Arts
‘O’ is for Oman: Northampton man completes mission of traveling the alphabet of countries
By JAMES PENTLAND
More than 60 years after he crossed his first foreign border, Gerard Simonette this month completed a mission of sorts: He checked off the last remaining letter of the alphabet of countries he has visited with a trip to Oman.Simonette, 80, who...
Best Bites: Where to eat dinner right now: The top 35 Valley spots for dinner and what you should order
By ROBIN GOLDSTEIN
If I were writing the Pioneer Valley chapter of a travel guide to New England, this would be its section for “dinner with table service.” I list restaurants first that I feel are most essential to the local dining scene, the ones we can’t live...
Taking up long-form fiction: Acclaimed short-story writer Kelly Link is set to debut her first novel
By STEVE PFARRER
Kelly Link has piled up quite a few accolades and honors over the years: a MacArthur “genius grant,” a Pulitzer Prize nomination, several awards for fantasy fiction — a Hugo, a World Fantasy, and three Nebulas — and the kind of praise writers dream...
Weekly Food Photo Contest: This week's winner: Richard B. Newton of Easthampton
Along with this photo, Richard B. Newton of Easthampton wrote, “Found today at the Big Y — Turnover opens up about the joy of being raspberry!”How to enter: Snap a pic of something delicious-looking and send it with your name, town and a sentence or...
Let’s Talk Relationships: Single on Valentine’s Day? How to be your own valentine
By AMY NEWSHORE
Many of us are facing Valentine’s Day with a lack of enthusiasm, to say the least. You may be newly single and are feeling raw and shaky. You may have been on your own for a long time and here you are, solo, once again on this holiday. Or you may find...
Art that traveled far, wide: Smith College exhibit showcases venerable art from the Persianate world
By STEVE PFARRER
Before it became recognized by its modern name in 1935, Iran was known for centuries — at least in the western world — as Persia, a name that reflected the language of the same name and the culture that was part of it.In the 1970s, academics coined...
Still harmonizing after all these years: Silver Chord Bowl marks its 40th anniversary
By STEVE PFARRER
The 1980s witnessed the start of what have become some longstanding artistic landmarks in Northampton: the Young@Heart Chorus, the downtown New Year’s Eve festival called First Night Northampton, and a good-natured competition involving collegiate a...
The Beat Goes On: Acclaimed dobro player shows her singer-songwriter side in Northampton, an eclectic duo comes to Florence, and more
By STEVE PFARRER
The Parlor Room features a steady stream of singer-songwriters, given the Northampton club’s intimate setting is ideal for acoustic music.The vast majority of those performers come bearing acoustic guitars. But Abbie Gardner will bring her dobro, or...
Get Growing with Mickey Rathbun: A garden is a canvas: “Painting the Modern Garden: From Monet to Matisse” comes to Amherst Cinema
By MICKEY RATHBUN
As the calendar page flips to the short but cruel month of February, I suspect that many gardeners, like me, are getting tired of the somber palette of gray and brown.Just in time to rescue us from seasonal ennui, a wonderful documentary, “Painting...
Only Human with Joan Axelrod-Contrada: ‘Money, it’s a gas’: Exploring both sides of the coin when costly bills surprise us
By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA
Every time I hear the classic song “Money” by Pink Floyd, I think about my complicated relationship with the almighty dollar.Who hasn’t felt pushed and pulled between the seductive power of our currency and its ability to crush us? Not surprisingly,...
Animal tales: Northampton exhibit of photography and poetry looks at the threats animals face, as well as their beauty
By STEVE PFARRER
When he was growing up in New York City, Florence photographer Stephen Petegorsky was fascinated by the skeletons and diorama displays of animals in places like the city’s Museum of Natural History, developing an early interest in the science and art...
Book Bag: ‘The Sacred Dog’ by Joan Livingston; ‘Mud Pie’ by Lauren Arienzale
By STEVE PFARRER
The Sacred DogBy Joan LivingstonDarkstroke Books Franklin County author Joan Livingston, a former reporter and editor who once covered the Hilltowns for the Gazette, has used her experience to create a series of mystery novels set in similar towns,...
Weekly Food Photo Contest: This week’s winner: Rachel Markowitz of Northampton
With this winning photo, Rachel Markowitz of Northampton brings us closer to granola than we’ve ever been before. Her homemade batch “adds the necessary crunch and spice to my morning yogurt-and-fruit bowls.”How to enter: Snap a pic of something...
Valley Bounty: Micro but mighty: At a new farm in South Hadley, small is beautiful — and delicious
By JACOB NELSON
If there’s a lesson to be learned from Love Leaf Farm in South Hadley, it’s this: don’t judge a farm by its size … or the size of their crops, for that matter.In the words of farmer-owner Michael Fredette, “Love Leaf Farm is a very small, indoor...
Rare views into an earlier age: Clark Art Institute exhibits some 80 original images in paper and photographs
By DON STEWART
There are those who see winter not as a season but as a siege. They tire of shoveling white glittering fractals from their driveways and see snow as the unnecessary freezing of water.If you’re among those who don’t consider the frozen monochrome of...
In time for downbeat: Jazz record designer Jack Frisch hosts new jazz show on Valley Free Radio to ‘get the music out there’
By STEVE PFARRER
Back in the 1980s, Jack Frisch, then in his early twenties, got bitten pretty hard by the jazz bug, taking the ferry from his home in Staten Island, New York, over to Manhattan with some friends and haunting record shops.His interest had been...
Arts Briefs: New exhibits and a gallery expansion in Easthampton, a musical cabaret in Amherst, and more
A grand reopeningEASTHAMPTON — With a dramatic increase in space, 50 Arrow Gallery will inaugurate its new locale Feb. 8 with a celebratory reopening and the unveiling of a new exhibit, featuring the work of Valley artist David Andrews.The gallery’s...
Earth Matters: Queering the outdoors: The Venture Out Project empowers LGBTQIA2S+ people through community and adventure
By ALLIE MARTINEAU
Affinity spaces for queer people are essential, to share the things we carry. To meet friends, trade craft and clothing, talk about our lives, how to find doctors and well-sewn binders, how to come out, change a tire, ask for a raise, or cook for a...
Around and About with Richard McCarthy: Plane of dreams: Cheering on young athletes as they gain life experiences
By RICHARD MCCARTHY
Recently, I was at an airport and waiting for the same plane was a group of what looked to be about 12-to-14-year-old boys, all wearing the same black sweatsuits, with the same logo on the front of the sweatshirt. You could feel the electricity...
‘Creole love call’: Gombo launches new music series starting Feb. 2 with jazz reedman Evan Arntzen
By STEVE PFARRER
When John Piskor opened his Cajun-style restaurant, Gombo Nola Kitchen & Oyster Bar, in Northampton last year, he said he eventually wanted it to turn it into something akin to a New Orleans cafe, where people come out for a drink and live music after...
