Monday, November 29, 2010

Celebrating Pittsfield Call for Photographs!


SUBMISSION DEADLINE: MONDAY DECEMBER 13, 2010!

The City of Pittsfield Office of Cultural Development announces an open call for submissions for the second annual Berkshire City juried photography show opening in January 2011. This year's theme is Celebrating Pittsfield in coordination with the yearlong celebration of Pittsfield's 250th birthday.

We're looking for photographs from both amateur and professional photographers that celebrate Pittsfield's people, places, neighborhoods, special events, institutions & businesses, and beautiful outdoor spaces. Surprise us! The only requirement is that all photos be taken within the city limits of Pitstfield, Massachusetts.

Berkshire City: Celebrating Pittsfield opens Friday, January 14, and the deadline for submitting photos for consideration is Monday, December 13: so you only have two weeks to find your best & favorite photos to submit, or to go take some new ones!

Click here for the entry form and click here for the full instructions. If you have further questions, please email Max at mmoyborgen@pittsfieldch.com.  We look forward to seeing your work!

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Plaid Friday: Participating Businesses



Support your community this holiday season by visiting local shops, cafes & restaurants! Turn Black Friday into Plaid Friday by weaing plaid and shopping local. Visit these great local businesses today!

In Downtown Pittsfield
-The Pittsfield Colonials Shop: Kid's raffle
-The Garden: 10%-50% off everything in the store!
-Ferrin Gallery: annual small works shop+ print sale+ great art for everyone
-Museum Facsimiles Outlet Store: gorgeous locally made gift cards & picture frames plus pick up a 20% off coupon for your Festival of Trees visit at the Berkshire Museum!
-RJ Stohr Fine Jewelry & Diamonds: 50% off EVERYTHING in the shop Friday & Saturday!
-Carr Hardware has great sales today!
-Chapters Book Store
   Super Secret Snowman Sale
   Pick a snowman and save!!
   Between 12PM and 2PM on Black Friday, stop in to Chapters while doing your Downtown holiday shopping. Discounts up to 50%!!!
   Incredible $5 Table
   Lots of goodies will be marked to only $5 bucks, for a limited time only. Perfect for grab bag gifts, secret Santa, and of course, stocking stuffers!! (ooh, maybe even some audio books will show up on there.....)
   Melissa and Doug Floor Puzzles
   Buy 1 Get 1 50% off
   This Friday, Saturday and Sunday only!!
-Dottie’s Coffee Lounge
   Free coffee with gift purchases: coffee mug towers, varied assortments of 12 oz coffee from Barrington Coffee, loose leaf organic tea jars, tea filters, Chemex coffeemakers (two sized) and filters, Single serving tea pots, Dinner Party gift certificates, Coffee Tasting Gift Certificates, Dottie's Gift Certificates
-Emporium
-Vicki Baird Connections
   20% off entire store!
   They will also have Bola Maya key chains.
   In ancient Maya, there was a tradition of exchange that was believed to bring peace between the tribes. It was practiced with exchanging desired commodities and semi-precious stones like Jade and Obsidian.
   Based on this concept and using an object that symbolizes peace amongst the tribes, Connections decided to continue with this tradition by creating the BOLA MAYA. To obtain the BOLA MAYA is to help Mayan communities who manufacture them and also to share a little love and a little happiness in this occasionally difficult world.
Retail for 5 dollars. All proceeds go back to the communities and artisans who make the Bola Maya products.



Plaid Friday comes to Pittsfield: Supporting local & indie businesses!

Instead of standing in line for hours in the cold, waiting for those mega-superstores to open up, don your best plaid outfit, and stroll along North Street and enjoy Pittsfield’s locally owned shops, cafes and restaurants in downtown Pittsfield this Friday, November 26. It’s the civilized thing to do! Instead of rushing around, snatching bargain deals and fighting angry mobs – slow down and savor all the great things in our community, and the rich variety of locally owned stores and restaurants that contribute so much to the flavor and spirit of our region. Don’t get mad, get plaid!




The name Plaid Friday celebrates the diversity and creativity of independent businesses. Plaid Friday is the fun and enjoyable alternative to the big box store “Black Friday,” and is designed promote both local and independently owned businesses during the holidays. By wearing plaid on Friday, you’ll be showing your commitment to buy local and supporting your community. Every time you buy a gift in a locally owned business, you’re giving back to the local economy. And many downtown businesses are offering specials during Plaid Friday.

