Mudpie Potters, LCA studio artists as well as a few friends. You will find fine art small and large, a huge variety of pottery and claywork, clothing, quilts and more!
First Two December Weekends
Dec 2&3 + Dec 9&10
Open Hours: Saturdays 10am-4pm Sundays noon-4pm