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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261003T120000
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SUMMARY:Hygienic Art’s YART Sale Digs Into the Closets for an Art-Lover’s Treasure Hunt
DESCRIPTION:Hygienic Art’s YART Sale Digs Into the Closets for an Art-Lover’s Treasure Hunt Saturday\, Oct. 3\, when the New London arts institution empties its corners and storage spaces for three hours of abandoned artwork\, old posters\, prints\, T-shirts\, and whatever other creative oddities have accumulated over the years. \nThis isn’t a conventional gallery sale. \nHygienic is specifically pulling out unclaimed and abandoned artwork\, along with its own memorabilia and assorted odds and ends\, and offering it at what the organization describes as bargain-friendly prices. \nThere may be polished artwork worth hanging over the sofa. There may be a forgotten Hygienic poster from years ago. There may be something wonderfully strange for which no reasonable person has an immediate use. \nThat’s rather the point. \nThe YART Sale runs from noon to 3 p.m. at 79 Bank Street\, with cold adult beverages also available for purchase. \nWhat Exactly Is a YART Sale?\nThink yard sale\, except the attic belongs to an arts organization that’s been collecting things for decades. \nHygienic says it is clearing out closets\, corners and storage areas\, producing a sale that includes artwork that was never reclaimed as well as T-shirts\, posters\, prints\, merchandise and miscellaneous pieces of Hygienic history. \nThat makes this less predictable than walking into an art gallery knowing what’s currently hanging on the walls. \nThe organizers aren’t promising a neatly catalogued collection. They’re inviting people to dig. \nAnd at Hygienic\, decades of accumulation could make that interesting. \nThe Place Has Been Collecting Art Since 1979\nThe YART Sale makes more sense when you understand the institution holding it. \nHygienic Art traces its beginnings to 1979\, when a group of New London artists began staging an annual exhibition inside the old Hygienic Restaurant. \nThe idea was modeled on the independent salon tradition that challenged the gatekeepers of the established Paris art world. \nNew London’s version developed rules that remain central to Hygienic’s identity: no judge\, no jury\, no fees and no censorship. \nArtists could bring one piece and participate without first convincing a curator or selection committee that their work deserved a wall. \nIt became an annual tradition. \nThe restaurant eventually closed\, but the artists kept the exhibition alive at other locations. When the old Hygienic building itself was threatened with demolition in the 1990s\, the arts community organized to save it. \nHygienic Art ultimately acquired the property in 1998\, renovated it and reopened its galleries in 2000. \nToday the organization operates galleries\, artist live/work spaces and an outdoor Art Park while continuing the annual Hygienic Art exhibition that started the whole thing. \nSo when Hygienic says it has old art and assorted material tucked away in storage\, there is potentially quite a history behind those closets. \nSome of the Art Has Literally Been Left Behind\nThe phrase “unclaimed and abandoned artwork” is what separates this from a normal merchandise clearance. \nThese aren’t simply reproductions Hygienic ordered too many of. \nThey are pieces that\, for one reason or another\, remained behind. \nThe organization isn’t publishing a complete inventory in advance\, which preserves the garage-sale quality of the afternoon. Buyers won’t necessarily know what’s waiting until they start looking. \nHygienic itself sums up the mystery nicely: some pieces have stories\, some need new homes\, and some apparently fall into a category that requires seeing them in person. \nFor anyone who enjoys flea markets\, estate sales\, thrift shops or digging through record-store bins\, that uncertainty may be the best part. \nPosters and T-Shirts Can Be Little Pieces of New London History\nDon’t overlook the non-artwork. \nA poster from an old Hygienic event isn’t simply advertising once enough time has passed. It becomes an artifact from New London’s arts scene. \nHygienic’s annual exhibitions have been happening for more than four decades\, while the organization has also hosted concerts\, festivals\, performances and exhibitions throughout the year. \nIts Bank Street home has an even longer history. \nThe building predates Hygienic Art and was associated for decades with the Hygienic Restaurant\, once a fixture of downtown New London. The restaurant became the unlikely home of those early artist exhibitions before the nonprofit eventually took over the building itself. \nOld Hygienic shirts\, prints and posters can therefore carry a little of that history with them. \nExactly which years\, designs and events will turn up Saturday isn’t specified. That’s another part of the hunt. \nAn Art Sale That Fits Hygienic\nThere is something particularly appropriate about unwanted artwork getting another chance at Hygienic. \nThis is an organization whose best-known exhibition was built around removing barriers between artists and gallery walls. \nIts annual Salon des Indépendants has traditionally accepted work without judging whether it is fashionable\, marketable or worthy of inclusion. \nSaturday applies a similarly democratic principle to the other end of an artwork’s life. \nSomething was made. \nSomebody left it behind. \nNow somebody else gets to decide whether they love it. \nNo curator required. \nMore information is available at the Event Website link below. \nDetails\nEvent: YART Sale\nDate: Saturday\, Oct. 3\, 2026\nTime: Noon–3 p.m.\nLocation: Hygienic Art\nAddress: 79 Bank Street\, New London\, CT 06320\nSale Includes: Unclaimed and abandoned artwork\, Hygienic Art T-shirts and merchandise\, posters\, prints\, odds and ends and other creative finds\nPrices: Described by Hygienic Art as bargain-friendly; individual prices have not been published\nAdult Beverages: Cold adult beverages will be available for purchase\nAdmission: No separate admission charge is listed for the sale\nPhone: 860-443-8001\nRegular Gallery Hours Saturday: 11 a.m.–7 p.m. \n\n  \nFeatured image is an artistic representation inspired by the event and may not depict the actual people\, location\, or activities shown.
