The Ferrin Gallery was jam-packed on Thursday night for the opening reception of I Am A Part of Art on Tour, a traveling exhibition of paintings by people with severe disabilities. Exhibiting artists created their work through the use of an adaptive painting system called Artistic Realization Technologies (A.R.T.), which enables them to execute their creative vision with the help of specially trained trackers who act as the hands of the artists, under the auspices of Community Access to the Arts (CATA), a non-profit organization that provides opportunities for creative expression to disabled individuals. Red dots were flying at Ferrin, so if the painting you wanted has already been sold, you can still show support for these artists next weekend: On Saturday, May 2, there is a fundraising gala with a performance of CATA's Mission: Imagination at Shakespeare & Company followed by a dinner dance at Berkshire Country Day ($175); on Sunday, May 3, at 1 PM, there will be a matinee performance of Mission: Imagination ($20; $5 for children.) —Bess Hochstein
Leslie Ferrin with dapper artist David Garner and his painting, Cop Car, which sold during the opening.
Suky Werman, a former CATA board member, with current board members Janet Elsbach, Leslie Shatz, and Elaine Radiss; Vicki Bonnington and David Schecker, who stopped by on their way to the Bard's birthday bash at Shakespeare & Company.
Artist Cathy Crofut with her painting, Shapes, which is over her left shoulder.
Pittsfield Cultural Commissioner Megan Whilden with state senator Benjamin Dowling; Tyler Weld & Janet Elsbach, who are co-chairs of the CATA gala on Saturday, May 2.
CATA artist Julie Raymond; Miles Tosk, the latest art star of the Berkshires—nearly all of his paintings had a red dot by the evening’s end.
Dalton metal-smith and jeweler Linda Kay-Moses with Ferrin Gallery's Donald Clark; Berkshire Museum executive director Stuart Chase with Taconic High School fine arts teacher Michael Boroniec.
Linda Cooper, a CATA board member, and Reggie Cooper, the managing director of Canyon Ranch, which sponsored the opening.
CATA North County program director Rebecca Tucker-Smith with CATA founder and executive director Sandy Newman; Laura Valenzuela, world musician Nana Simopoulous of the Topia Inn, and Beatrice Merry
CATA artist Carol Newhaus and her friend Janet Newberry; Carol’s painting, Spring, over her right shoulder, also sold.
Written by
Matteline deVries-Dilling, founder of Lite Brite Neon, one of the evening's honoree of this year's Upstate Benefit adresses the gala from the Caboose's caboose.
- Karen Pearson. Courtesy Art Omi.
Olana senior vice president and landscape curatorMark Prezorski, president Sean Sawyer, The evenings honoree Kristin Gamble and New York State Assemblymember Didi Barrett.
- Oxygen House Photo
