Back by Popular demand!
The Central Connecticut Woodturners Club and the
Ashford Area Arts Council will have another pen
turning event on Saturday Feb. 24 from 10 to 2 at
Knowlton Hall. Absolutely no woodturning experience
necessary…and the event is FREE!
Open to all ages: any kids must be at least 10 years old to participate. There will be plenty of skilled woodturners there to guide you in creating a beautiful pen! No reservations needed, just come between 10am – 2pm.
John is a potter who creates usable art inspired by nature. He is continually delving into new color schemes and design styles that borrow from the past while expanding creative boundaries. Find his work on Facebook or text 860-798-5692.
The following artists will be vendors at the new INDOOR Ashford Farmers Market. This will be in the Knowlton Hall, Sunday mornings.
Michael W. Hughey, Craftsman and Artist in letterforms and the book arts has had a love affair with beautiful letters and beautiful books since childhood. Originally from Asheville, he lived for many years in NC but now resides in Northeast CT. His calligraphic works are published both nationally and internationally and collected in public and private collections, including the Metropolitan Museum, NYC, and the Bahá’í World Centre, Haifa, Israel. He feels that even in an age of increasing technology, “…there is, indeed, an important place in human society for the warmth, beauty, and grace that calligraphy can bring to our lives.”
He will exhibit note cards, limited-edition prints, and original calligraphy at the Ashford Farmer’s Market, Dec. 3rd & 17th, 10AM to 12:30 PM. He also teaches both calligraphy & handwriting privately.
John Boiano – Oakes Hollow Mud Werks
John is a potter who creates usable art inspired by nature. He is continually delving into new color schemes and design styles that borrow from the past while expanding creative boundaries.
Song baskets
Mosaic maker, teacher, explorer, and intrepid traveler.
Deb is a trained Landscape Architect who has spent years focused on the act of creating. She began drawing as a toddler and as she grew she moved on to painting, and finally to dimensional objects and the creation of spaces such as gardens, way-finding, and public art.
Deb began making mosaics in 1997. Her education and background in art and landscape architecture led her to work on large-scale outdoor pebble and stone mosaic terraces, fountains, and wall hangings. She has completed both interior and exterior works for residential and commercial clients such as hospitals, boutique hotels, and restaurants. Among her clients is the city of Hollywood FL, the town of Killingly CT, and most well-known of all Tom Brady and his wife Giselle Bundchen.
Deb has received numerous awards for her art and her work has been on exhibit at SAMA Mosaic Arts International, The Museum of Glass in Tacoma, WA, and Galleries in Ireland, Austria, and all across America. She has worked in collections internationally and has taught all over the world including in Guatemala and Europe.
Karrie Kirchner (she/her) is an Artist, Spiritual Director, Certified Yoga Instructor and Gardener. Karrie works with all types of media – ink, paint, fibers, textiles, fabric, paper, beads, plant material and found objects. Collage is her favorite; creating sacred space is her passion. She takes a seeker’s approach to life and enjoys playing with metaphors. Her favorite movie is Kung Fu Panda 3.
www.karriekirchner.com
Every year the AAAC awards scholarships to graduating art students at EO Smith High School – one for the performing arts, one for the visual arts and one for literary arts. These students are chosen because they have taken two or more courses in their area; exhibited enthusiasm, interest, honesty, and integrity; and produced quality work viewed or open to the public. The recipients plan on pursuing their interest vocationally or as an avocation.
Elizabeth Morris. Elizabeth is receiving her award for her role in the Performing Arts. All her life she has lived Connecticut, but this fall she will be moving to New York City to study musical theater at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. She started participating in theater at ten years old with her first show being a production of Peter Pan Jr. Since entering high school at E.O. Smith, she has had the roles of Alice in Alice in Wonderland, Rebecca Nurse/Mary Warren understudy in The Crucible, Juniper (acting) and Genesis (vocals) in a student written musical, Antlersong, The Singing Woman in Beowulf, Amy in Bad Auditions by Bad Actors, and most recently she was a featured singer in the student-arranged cabaret One Last Show. She is very excited to be continuing her work in the performing arts and is grateful for everyone that has supported her.
Zhiyu Liu is receiving her award for work in the visual arts. Her artwork depicts her life’s journey as an English Language Learner (ELL) affected by a language barrier. When she was an ELL freshman, she felt she was isolated from those around her because she was unable to communicate. It made her feel nervous, anxious, frustrated and sad. Her art is about depicting her story, expressing her feelings and conveying her feelings to an audience. She usually uses acrylic and digital painting software and graphite, mechanical, and colored pencils for her drawings. She also enjoys working with oil paint. During high school she has taken Drawing 1, Drawing 2, Painting 1, Painting 2 and AP Art. She is grateful for Aiyana Wazer, Amanda Ross, Mrs. Andrews, Mrs. Mocanu and Mrs. Mamunes at E.O. Smith who encourages her passion for making art. She will attend the University of Connecticut where she will major in Motion Design and Animation in the Digital Media and Design Department and minor in Computer Science.