URL:https://thectbeacon.com/event/hygienic-arts-yart-sale-digs-into-the-closets-for-an-art-lovers-treasure-hunt/
LOCATION:Hygenic Art\, 79 Bank Street\, New London\, CT\, 06320\, United States
CATEGORIES:Hygenic Art
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261002T170000
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SUMMARY:Myth & Magic Fills Westerly’s Historic Train Station With the Mysterious and Imagined
DESCRIPTION:Myth & Magic Fills Westerly’s Historic Train Station With the Mysterious and Imagined beginning Oct. 2\, as more than 100 artists transform the Artists’ Cooperative Gallery of Westerly into an exploration of legends\, symbols\, ancient stories and the things that exist just beyond the ordinary. \nThe exhibition actually opens Sept. 30 and remains on view through Nov. 1\, but Friday night’s free opening reception is the public celebration\, with artists gathering at the gallery from 5 to 8 p.m. alongside wine and hors d’oeuvres. \nAnd this is a particularly large show for the cooperative. \nRather than spotlighting a handful of featured artists\, Myth & Magic brings together work from the gallery’s approximately 55 juried members and nearly 50 associate members\, ranging from established artists to emerging creators. \nThe result should make the October exhibition one of the gallery’s most eclectic of the year. \nGiving Form to Things We Can’t Quite Explain\nThe theme is deliberately broad. \nMyths have always given people ways to explain the inexplicable: creation\, death\, natural forces\, good and evil\, luck\, transformation and the possibility that something exists beyond what we can see. \nMagic occupies similarly flexible territory. It can mean supernatural power\, folklore and ritual\, but it can also describe an ordinary moment that somehow feels extraordinary. \nThe artists aren’t being asked to illustrate one particular mythology or legend. Instead\, Myth & Magic invites them to interpret the stories\, symbols and moments of wonder that have fascinated people across generations. \nThat opens the exhibition to everything from ancient mythology and folklore to fantasy\, personal symbolism and entirely invented worlds. \nAnd because this is a full-member exhibition\, those ideas won’t be expressed through a single medium. \nVisitors can expect oil and acrylic painting\, watercolor\, collage\, sculpture\, pottery\, woodwork\, fused glass and other forms of fine art and craft throughout the gallery. \nMore Than 30 Years of Artists Running Their Own Gallery\nThe Artists’ Cooperative Gallery of Westerly has been operating since 1992\, when artists Bruce Goodsell\, Sandi Gold and Ginger Mitchell founded the organization. \nThe model is different from that of a conventional commercial gallery. \nACGOW is a nonprofit cooperative managed and operated by its artists\, with members volunteering to staff the gallery and handle the work required to mount exhibitions and keep the organization running. \nJuried artists don’t simply send their work somewhere and wait for a gallery owner to sell it. They’re participants in the organization displaying it. \nThe cooperative presents a completely new exhibition each month\, ordinarily marking the changeover with a First Friday opening reception. Works can also change during an exhibition as pieces are sold\, so someone returning later in October may not encounter precisely the same show. \nThe mission extends beyond selling art. The organization offers workshops\, classes and other educational programs while trying to create connections among artists and audiences throughout the Westerly-Pawcatuck area. \nArt Inside a 1912 Railroad Station\nThe building adds another layer. \nACGOW occupies space inside the historic Westerly Train Station\, the distinctive Spanish Renaissance-style structure built in 1912 along the railroad tracks downtown. \nThat makes Myth & Magic an exhibition of contemporary work displayed inside a building more than a century old. \nThe gallery also maintains a shop in its west wing\, where visitors can browse smaller original works\, prints\, cards and other pieces created by member artists and artisans. \nOctober will bring additional opportunities to make art rather than simply look at it. Gallery artist Tammy Blais is scheduled to lead palette-knife painting classes on Oct. 13 and Oct. 27\, while Janet Maher will teach a five-signature long-stitch book and journal-making workshop on Oct. 19. \nBut Friday evening belongs to the exhibition itself. \nThere is no admission charge and no requirement to approach the work as an art expert. Walk through\, find the pieces that pull you in\, meet some of the people who made them and see how more than 100 artists answered essentially the same question in completely different ways: \nWhat does myth or magic look like to you? \nMore information is available at the Event Website link below. \nDetails\nEvent: Myth & Magic\nOpening Reception: Friday\, Oct. 2\, 2026\nReception Time: 5–8 p.m.