Join us at ValleyCAST every month for a fun, FREE, and creative art workshop! Our March 2026 workshop is all about celebrating the arrival of spring! Laura will lead us step by step through using basic shapes to paint our very own spring bird!
Even if you’ve never painted before, this is the perfect way to get started and nurture your creativity!
The workshop is led by the talented Laura Cenedella!
Wednesday, March 11th, 2026 10am-11am and 1pm-2pm
Located at: The Singh Performance Center Second Floor Riverview Room 60 Douglas Road, Whitinsville, MA
Two sessions are available to attend, so you can choose the time that works best for you!
All supplies will be provided to create a bird painting. We’ll have samples on hand to provide inspiration. All ages and abilities are encourage to participate! FREE!
About Laura Cenedella When I was in school, my favorite time of day was when I was allowed to draw and paint. As I got older, this love never faded and eventually I went on to study art. I use many different mediums, such as oil, acrylics, watercolor, pastels and photography. I believe that working in a single medium is restrictive to my artistic process. Each idea manifests in its own individual style.
This is our eighth annual art-poetry show! This page here explains how the show works, for the artists and poets who are interested in participating.
We are holding this show at the Blackstone Public Library in Blackstone Massachusetts (a town by the Rhode Island border) for the month of April 2026.
The artists are drawn from our Blackstone Valley Art Association. The poets are drawn from the Sutton Writing Group and the Worcester Writers Collaborative.
Anyone interested in participating please let Lisa Shea know by SAT JANUARY 31st 2026 of that interest. Let her know:
If you prefer a partner you can meet in person or if you prefer to work remotely, staying in touch via email.
If you prefer an ‘intense’ relationship where you talk a lot about your works, or if you prefer a more ‘casual’ relationship where each person simply receives the other’s offering and then goes from there.
All of these options are fine. We want each team to be happy.
Soon after the names are gathered, each artist is paired with a poet. They form a team for the duration of this project.
Poet Writes a Poem
Sometime before February 20th, 2026, the poet provides the artist with a poem. The poem can be custom-written for this project or it can be a favorite the artist already has written. The poem will be hung in the show on a maximum size of 8.5″ x 11″ piece of paper so it should be short enough to fit on that paper at a reasonably sized font. With that being said, the poem can otherwise be as short or as long as the poet desires. It can be a short haiku or a long sonnet.
The artist now has until March 20, 2026 to create a work of art that represents that poem. The art can be a literal interpretation. It can convey the emotion of the poem. It can focus on one aspect of the poem. It is up to the artist to choose how to present their interpretation. That pairing of poem-plus-artwork will be hung side by side at the show. Artist: This means you NEED TO HAVE YOUR ARTWORK IN HAND so it can be hung in the art-poetry show for the show’s duration. Please do not sell or give away your art until the show is over.
In parallel: Artist Creates an Artwork
Sometime before February 20th, 2026, the artist provides the poet with a piece of art. Emailing a JPG photo of the art to the poet is fine; you do not need to give them the actual physical piece of art. Again, the artwork can be custom-created for this project or it can be an existing favorite. Keep in mind YOU MUST PHYSICALLY HAVE THIS ARTWORK. This piece of art will hang in the art-poetry show. Please do not sell or give away the artwork until after the show.
The poet now has until March 20, 2026 to write a poem based on that piece of art. The poem does not need to literally describe the artwork. It can convey an emotion. It can create a story based on the scene. It can be whatever the poet wishes. Again, the poem will be hung in the show on a maximum size of 8.5″ x 11″ piece of paper so it should be short enough to fit on that paper at a reasonably sized font. With that being said, the poem can otherwise be as short or as long as the poet desires. It can be a short haiku or a long sonnet.
When each poem and artwork is complete (both in the source and response round), please also send a copy to Lisa so she can update the website with the details. For art, let her know the dimensions of the piece when you send the JPG. Artists – if you are framing your piece under glass, please take a photo of the artwork before you frame it. That way we have a no-glare image to use in our promotions. If it’s a photo, you can just send us a JPG of the photo.
The drop-off date will be Tuesday, March 31st at the library.