We encourage people to shop local and independent, and wear visible plaid (in any form!) to proclaim their love of the creativity and diversity of independent businesses in our community.




Plaid Friday originated in Oakland, California, and is designed to promote local and independently owned businesses during the holidays. One of the long term goals of Plaid Friday is to become a resource to make it easier for shoppers to find local businesses in every city across the nation. This year Pittsfield and Somerville in Massachusetts and other cities are joining the Plaid Friday movement, and even the Boston Globe has put in a good word for it!

And if you don’t yet own anything plaid, pick up a great plaid shirt at The Garden, plaid reading glasses at the Emporium, or wear your plaid pajamas!  It’s the fun and creative alternative to big businesses’ “Black Friday” – and it’s coming to downtown Pittsfield!


Thursday, November 18, 2010

Late Night Third Thursday!

It sure looks like Downtown Pittsfield's getting in the groove of our Late Night Third Thursdays! We stopped inside the Marketplace Cafe and the New Berry Place for a sneak peek of what they've got in store for tonight. Take a look!

The New Berry Place has these delish Harry Potter cupcakes

While inside the Marketplace Cafe, they've got a whole menu dedicated to Harry Potter's magical world!
Harry's ready to flatten Voldemort...
And even Voldemort & friends couldn't resist a little sweety goodness before the big battle!
Also on tap for tonight - Pittsfield Bra & Girl's special Love Potion Concoction, a Sloppy Harry Potter Burrito at Hot Harry's, and great desserts and appetizers inside Brulees!

Late Night Third Thursdays starts tonight at 8:30 and runs until the midnight showing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 1



Monday, November 15, 2010

Late Night 3rd Thursdays: Harry Potter Premiere & the Beacon's First Birthday!

We're bringing back Third Thursdays for one more month! Come out next Thursday, November 18, for the midnight showing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 1. But come a little early, and join in on the Beacon's Birthday festivities! The mayor will be on hand to wish the Beacon a happy birthday with a delicious cake, there will be fun trivia games and creative costume contests, and if you've ever wanted to see what a muggle Quidditch game looks like -- you're in for a treat! The first block of North Street will be closed from 7:30-midnight; the festivities start at 8:30. And don't forget to buy your tickets now (in person or at thebeaconcinema.com) before they sell out!

Thursday, November 4, 2010

You Are Invited to Help Celebrate Pittsfield's 250th Birthday in 2011

Pittsfield 250, the umbrella organization planning a year-long celebration of the 250th Anniversary of the City of Pittsfield in 2011, is inviting you to attend their public meeting, to offer insight and input on its plans for Pittsfield’s 250th birthday.

The meeting will take place on Wednesday, November 17 at 7:00 p.m. in the Auditorium of The Berkshire Athenaeum. The event is open to the entire community. Attendees are invited to bring their thoughts about initiatives to celebrate the City’s history, present day and future in a meaningful way.

Currently, there are three city-wide events on tap for 2011:
  • A two-day birthday party on April 29 and 30 with visiting dignitaries and local honorees
  • A reunion weekend July 1-4 complete with tours of the City, neighborhood and other reunion activities, as well as a free patriotic performance for the community. The Welcome Back Weekend will culminate with the Pittsfield Fourth of July Parade featuring the theme “Celebrating Pittsfield Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.”
  • An alumni Welcome Home weekend coinciding with Thanksgiving and high school reunions. The weekend will include two performances at The Colonial Theatre featuring local artists and artists who began their careers in Pittsfield.

Additionally, the Pittsfield 250 Committee is accepting volunteers to assist with the implementation of events and activities.
For more information, contact the Pittsfield 250 Committee at info@pittsfield250.org


Wednesday, November 3, 2010

In case you missed it - some Hip-Hop Block Party Highlights

Josh McHugh aka B-Boy Butta of Fresh Trix Crew and event organizer 

Problemaddicts performing

 Graffiti spray cans

 Graffiti spray cans zoomed in

Massive Graphics Graffiti Artist in action

B-boy Andres Ramirez of Fresh Trix Crew

B-boy Andres Ramirez of Fresh Trix Crew

B-boy Andres Ramirez of Fresh Trix Crew

B-boy Andres Ramirez of Fresh Trix Crew

MC Motiv8, event organizer, with DJ QuikMonee

Youth dancing

Fresh Trix Crew

Fresh Trix Crew

Josh McHugh of Fresh Trix Crew

Youth Performing

Tone Bones, event organizer, of Massive Graphics

B-Boy Andres Ramirez Fresh Trix Crew

B-Boy Andres Ramirez Fresh Trix Crew

B-Boy Andres Ramirez Fresh Trix Crew

Little girl dancing to DJ QuikMonee's beats


Fresh Trix Crew Performing


Youth and Josh McHugh of Fresh Trix Crew
Like what you see? 