\nExhibition Dates: Sept. 30–Nov. 1\, 2026\nVenue: Artists’ Cooperative Gallery of Westerly\nLocation: Historic Westerly Train Station\nAddress: 14 Railroad Avenue\, Westerly\, RI 02891\nAdmission: Free and open to the public\nArtists: Approximately 55 juried members plus nearly 50 associate members\nMedia: Oil\, acrylic\, watercolor\, collage\, sculpture\, pottery\, wood\, fused glass and additional fine art and craft media\nOpening Reception: Meet participating artists with wine and hors d’oeuvres\nRegular Gallery Hours: Wednesday–Saturday\, 11 a.m.–7 p.m.; Sunday\, 1–5 p.m.\nGallery Shop: Small original works\, prints\, cards and other works by member artists and artisans\nPhone: 401-596-2221\nEmail: info@westerlyarts.com \n  \n  \n  \nFeatured image is an artistic representation inspired by the event and may not depict the actual people\, location\, or activities shown.
URL:https://thectbeacon.com/event/myth-magic-fills-westerlys-historic-train-station-with-the-mysterious-and-imagined/
LOCATION:Artists’ Cooperative Gallery of Westerly\, 14 Railroad Avenue\, Westerly\, RI\, 02891\, United States
CATEGORIES:Artists' Cooperative of Westerly
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260917T173000
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SUMMARY:Seasonal Shifts Opens a New Velvet Mill Artists Group Show in Stonington
DESCRIPTION:Seasonal Shifts brings the work of artists based at Stonington’s Velvet Mill together for a new group exhibition opening Thursday\, September 17\, with an evening reception beginning at 5:30 p.m. \nThe exhibition will be installed in the Velvet Mill Gallery\, upstairs from the building’s main entrance near Zest Fresh Pastry\, and will remain on view through the holiday season. \nThat extended run makes the opening party more than a one-night event. It’s the introduction to a fall and early-winter exhibition showcasing artists who work inside the enormous former textile mill\, a building that has gradually developed into one of southeastern Connecticut’s more unusual creative communities. \nOne Building\, Many Artists\nThe Velvet Mill can be confusing if you’ve never explored it. \nIt isn’t one gallery. \nIt’s an enormous former industrial building filled with individual studios\, galleries\, shops\, makers\, restaurants and other small businesses. Some artists maintain spaces that function as both working studios and miniature galleries\, while others primarily use their rooms to make art. \nSeasonal Shifts pulls members of that scattered community into a shared exhibition. \nInstead of opening one studio door at a time\, visitors can see work by multiple Velvet Mill artists together in the Mill’s upstairs gallery. \nThe group format is particularly useful in a place like this. Artists working only a corridor or staircase apart can have dramatically different approaches\, materials and subjects. \nThe Theme Is Right in the Title\nSeasonal Shifts arrives almost exactly as summer turns to fall. \nThe autumnal equinox follows just days after the opening\, but “seasonal shifts” offers artists considerably more room than simply painting fall foliage. \nA shift can be environmental. \nIt can be emotional. \nIt can involve light\, color\, weather\, aging\, growth\, loss or transition. \nAnd an exhibition that remains up through the holidays will itself live through a substantial seasonal shift. Visitors seeing it in September will encounter the work in a different context than someone walking into the gallery in December. \nThe promotional artwork\, by Dennis Caruso\, reinforces that freedom of interpretation with an abstract composition of loosely defined forms\, energetic black marks and areas of white\, cream\, blue\, pink and muted yellow. \nIt’s not a postcard version of autumn. \nThat’s probably the point. \nThe Velvet Mill Has Become an Arts Destination Almost by Accident\nThe setting is part of the story. \nThe enormous brick complex at 22 Bayview Avenue was built in the late 19th century and became associated with the American Velvet Company\, which manufactured textiles in Stonington for generations. \nWhen industrial production ended\, the question facing the property was familiar throughout New England: what do you do with a huge old factory that no longer has a factory inside it? \nIn Stonington\, part of the answer became art. \nLarge industrial windows\, high ceilings and adaptable rooms made the former manufacturing spaces particularly