DownStreet Art Doubles in Size for Summer Season

05:02PM / Tuesday, May 19, 2009

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Following the extraordinary success of last year's DownStreet Art program, the summerlong event will nearly double in size and scale with 27 galleries, museums and other arts destinations participating, including 13 new galleries.

The public art project of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts' Berkshire Cultural Resource Center is designed to revitalize downtown North Adams, harnessing existing arts organizations and events, and transforming vacant and open spaces into arts destinations.

It is a collaboration between MCLA, the city of North Adams, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, Northern Berkshire Community Coalition and Scarafoni Realty, which has made available space for artists to display their works in the city's downtown.

"This program defines North Adams as a cultural haven, driving tourists and community members downtown," said Jonathan Secor, director of special programming at MCLA. "Last year, DownStreet Art brought 15,000 visitors to
downtown North Adams. Businesses felt the impact, both in attendance as well as in sales. Our goal — working closely with the City, Scarafoni Realty, Northern Berkshire Community Coalition and Mass MoCA — is to increase those numbers.

"Almost every empty store in downtown will be filled as of June 25. North Adams will be an arts destination — not only because it is the home of Mass MoCA — but because of the scope of art in the downtown," Secor added.

Gallery Spaces

Works and Days 1979-2009: A Survey of Selected Work by Mark Mulherrin 5 Holden St.

Avalon Seafood Gallery 7 Holden St

Longtime Gone Mass MoCA 28 Holden St.

MCLA Gallery 51 51 Main St.

The Refractive Kinescope: Kinodance MCLA Gallery 51 Annex at 65 Main St.

Maya IV 73 Main St.

Joshua Field Installation In the window of 73 Main St.

Cribs to Cribbage Kidspace at 107 Main St.

North Adams Co-Op Gallery Spaces 1 & 2 in the Registry building

Peter Dudek Space 3 in the Registry building

Stephen G. Donaldson's 'Berkshire Landscapes' Papyri Books Gallery 43 Eagle St.

Brill Gallery Eclipse Mill - Studio 109 243 Union St.

River Hill Pottery 243 Union St., Eclipse Loft 104

Redroom Main Street Stage 57 Main St.

A Chapel of Humanity 82 Summer St. A contemporary sculptural epic

Art Space @ Historic Flatiron 38 Eagle St. Drawings by Eric Rudd

Berkshire Artist Colony @ Historic Flatiron 46 Eagle St.

Historic Beaver Mill 189 Beaver St. "Very robotic and very big."

Eclipse Mill Gallery 243 Union St. Artist-run gallery

Cribs Kidspace at Mass MoCA & Mass Moca 1040 MASS MoCA Way

Jean Noelle Chazelle Artisan Fair NoAMA Gallery 243 Union St.

Suncatcher 63 Main St. Stained glass

Kolok Gallery 121 Union St.

Hoosac River Lights II The river between Eagle Street and Mass MoCA; Saturday, Aug. 27.

This year's DownStreet Art will kick off at 6 p.m. on Thursday, June 25, with the opening of 13 new galleries. In addition to performances to take place throughout the downtown that evening, a number of area restaurants and cafes will be open late and feature menu specials in honor of the program's launch.

A wide variety of arts activities will take place through October, including DownStreet Art Thursdays, to be held the last Thursday of each month. All of the galleries will be open late on that day. These events will include the opening of new exhibitions, dance performances, meet-and-greet gatherings with the artists and other festivities.

A major component of the program is the DownStreet Art map. New to this year's publication is a calendar of performing arts and citywide events. According to Secor, more than 20,000 copies of the map and calendar will be printed and distributed to Mass MoCA visitors and those staying in North Adams hotels, motels and inns.

Mayor John Barrett III said revitalization in the downtown continues because of the arts.

"We are using the arts to transform the community and to drive the local economy," Barrett said. "But most important are the partnerships we've been able to establish – the links with Mass MoCA and MCLA and the way the business community has come together and the role that the local lending institutions have played ... This year, it's going to be even greater."

MCLA President Mary K. Grant said DownStreet Art was a great opportunity for the community to come together.

"We saw such tremendous energy last year as people came to the downtown," Grant said. "We are thrilled to be partnering with Mass MoCA, the city of North Adams, Northern Berkshire Community Coalition and Scarafoni
Realty as we connect with the community."

DownStreet Art will run through Oct. 18. The program is made possible through the support of its lead partner, Greylock Federal Credit Union. Additional support is being provided by Berkshire Bank, Edward Jones, Adams Co-Operative Bank, Papyri and the Porches inn.

For more information, go to www.mcla.edu/bcrc or www.downstreetart.org.