Nora Brown is receiving the scholarship award for her work in the literary arts. She says that she has clung to a strong love of writing since she was very young. It had always been a way for her to tell her stories without speaking, and as someone who grew up very quiet, being loud, without needing to fight to be heard, was priceless. However, she didn’t stay quiet. She eventually joined the theatre club at E.O. Smith, which is where she likes to think she really found her voice. It was the merging of both her love of writing and her love for this theatre program that inspired her to write Cirque du Macabre. In October 2022, she was honored at ECSU’s Literary Festival to receive a Distinguished Writing Award for an excerpt from the script-in-process. Cirque, as a show, initially started out as a way to highlight the talents of the incredibly artistic individuals she has had the pleasure of working with for the past three years. Only once she began writing it blossomed into the full-fledged script for a feminist, 1920s murder mystery, which she then had the incredible privilege of adapting into a show that the E.O. Smith Drama Club was able to perform in March 2023. She truly believes that creating Cirque du Macabre with a community of people who she has grown to really love has been a once in a lifetime experience. It has given her the courage to continue pursuing art and creativity. While the girl who wrote instead of using her voice would have been too scared, she is braver now, and proud to say that she is an artist. Moving into the future, she will study film, theatre, and media at Mount Holyoke College
Ashford Area Arts Council (AAAC) and Westford Hill Distillers (WHD) are eagerly planning for another successful A Summer’s Palette! Join us in showcasing our talented artisans on the Saturday, June 24th RAIN OR SHINE from 10:00am – 4:00pm.
The Quiet Corner of CT is home to many talented, and nationally recognized, artisans and authors.
The idyllic setting of Westford Hill Distillers is rich in colors, views and history and provides for a picture-perfect day for all. It’s a day to relax and breathe in the natural beauty of the Chatey’s property while supporting 30+ local artists. In addition, the day will offer:
| Suzy Staubach, Potter and Author – [email protected] |
| Dan Merlo, Wood turner – [email protected] |
| Steve Gerling, wood carver, colored pencil, watercolor artist –[email protected] |
| Dan Rackliffe, potter – [email protected] |
| Jane Rackliffe, glass artist – [email protected] |
| Kathy Weigold, hand woven fabrics – www.swiftwaters.org |
| Gretchen Geromin/Lauren Merlo, decorative wood – Art at Thistle Run |
| Joseph Burger, watercolor – joseph-burger.pixels.com |
| Michael Metsak, goat’s milk soap and lotions – Hy-Hopefarm.com |
| Joan Blade Johnson, fabric artist – www.jbjfiberart.com |
| Mark Drobney, wood and laser cutouts |
| Anna Harding, stained glass – Annas Infinity Art on Etsy |
| Sue Muldoon, woven baskets – www.reduxforyou.com |
| Debora Aldo, mosaic artist – www.pietreduredesign.com |
| Marylin MaKuch, Metal Jewelry – Artist Open Studio page |
| T-Shirts with a Purpose, artist designed shirts – Facebook Page |
Come for the art, the setting, the spirits, the food, the music, the camaraderie & fun… Whatever your inspiration, we welcome you!
Although we adore pets, we ask that you do not bring them to this event. Thank you!
More than 25 artists will be exhibiting and selling their artwork, plus enjoy live music, observe or participate in plein air painting. Woodturning and woodcarving, pottery, authors, fiber art, fairy houses, hand-made soaps, basketry, mosaics, musical instruments, photography, weaving, and more.
Desserts by Sweet “Lil Details, plus craft cocktails available for purchase. All this fun is taking place on the grounds at Westford Hill Distillers, New England’s first craft distiller. Westford Hill Distillers is located on a 200-acre property that has been under the stewardship of the Chatey family since 1919. Enjoy the mature gardens, learn about craft distillation. Live music includes performances by Ashford’s Babcock Cornet Band, the longest-performing cornet band in the country. This is what a day in June should be–bring along your friends, enjoy art, hear great music and drink in an authentic New England experience in Connecticut’s Quiet Corner.
Jane Rackliffe is a fused glass artist from Ashford, Connecticut and North Port, Florida. She is currently teaching fused glass in Florida and enjoys her studios in both locations year round. Her work can be view on her website, and is currently on display at the Moon and the Monocle in Willington, CT.
Dan has been an active potter since 2014. He teaches hand building techniques and working on the potters wheel in a retirement community in Florida during the winter and works out of his studio In Ashford from May through September.
Some of his work work can be seen at DanRackliffePottery.com or contact him by email.
Steve Gerling has been doing relief woodcarving since the mid-1970’s. He has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from UConn, with a major in sculpture. After school, he was drawn to the additional challenges of relief carving. Not only did an object have to be sculpted but it had to be skillfully distorted
in scale, perspective, and space to create an image convincing to the viewer.
Traditionally, most relief work was intended as decoration or embellishment to works of architecture or fine cabinetry. Steve chooses to make the carving the primary object. While much of the work were objects of fine woodworking, using them as a utilitarian frame, the main focus of attention has always been the carving.
