October 27 & 28. Noon-5pm.
Letter from the President
Dear Neighbor:
Welcome to Dorchester Open Studios 2007, a neighborhood-wide celebration of art. Over twenty years ago, the artists at Pearl Street Studios in Savin Hill started this annual event, which was expanded in 2002 to include artists all over Dorchester. This year, Dorchester Open Studios features the work of more than 100 artists who live, work, learn or play in our neighborhood, exhibiting in three artist studio buildings, two art galleries, and several group sites.
We hope that you will join us on Friday October 26 at Ahimsa Gallery for an opening reception. We'll have food and drink, and you'll have the opportunity to see Dorchester's first juried art show, on exhibit at Ahimsa through December 31, featuring many great Dorchester artists.
In addition to the exhibition events, we have a very special panel presentation on Corita Kent, the world renowned graphic design artist whose work is featured on the National Grid gas tank you drive by all the time on the Southeast Expressway. Join us on Saturday, Oct. 27, 7—9 p.m. at the Savin Hill Yacht Club for a conversation with experts on Corita and Dorchester, as we discuss the history of the gas tank, the art of Corita, and the place of public art in the life of a neighborhood.
Dorchester Open Studios was planned by a group of dedicated volunteers, working under the auspices of the Dorchester Arts Collaborative (DAC). DAC is a non-profit organization that seeks to stimulate economic and social change through arts programming in Boston’s largest and most diverse neighborhood. We are grateful for the support of our major sponsors: Mt. Washington Bank, SBLI, The Massachusetts Convention Center Authority and The Boston Cultural Council. We receive additional support from the Corcoran Jennison Companies, program advertisers and individual donors. Your support will help us continue to coordinate arts activities throughout our neighborhood. For more information, look around this website, or speak to one of the organizers at the event.
Our Board of Directors and Planning Committee are listed and thanked on the back, but every year, there are people who go far and above what could reasonably be expected from a volunteer, and I’d like to single them out with a hearty expression of gratitude: Cathy Moylan, who spent many hours putting this guide together, and designing other materials; Paul Hansen who is responsible for the Dorchester Open Studios web page; Emerson Kington and his crew have been contributing a lot of sweat equity, setting up all of the community sites we hope you will visit; and an extra special thanks to Donna Penn, Bill Hofmockel, Judy Brown and Rosanne Foley, who make planning this event look easy, even though it isn't. Ed Forry of The Dorchester Reporter has been an invaluable advisor since the very beginning. And congratulations and thanks to Andrea Kunst, the Open Studios coordinator we hired in the spring, who will soon be a grizzled veteran of Open Studios planning. Great job, Andrea!
Please enjoy the weekend we have planned for you. There is a lot of great art on exhibit in Dorchester.
Joyce Linehan
DAC Board President
Presented by Mt. Washington Bank and SBLI
