Gallery 25 Presents: Heatwaves & Hues – A Summer Art Show

Heatwaves & Hues, running from Friday, May 2 – Sunday, August 17. This vibrant exhibition will showcase works bursting with color and inspired by the warmth and energy of summer.

Plan a Fun Weekend in New Milford!

New Milford is an exciting destination, offering a variety of activities for visitors. Enjoy well-reviewed restaurants, pubs, and unique shops, take in a film at our charming Art Deco movie theater, or catch a live performance at the innovative TheatreWorks playhouse. Stroll through our beautiful historic New England Green, a perfect spot to relax and soak in the town’s charm.

Experience Gallery 25

Gallery 25 is an artist-run gallery featuring 25 members working across all genres. Along with our exciting exhibitions, we invite you to take part in our workshops, live demonstrations, artist discussions, and photography walks!

We welcome you to explore, create, and be inspired!

In its debut showing, The Body Imagined: Figurative Art in the Bank of America Collection offers a unique lens on how the human figure has been depicted, reimagined, and transformed across generations and artistic movements. Featuring the work of acclaimed artists including Milton Avery, Nick Cave, Alex Katz, and Cindy Sherman, The Body Imagined examines how artists from the 20th century to the present have used the human figure in a diversity of mediums to communicate vibrant, compelling, and emotive narratives. This exhibition has been loaned through the Bank of America Art in our Communities® program.

We are proud to host this exhibition, made possible through Bank of America’s Art in our Communities® program, which aims to make art more accessible to local communities and foster greater cultural exchange.

The opening celebration is set for Sunday, June 22, 2025, with $5 admission for the day. 

Dates:  June 14 – July 27, 2025

Reception: Saturday June 14, 4 – 6 PM, public invited

Gallery hours: Thursday – Saturday 11:00 – 5:30, Sunday 12:00 – 4:00 and by appointment

Kenise Barnes Fine Art is honored to present a solo exhibition of new paintings by Janna Watson. Watson is a conceptual painter based in Toronto, Canada. Poems Without Words is Watson’s fourth solo exhibition with the gallery who has included Watson in eight other exhibitions and placed her work in numerous private collections. The gallery has represented the artist since 2017.

Through her practice, Watson works to reframe spirituality into objects that reflect fluidity, agility, and joy. She communicates this through a queering of the painterly process, into one that is diversely applied, gestural, and multi-oriented. Janna intentionally forgoes the use of borders on her paintings to create a sense of the infinite, and the inherent vulnerability of a spirituality that is not contained by a canon.

Janna Watson’s compositions and color choices are both careful and spontaneous, each gesture evoking an unstated emotional response. The paintings are generous passages of vivid color with swooping buttery paint strokes, and calligraphic marks floating on fields of saturated color. They are not spare, but they have an implied economy of language, each gesture gathered towards the others with an unseen gravitational force coalescing into a graceful equilibrium.

Part of the exhilaration I acquire from painting is being able to see shifts within myself manifested into a physical reality. The most truthful form of expression I have found in my life thus far has been the abstract language of painting.  – Janna Watson, 2025

Janna Watson’s work is widely exhibited internationally including in Canada, the United States and Taiwan. Watson’s paintings can be found in significant collections including Google, Air Canada, TD Bank Financial Group, Toronto, CIBC, Toronto, Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Toronto, HBC Global Art Collection, New York, to name a few. Watson earned a BFA in Drawing and Painting from Ontario College of Art and Design University, Toronto.

Please contact Lani Ming Holloway, Associate Director, Lani@kbfa.com, 860 560 3085 with inquires or to arrange a preview of the exhibition.

The Sherman Players Present: Much Ado About Nothing

directed by Robin Frome

Franz Joseph HAYDN String Quartet in D Major, Opus 33/6, “The Joke”

Seth GROSSHANDLER Dances  for String Quartet

Johannes BRAHMS Piano Quintet in F Minor, Opus 34

Tickets: $30-65, Under 19 Free

Musicmountain.org or 860-824-7126 for tickets and more information

Join the Sherman Chamber Ensemble for a special concert celebrating the genius of Antonín Dvořák.

Featuring Susan Rotholz on flute, Suliman Tekalli and Jane Chung on violin, Sarah Adams on viola, and Eliot Bailen on cello. Works include String Quartet No. 13 in G major, Op. 106 and Terzetto in C Major, Op. 74 for flute (originally violin), violin and viola.

Dvořák (1841-1904) was the first Bohemian composer to achieve worldwide recognition, noted for turning folk material into 19th-century Romantic music.

Violinist Suliman Tekalli joins the Sherman Chamber Ensemble for the first time. He has established his unique voice as an exciting and versatile soloist and chamber musician through his visceral yet elegant and mature performance style, captivating audiences with the depth of his interpretations an assured technique.

