ADAMS, Mass. — The Adams Arts Advisory Board unveiled a new piece of public art on the wastewater treatment plant during a ride on the Berkshire Scenic Rail.
On the train ride Friday afternoon, artist Bill Riley said he was proud to be able to display his piece "Mountain Pool" in Adams.
"The mural itself is an ode to the purification of water," he said. "I am excited by the idea that this piece is for the viewing of the scenic trail rider connecting Adams and North Adams."
He added that he was grateful that the town of Adams in conjunction with the Adams Arts Advisory Board allowed him to add another piece to Art on the Trail initiative.
"I am honored to place my artwork in such an industrial area and to have the possibility of recreating the context that we see in this place," he said. "I mean for the mural to be a point and a series of points along the trail encouraging people along the trail traveling between the towns to have a cultural experience."
A scenic artist for Metropolitan Opera, Riley said the vinyl mural is 10-feet by 2012-feet and was blown up 12 times from the original acrylic painting.
This is the second installment of Arts on the Trail. The first was "Crows Local" by Patricia Fietta that was placed on her Grove Street mill along the bike trail.
There are several other locations the Adams Arts Advisory Board would like to install art, but the most immediate location in the queue is the back of the Adams Theater. The idea is to locate visual and sculptural art that can be seen from the state-owned trail. The works are being installed on municipal and participating private properties.
"Mountain Pool" was specifically located to be viewed from the nonprofit railway's Hoosac Valley Service that runs between Adams and North Adams on the weekends. An extension of rail trail will eventually run alongside the track through that section in the future; it currently ends at Lime Street.
"We want to cover as much as we can and take anything that may not be as pleasing to the eye and put something there," Riley said. "That way people see the landscape in a new context."
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Adams Free Library Pastel Painting Workshops
ADAMS, Mass. — Award-winning pastel artist Gregory Maichack will present three separate pastel painting workshops for adults and teens 16+, to be hosted by the Adams Free Library.
Wednesday, April 24 The Sunflower; Wednesday, May 8 Jimson Weed; and Thursday, May 23 Calla Turned Away from 10:00 a.m. to noon.
Registration is required for each event. Library events are free and open to the public.
These programs are funded by a Festivals and Projects grant of the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
This workshop is designed for participants of all skill levels, from beginner to advanced. Attendees will create a personalized, original pastel painting based on Georgia O’Keefe’s beautiful pastel renditions of The Sunflower, Jimson Weed and Calla Turned Away. All materials will be supplied. Seating may fill quickly, so please call 413-743-8345 to register for these free classes.
Maichack is an award-winning portraitist and painter working primarily in pastels living in the Berkshires. He has taught as a member of the faculty of the Museum School in Springfield, as well as at Greenfield and Holyoke Community College, Westfield State, and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
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