Starting Monday, July 4, the South Street museum presents “I Am a Part of Art,” a collaboration with the Great Barrington-based nonprofit Community Access to the Arts.

 

"CATA at the Clark" is an expansion of the CATA’s annual summer art show celebrating the works of area artists with disabilities. Part of the show opened on Friday at Pittsfield’s Lichtenstein Center for the Arts. The North County exhibition will be on display in the Clark’s Lunder Center at Stone Hill through Aug. 14.

 

Between the two venues, "I Am a Part of Art" showcases 185 works of art from more than 125 local artists.

 

“All of this work is for sale, too,” CATA Executive Director Margaret Keller noted. “Anyone who is interested in purchasing the work can call our office. It’s another way we provide support not just for the program but for the artists. Fifty percent goes directly to the artist and 50 percent supports the program.”

 

That program includes 1,000 workshops in the visual and performing arts throughout Berkshire County each year.

 

“Many of those artists are taking part in visual arts workshops,” Keller said. “For the annual show, every single artist has at least one work represented. … Inclusivity is always part of our mission, but the annual art show is our opportunity to be as inclusive as possible.”

 

Each of CATA’s 22 faculty artists has a hand in curating the annual show, Keller said. The works are then professionally matted, framed and hung. Past annual shows have been held at the Berkshire Museum and the Licthtenstein in Pittsfield; this is the first time the summer show has been hosted in North County, let alone at a institution with the international profile of the Clark.

 

“It’s incredibly unusual for the Clark to allow another organization to exhibit work,” Keller said. “I think we’re probably on a very short list if not a total exception. We’re grateful for the opportunity.”

 

Although this is the first time CATA will be featured during high season at the Clark, it is not the first time the nonprofits have collaborated. A couple of years ago, the Clark hosted a weekend show in April, Keller said.

 

“It was a wonderful experience,” she said. “We were in the same room [the Hunter Studio] that we are this summer. That space is now used as almost overflow space for the cafe -- kind of a multipurpose room, a conference room, sometimes a reception room.

 

“We love that it’s a space people actively use throughout the day. … For us, that’s a plus. More people will circulate through and see the work.”

 

After all, sales, while nice, are not the main point of I Am a Part of Art. The main emphasis is on giving exposure to the artists served by CATA, whose mission is to nurture and celebrate “the creativity of people with disabilities through shared experiences in the visual and performing arts.”

 

The six-week show at the Clark will include a couple of special events to spotlight CATA: a July 20 meet-the-artists event and a field trip of youngsters from the Williamstown Youth Center, one of CATA’s North County partners along with organizations like BFAIR and Mass MoCA.

 

“We’re working with Williamstown Youth Center to bring in local young people for a program that will allow them to see the show,” Keller said. “We’ll give them a tour of the exhibit and lead them in an art-making project that is similar to what they see on the walls.

 

“We always love any chance we can get to bring in young people. Part of what we do is expand people’s perceptions of disability. That’s an expanded perception they can bring with them into adulthood.”