As the top prize winner of the 2015 Seoul International Music Competition and prize winner in the Sendai, Lipizer, and Szeryng International Violin Competition, Suliman Tekalli’s performing career has taken him throughout the U.S., Canada, Central America, Europe, and Asia, gracing the stages of numerous halls including Stern Hall at Carnegie Hall, the Seoul Arts Center, Wigmore Hall, and the Millennial Hall at the Kennedy Center among others. His performances have been broadcasted on live TV and radio from KBS TV in Korea, Montreal Canada’s CBC Radio 3, WQXR, and NPR.

Tickets $30. Children ages 16 and under free.

Purchase tickets at www.SCEmusic.org

The Youth Civic Challenge empowers teams of 13–18 year-olds to define and tackle real-world issues. Through this program, participants learn to rethink societal structures, reframe challenges, and implement lasting solutions.Youth Civic Challenge invites you to be part of an exclusive, 4-week summer course designed to empower driven individuals with the tools, knowledge, and network to drive positive change. 

Summer Camp will be running for 9 weeks for the summer 2025 season!

• June 23, 2025- August 22, 2025
• 9:00a - 4:00p
• $200 per week or 10% for all 9 weeks ($1620)
• Ages 5-12
• Located at Pleasant View Park (Durand Street) & Elise Besse Pool

Get ready for an unforgettable summer of adventure, creativity, and exploration at our themed summer camp! Each week, campers dive into a new, exciting theme, engaging in activities that spark their imagination, build new skills, and encourage teamwork. Our dedicated staff create a supportive and inclusive environment where every camper feels welcome and motivated to try new things. Each week is packed with themed games, creative arts and crafts, outdoor activities, and memorable experiences that will have campers eagerly looking forward to each new day!

Weekly Themes:

• Circus: Step right up to the greatest show at camp! Learn juggling, create clown costumes, and try your hand at acrobatics as we explore the wonders of the circus world.
• Holiday: Celebrate holidays from around the world in a week of festive fun! From Halloween to New Year's, each day is a different celebration with themed crafts, games, and treats.
• Under the Sea: Dive deep into ocean adventures! Explore marine life, create ocean-themed art, and embark on underwater-themed challenges.
• Superheroes: Unleash your superpowers! Design your own superhero persona, participate in "hero training," and work together to solve camp "missions."
• Around the World: Take a journey across the globe as we explore different cultures, languages, and traditions through games, food, and creative projects.
• Sports: Get your game face on! Try out various sports, build team spirit, and compete in friendly matches while learning the value of teamwork and sportsmanship.
• Outer Space: Blast off into space for a week of cosmic exploration! Learn about planets, create space crafts, and go on an epic space-themed scavenger hunt.
• Flora and Fauna: Discover the beauty of nature! Learn about plants and animals, explore local ecosystems, and create nature-inspired art.
• Challengers: Push your limits and test your skills! Compete in exciting team challenges, obstacle courses, and problem-solving activities designed to build confidence and collaboration.

 Each week campers will have the opportunity to enjoy our Besse Pool on Mondays and Wednesdays, so don't forget your swimsuit!

Register HERE

🌻 Join Us This Summer at Arethusa Farm 4-H Camp! 🌻

Located on a beautiful 140-acre nonprofit farm in Litchfield, CT, Arethusa Farm 4-H Camp is more than just summer fun—it’s a hands-on journey into sustainable agriculture, animal care, and environmental science!

🧒 Open to youth ages 5–13

📅 10 weeks of weekday camps | June 16 – August 22, 2025

🕘 9:00 AM – 3:30 PM daily

• 🌿 Discovery Camps (First 6 weeks): Explore farm animals, horticulture, environmental science, ag mechanics, and more!
• 🐑 Specialty Camps (Last 4 weeks):Choose from Vet Science Camp or Farm Camp for a deeper dive into animal care and sustainable farming.

This camp is part of a larger mission to reconnect youth and families with the land, promote food security, and build a healthier, more resilient community.

🔗 Register now

📧 Questions? Email us at arethusafarm4Hcamp@gmail.com

🌐 Learn more: www.arethusafarmfoundation.org

Let’s grow, learn, and thrive—together! 🌾

June 23 - August 30 - Registration link will be available mid-June!

OWL’s Fully Booked Summer Reading Challenge is back for 2025!

Register online, then come to the library to receive your challenge card. Starting Monday, June 23, the first 30 people who register AND come to the library to pick up their challenge card will receive a $5 gift card to Dunkin’ Donuts.

Your challenge card includes a list of 16 different prompts for you to try throughout the summer. However, you are not required to complete all of them. Participate at your own pace in whatever way works best for your reading habits!

One lucky winner will be randomly selected to receive a bookish prize basket. For each completed challenge, participants earn one entry towards the prize. Be sure to visit the library before the end of the program to enter your prize slips for the drawing.

Participants who complete at least 6 challenges will gain entry to an exclusive finale event on Tuesday, September 2nd at 6 PM. At this event, Vanessa Fasanella will help attendees create their own floral grapevine wreaths!