suitable for studios. \nArtists moved in. \nThen makers\, galleries and small retailers followed. \nToday you can walk through the Mill and encounter painters and photographers alongside letterpress printing\, coastal art\, handmade goods\, antiques\, furniture\, food\, a brewery and other independent businesses. \nThe building still feels industrial. \nIt just produces very different things now. \nThere Are Galleries Hidden Throughout the Building\nThe artists’ group show also offers an introduction to a larger visual-arts scene inside the Mill. \nThere are individual artist studios as well as dedicated gallery spaces scattered throughout the complex. \nDennis Sirrine Gallery showcases the work of longtime Velvet Mill painter Dennis Sirrine. \nCoastal Arts Gallery & Studio #85 concentrates on coastal and New England-inspired work\, including original art\, prints and smaller gift pieces. \nStudio 87 – Nautical by Nature similarly draws inspiration from the region’s maritime environment. \nAllgood Studios and Gallery takes a less conventional approach\, combining gallery and creative studio space with an arcade component. \nShuttle Press & Bindery expands the definition further. Its Studio 77 is a working letterpress shop and bookbindery\, where traditional printing and bookmaking techniques become part of the Mill’s broader maker culture. \nThe result is less like visiting a conventional museum complex and more like exploring an arts neighborhood that happens to be contained inside one very large building. \nAn Opening Party Changes the Experience\nThe September 17 opening provides something that visiting the exhibition later won’t. \nThe artists are part of the event. \nOpening receptions are useful precisely because gallery exhibitions can otherwise separate the finished work from the person who made it. \nAt a group opening\, viewers have the opportunity to encounter multiple artists\, ask questions and hear how individual pieces relate to the exhibition’s theme. \nFor people who enjoy art but feel they don’t know enough to talk about it\, there really isn’t a prerequisite. \nFind something that stops you. \nLook at it. \nAsk the artist about it. \nThat’s enough. \nMake Sure You Head Upstairs\nThe Velvet Mill is big enough that knowing where you’re going matters. \nThe Velvet Mill Gallery is upstairs from the main entrance near Zest Fresh Pastry. \nVisitors entering the building for the first time shouldn’t assume the exhibition is in one of the retail galleries along the main corridors. \nThe opening begins at 5:30 p.m. Thursday\, September 17. \nAfter opening night\, Seasonal Shifts remains on view through the holidays\, giving visitors several months to catch the exhibition even if they can’t attend the reception. \nA Particularly Busy September at the Mill\nThe opening also arrives during an active stretch at the Velvet Mill. \nTwo days later\, on September 19 and 20\, participating businesses throughout the building will hold the End-of-Season Indoor Sidewalk Sale\, moving sale and clearance merchandise into the hallways outside their shops. \nSaturday mornings also bring the Stonington Village Farmers Market into the Mill. \nThat makes Seasonal Shifts easy to combine with a larger visit. \nSomeone coming for the art can end up exploring shops. \nSomeone coming for the market can discover a gallery upstairs. \nSomeone arriving for lunch can find an exhibition they didn’t know was there. \nThat’s one of the advantages of putting art in a building where people are already doing other things. \nYou don’t necessarily have to decide you’re going to an art gallery. \nSometimes you just walk upstairs. \nDetails\nExhibition: Seasonal Shifts\nEvent: Opening Party\nDate: Thursday\, September 17\, 2026\nTime: 5:30 p.m.\nPresented By: Velvet Mill Artists\nVenue: The Velvet Mill\nGallery: Velvet Mill Gallery\nAddress: 22 Bayview Avenue\, Stonington\, CT 06378\nLocation in Building: Upstairs from the main entrance near Zest Fresh Pastry\nAdmission: No admission charge is indicated for the opening or exhibition\nFormat: Group exhibition featuring Velvet Mill artists\nExhibition Run: September 17 through the holiday season\nPoster Artwork: Dennis Caruso\nOpening Reception: Thursday evening at 5:30 p.m. \nMore information is available at the Event Website link below. \n  \nFeatured image is an artistic representation inspired by the event and may not depict the actual people\, location\, or activities shown.
URL:https://thectbeacon.com/event/seasonal-shifts-opens-a-new-velvet-mill-artists-group-show-in-stonington/
LOCATION:Velvet Mill\, 22 Bayview Ave\, Stonington\, CT\, 06378\, United States
CATEGORIES:Velvet Mill
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