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PHS Students Showing Love With Art Show and Fundraiser

Students in teacher Lisa Ostellino's class work on their projects. 'For the Love of Art' will also include senior portfolios, drawings, paintings, photography and other ceramic work. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Pittsfield High School students are spreading the love with an art show and fundraiser before Valentine's Day.

The "For the Love of Art" exhibit will debut at the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts on Friday, Feb. 2, from 5 to 7 p.m., showcasing students' midway senior portfolios, drawings and paintings, photography, and ceramic works. The show will stay up for one week.

It is the artists' way of showing their passions while helping others.

"It is a mid-year senior portfolio where the kids are going to present their sustained investigations, their portfolios that they've been working on which is essentially the concentration for their senior year," art teacher Lisa Ostellino explained.

"We are also combining it with some of the other classes and the focus is on the love of art. And we always try to give back something to the community so there's a nationwide project that's called the Empty Bowls Project, where you basically make handmade bowls and you serve soup for a donation for those homemade bowls."

The students are making the bowls and a packaged soup will go with them while supplies last. All proceeds go to the St. Joseph's/Christian Center food pantry.

While some of the art will be on theme, senior Advanced Placement students will show parts of their portfolios and other work that they are proud of. 

AP art students choose a "sustained investigation" theme and at the end of the course will exhibit a body of related works that demonstrate an inquiry-based sustained investigation of materials, processes, and ideas through practice, experimentation, and revision.

The February event is somewhat of a preparation for their senior art show in May and a preview of what can be expected.

"When she told us the assignment, we were all on board," senior Katarena Castagna said. "We are all really excited."

Dalton Board Signs Off on Land Sale Over Residents' Objections

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
05:50AM / Tuesday, December 23, 2025

Residents demanded the right to speak but the agenda did not include public comment. Amy Musante holds a sign saying the town now as '$20,000 less for a police station.'

DALTON, Mass. — The Select Board signed the sale on the last of what had been known as the Bardin property Monday even as a handful of residents demanded the right to speak against the action. 

 

The quitclaim deed transfers the nine acres to Thomas and Esther Balardini, who purchased the two other parcels in Dalton. They were the third-highest bidders at $31,500. Despite this, the board awarded them the land in an effort to keep the property intact.

 

"It's going to be an ongoing battle but one I think that has to be fought [because of] the disregard for the taxpayers," said Dicken Crane, the high bidder at $51,510.

 

"If it was personal I would let it go, but this affects everyone and backing down is not in my nature." 

 

Crane had appealed to the board to accept his bid during two previous meetings. He and others opposed to accepting the lower bid say it cost the town $20,000. After the meeting, Crane said he will be filing a lawsuit and has a citizen's petition for the next town meeting with over 100 signatures. 

 

Three members of the board — Chair Robert Bishop Jr., John Boyle, and Marc Strout — attended the 10-minute meeting. Members Anthony Pagliarulo and Daniel Esko previously expressed their disapproval of the sale to the Balardinis. 

 

Pagliarulo voted against the sale but did sign the purchase-and-sale agreement earlier this month. His reasoning was the explanation by the town attorney during an executive session that, unlike procurement, where the board is required to accept the lowest bid for services, it does have some discretion when it comes to accepting bids in this instance.