ArtsFest 2017 staged by the Pelham Art Center and the New Rochelle Council on the Arts takes place from Oct. 6 to 8. It”™s been a tradition since 2009 for the arts to be showcased in both communities on the same weekend. A trolley will be running to shuttle folks between the various attractions in Pelham and New Rochelle.
The festivities begin with Friday evening”™s “Arts in Oktoberfest” from 6 to 8 p.m. during which there will be tastings of craft beer and cider at participating venues in both communities. On Saturday and Sunday, there”™s a full schedule of events, exhibitions and entertainment during the ArtsFest”™s hours of noon to 4 p.m. For example:
On Saturday from noon to 1:30 p.m., “Touch Stones,” an exhibition of new sculptures by Beatrice Wolert, opens at Wolfs Lane Park in Pelham. A touchstone is a reference point from which other things can be evaluated. The work is meant to highlight how Wolfs Lane Park is a touchstone for the community. And, yes, people will be invited to touch the stones.
At the Pelham Art Center from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, there will be a performance and workshop by storyteller Tom Lee. He is a frequent guest artist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and is a performing arts partner with the Yale Center for British Art and the Metropolitan Opera Education Conference. For more than 30 years, Lee has been performing traditional stories, folktales and myths for adults and children.
Full schedules are posted online at newrochellearts.org and pelhamartcenter.org. ArtsFest events are free.
