Annual landscape exhibit at William Baczek Fine Arts William Baczek Fine Arts has opened its 2020 Annual Landscape Exhibition and will host a public reception for the artists on Saturday, Feb. 8, from 5 to 7 p.m. Fourteen artists, from the U.S., Canada and Europe, are part of the show, which includes sculpture and paintings in a number of styles.
The exhibit features the work of some familiar names, such as Valley painter Scott Prior, but also that of three artists who have not previously shown there work there, including Vermont painter Charlie Hunter, a former music manager who takes the title of one of his paintings from a song by guitarist/singer/songwriter Mark Erelli.
According to exhibit notes, the artists use a variety of mediums — oil, acrylic, and egg tempera paintings, pastels, and sculpture — “to explore the theme and definition of ‘landscape’ in sometimes intense, serious, playful, and unexpected ways.”
The exhibit runs through Saturday, March 14. More information is available at wbfinearts.com.
Amherst’s Samuel Minot Awards announcedIlan Stavans and Levellers Press are this year’s winners of the Seventh Annual Samuel Minot Jones Awards for Literary Achievement, which will be celebrated April 30 at 6 p.m. in Converse Hall at Amherst College, in an event known as “The Sammys.”
The awards, presented by Amherst’s Jones Library (and named for Samuel Minot Jones, the library’s first benefactor and namesake), honor “the community’s remarkable and vibrant literary heritage,” according to publicity notes. Now in its seventh year, the awards have previously recognized writers such as poet/children’s writer Richard Michelson, journalist and nonfiction writer Madeleine Blaise, children’s writer Julius Lester and organizations such as the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art.
This year’s award for local literary achievement will be presented to Ilan Stavans, the writer, essayist, cultural critic and graphic novelist who teaches Latin American and Latino culture at Amherst College. Among his most recent books are “The Seventh Heaven: Travels through Jewish Latin America” and “The Wall,” a book of poetry about the Mexican border and borders elsewhere.
The Sammy for significant contribution to Amherst’s literary culture will be presented to Levellers Press, the independent book publisher formed in 2009 by the worker-owners of Collective Copies. Since then, Levellers has published well over 100 titles by Valley authors and from around the U.S., according to publicity notes.
Tickets for the April 30 awards ceremony, which will include food and drinks provided by local artisans, can now be purchased at the Jones Library or online at joneslibrary.org/sammys. Prices are $75, $125, and $200 and go toward supporting for the library’s collections.
An art exhibit with historic rootsIn Easthampton, the monthly Arts Walk is moving from the second Saturday to the First Friday, and #Local Gallery, located at 40 Cottage Street, will be part of the action, with a new exhibit opening Friday, Feb. 7.
“Singular: Monotypes and Monoprints” is a regional show of the Monotype Guild of New England, curated by Doris Madsen, Elisa Lanzi and Edda Sigurðardóttir and featuring prints by more than 20 artists.
According to exhibit notes, monotypes and monoprints are “singular, one-of-a-kind art works” created by a process dating back to the 17th century, in which artists develop direct visual expression using hand-pulled techniques.
Friday’s opening will include a reception for participating artists. Additional events connected to the exhibit this month include a live printmaking demonstration by artist Lynn Peterfreund on Thursday, Feb. 13, from 6 to 8 p.m.