Check out Massive Graphics and come out to our classes:

Josh McHugh's Hip-Hop and B-Boy Dance Class on Wednesdays at the Lichtenstein Center from 4-5PM.
and Mackenzie Buckley's Hip-Hop and Popping Dance Classes on Tuesdays and Fridays at the Lichtenstein Center from 4-5PM.

Call our office for more information (413) 499-9348.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

New Figurative Work by Jeanet Ingalls and Anki King

Two Woman Art Show Explores the Female Figure
Naked Opens at the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts


What:

Come join us for a two person art show exhibition opening exploring female figure art.  The show, entitled Naked, features a Berkshire County artist Jeanet Ingalls, paired with a Norwegian artist, Anki King, who currently resides in Brooklyn. The artists, both female, are united by their use of figurative work to evoke a variety of emotions.

Where:
At the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts in downtown Pittsfield, located at 28 Renne Avenue.

When:
The public is invited to the opening reception to be held Saturday, November 13 from 5pm to 7pm.

Anki King Biography:
Anki King grew up in a small village in Norway. After completing her arts education in Oslo, Norway, she moved to New York City in 1994 where she studied at The Art Students League until 1998. She describes her paintings as using the human form as a vehicle of evoking subtle emotions as a tool of education to one’s own psyche. In New York, King has built a strong career as a painter and exhibits frequently both in Europe and in the USA. Her work is included in many private and public collections and she has exhibited at the Katonah Museum of Art, NY, Las Cruces Museum of Art, NM and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Tokyo. She recently won the 2010 London International Creative Competition.

Anki King explains her creative process: “When I start a painting, I don’t have a goal—I don’t set out to make something pretty. The paintings tell me what to do and what they need, including the palette, which is always limited. You have to hunt for the colors. I suppose they’re more precious that way, just like everything else in the painting that is revealed only after some time and effort.”

Jeanet Ingalls Biography:
Until Jeanet Ingalls was seven, adopted by missionaries and brought to Lenox Massachusetts, she spent her days running through the streets, carrying cement blocks and diving for coins in the canals of Cagyan de Oro City, Mindanao, Philippines. Later, while studying art at Parsons School of Design, the impressions and memories of her childhood bled into her paintings, contextualized by her inquiry into the place of women in the human condition; the objectification of women through their sexuality; and motherhood. In her work, Jeanet is trying to find the strength and structure in the human body ravaged by life.

Her work has appeared at the Lauren Clark Gallery in Housatonic, Massachusetts, The Lichtenstein Center for the Arts in Pittsfield, and the F Collective in Hudson, New York. She was the costume designer and producer of the feature length film, “Dressed like a Hitman” and is currently working on a feature film titled “Between Sea and Sky” based on her early childhood in the Philippines.

The paintings are raw, catching the figures in moments of stillness and unconscious and unembarrassed self revelation. Inherent in the paintings are all the emotions, psychology and states of being read into the word itself: Naked. Jeanet Ingalls notes, “In my portraits and figures, my subjects are contorted by the hardships and struggles and the sheer biomorphic effort to transform pain into discovery of self. “

The Venue:
The Lichtenstein Center for the Arts is a community arts center located at 28 Renne Avenue in downtown Pittsfield, the largest city in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. The Center host art shows, classes, workshops, performances, meetings, events, and rehearsals, and features an art gallery with changing exhibits, a pottery studio with classes, a darkroom, nine working artist studios, and a community room. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday, noon to 5pm, and admission is free. For more information, please call 413.499.9348, email mmoyborgen@pittsfieldch.com or visit http://www.culturalpittsfield.com/.

Naked is scheduled to run from November 13th until January 8th, 2011. Please note that the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts will v be closed for the holidays December 22, 2010-January 1, 2011. For more information about Anki King and her work, please visit her website: http://www.ankiking.com/. For more information about Jeanet Ingalls and her work, please visit her website: http://www.jinsix.com/.


GALLERY HOURS: Wednesdays – Saturdays 12 PM to 5 PM Free admission

Gallery is closed December 22, 2010-January 1, 2011