Naumkeag Hosting Exhibit of Art Inspired by Gardens
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STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. — Naumkeag will be hosting an art exhibit featuring works inspired by the famous gardens surrounding the Gilded Age cottage from Aug. 15-30.
Naumkeag House and Gardens was once a summer retreat for the Joseph Choate family in the late 1800s and early 1900s and is now preserved by the Trustees of Reservations for the enjoyment of the public. More than 14 garden “rooms” were designed over a 30-year period through a creative collaboration between Naumkeag’s owner, Mabel Choate, and noted landscape designer Fletcher Steele.
Over the course of the summer, the Trustees has hosted seven regional artists, asking each to create a new work inspired by one or more of Naumkeag's several landscaped gardens. The project is a collaboration between the Trustees and IS183 Art School of the Berkshires. The project was conceived as a way to bring about new interpretations of Naumkeag’s magnificent gardens which have been undergoing a transformative, multi-million restoration that is nearing completion. All are well-documented masterpieces of landscape architecture, including the iconic Fletcher Steele-designed Blue Steps, one of the most photographed garden features in landscape design.
Participating artists include: Adam Gudeon, Illustration (Great Barrington); Tony Conner, Watercolor (Bennington, Vt.); Wit McKay, Photography (Williamstown); Yura Adams, Oil, Acrylic (Athens, N.Y.); Paula Shalan, Ceramics (West Stockbridge); Howie Philip, Sculpture, Drawing (Catskill, N.Y.); Lucie Castaldo, Paper, Photography (Pittsfield).
The artists have been visiting the house and gardens regularly as they create their works. The Trustees invite Berkshires residents and visitors to meet the artists and engage in the process with several upcoming programs and events:
* Aug. 15-30, 1-5 p.m.: The exhibit will be on display and will be free with admission. Additional works by the artists will also be included in the show.
* Aug. 14, 6-8 p.m.: A preview party to learn from the artists about what inspired their work. The cost is $10. Memberships may be acquired at the door. Refreshments, music, and a cash bar will be available.
* Aug. 30, 4-6 p.m.: A closing reception to celebrate the exhibit will feature a tour of the gardens with the artists. The cost is $10.
For more information about this project and other summer programs happening at Naumkeag, email naumkeag@ttor.org or call 413-298-3239 x 3008. For a full schedule of summer programs at Naumkeag, Bartholomew’s Cobble, and other southern Berkshire Trustees properties, go online.
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