03 Jun CATA’S ANNUAL ART SHOW OPENS AT THE CLARK AND LICHTENSTEIN
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 3, 2021
Contact: Chris Watford
(413) 528-5485
Digital images available here
CATA’S ANNUAL ART SHOW OPENS AT THE CLARK ART INSTITUTE AND THE LICHTENSTEIN CENTER FOR THE ARTS—Celebrating Work by Artists with Disabilities
PITTSFIELD & WILLIAMSTOWN, MA—Community Access to the Arts (CATA) presents its annual art show, I Am a Part of Art, featuring a vibrant collection of paintings, drawings, and sculptures by more than 100 artists with disabilities. The exhibit takes place in partnership with the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, MA, and the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts in Pittsfield, MA, with over 150 works of art on display and available for sale, with proceeds benefiting CATA programs as well as individual artists.
CATA’s exhibit at the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts runs from July 1-July 31, 2021. The gallery, located at 28 Renne Avenue in Pittsfield’s Upstreet Cultural District, is open Wednesday through Friday from 11-3 and by appointment. Admission is free.
CATA’s exhibit at the Clark Art Institute’s Lunder Center at Stone Hill runs from July 3 through September 12, 2021. The Lunder Center, located at 227 South Street, Williamstown, MA, is open daily from 10am-5pm. Admission to CATA’s exhibit at the Lunder Center is free.
Additionally, the full exhibit will be available online at CATAarts.org as a vibrant, multimedia art show, with video commentary from CATA artists, digital “art talks” with guest curators, and a webshop to purchase artwork.
To celebrate the exhibit, CATA will host a free, online “Meet the Artists” event on Thursday, July 29, from 12 – 12:30pm. The half-hour, live-streamed event will feature interviews with CATA artists, curators from the Clark and Lichtenstein, and a behind-the-scenes tour of the exhibit.
“I Am a Part of Art offers a window into the imagination of artists with disabilities,” says CATA Executive Director Margaret Keller. “This exhibit is the essence of CATA’s mission: Our artists have created stunning work all year long in CATA workshops. And now, working closely with the Clark and the Lichtenstein, we get to share these incredible paintings and drawings with our wider community. You are sure to find a piece to fall in love with!”
Each work in the exhibit was created through Community Access to the Arts’ year-round workshops serving teens, adults, and elders with disabilities. Works are professionally matted and framed, and all pieces are available for sale, with proceeds providing commissions to the individual artists. The curated exhibit features a wide range of styles, including abstract and representational paintings, drawings, collage, sculpture, and printmaking.
This annual exhibition is the culmination of hundreds of visual arts workshops that CATA holds throughout the year for artists with disabilities across Berkshire County, Massachusetts and Columbia County, New York. Through these year-round workshops, CATA artists with disabilities grow creatively, learn new techniques, and find community. During the pandemic, CATA artists have continued to connect and create art in online workshops. Many of the works in this exhibit were created during this period.
I Am a Part of Art is sponsored by Berkshire Life Charitable Foundation, October Mountain Financial Advisors, Berkshire Magazine, Frames on Wheels, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and other generous supporters.
About Community Access to the Arts: Community Access to the Arts (CATA) nurtures and celebrates the creativity of people with disabilities. Through dynamic arts workshops and public events—now taking place virtually—CATA artists tap into their potential, explore new talents, and share their unique points of view with the wider community. CATA collaborates with 50 partner organizations to bring visual and performing arts programs to 800 people with disabilities across Berkshire County, Massachusetts and Columbia County, New York. Learn more at CATAarts.org.
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