Poets don’t need to ‘bring in’ anything – I print out all the poems so everything matches. Poets can just email me their 2 poems when they are ready. Artists can arrange with me to have me pick their 2 artworks up sometime just before March 31st or on the 31st. Remember, there should be TWO PIECES PER PERSON – a source item and response item – for this show :).
The reception will be at the Blackstone Public Library, at 86 Main Street in Blackstone MA. Date to be announced. Please bring a snack or soda to share. Please try to attend – we like to videotape the artist and poet talking about their collaboration!
If anybody has any questions or comments, please let Lisa know. Let her know if you’re interested in participating!
The current pairings are:
Bob Evans artist – remote and casual Dennis Smith artist – remote and medium intensity Art Martin artist – remote and casual (but will do in person) Lynne Galluzzo artist – in person Ellen Gould artist Linda DeFeudis artist
Evan Plante poet Christine Beauchaine poet – remote and casual Jody Zolli poet Sue Lovejoy poet Linda DeFeudis poet
If I missed anybody, please let me know! My email sometimes loses messages so I apologize if I inadvertently missed someone who was interested.
It’s time for a FREE encouraging, compassionate critique session! We all discuss our latest works or images and then offer each other suggestions and advice. You can present photos, paintings, drawings, sculptures, digital art, collages, and whatever else you’ve been working on.
Whatever you wish! It’ll be fun, relaxed, and conversational. All abilities are warmly encouraged to participate. We each have something to learn!
If you’d like just to listen in, and gain knowledge from the conversation, that is fine too.
Our moderator for this session will be the amazing artist Jo Ellen Reinhardt!
Our February 2026 monthly meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 17th, 2026 from 6:30-9pm.
Where: BVAA Open Sky Uxbridge Community Gallery 5 South Main Street Uxbridge, MA 01569
There is a TON of free parking immediately next to this building. It is fully and easily handicapped accessible.
If the weather is icy we will hold the session online on Zoom. We’ll send out announcements if the weather warrants it.
This meeting and session is free and open to the public. No experience is necessary. The fun of our workshops is that we all learn new things we’ve never done before.
Our meetings cover BVAA organization business from 6:30-7:00pm and then go into the workshop part of the evening. Feel free to come for whichever half interests you the most. In general, our monthly meetings are held on the third Tuesday of each month unless otherwise announced.
All are welcome – this workshop is open to members and non-members. Feel free to bring along a friend! We’d love to see you there to learn some new things and explore your creativity!
Dale took this photo with a scanner with a black cloth over the top!
Second Place: Cheri Holland / “Submerged Flower – Red White and Bloom”
They are images of flowers submerged in a fish tank. They are attached to a heavy frog at the bottom. I use droppers with milk, to drop on the flowers to make the effect.
Third Place: Michael Backunas / “Beach of Dreams, West Iceland”
Honorable Mention: Wendy Fulginiti / “A Walk in the Past”
Wendy took this photo at the Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum with a Canon 90D.
Honorable Mention: Dale Hoopingarner / “Corsage”
Dale took this photo with a scanner with a black cloth over the top!
Honorable Mention: Cheri Holland / “Submerged Flowers: Ethereal Bloom”
From Cheri: They are images of flowers submerged in a fish tank. They are attached to a heavy frog at the bottom. I use droppers with milk, to drop on the flowers to make the effect.
Thank you to everyone who participated in our photography show!
Are you a photographer who would like to tweak the lights and shadows of your photo? Maybe you’re a painter and need to learn how to “de-skew” your painting image so it looks more straight? Whatever your style of artwork, Bob can help you learn the basics of Lightroom and Photoshop to improve your images!
We will be doing this ON ZOOM so that people can see the menus in detail on their own computer monitors or TV screens. We will also be recording this so that people who are busy on the 20th can watch the replay later. It’s always good to come live, though, so you can ask questions!
Location: Online in Zoom! We will email everyone the link in our BVAA newsletter. If you don’t get our newsletter, contact us directly for the link
When: Tuesday January 20th 2026 6:30-9pm (may not run this late, depending on user questions)
This meeting and session is free and open to the public. No experience is necessary. The fun of our workshops is that we all learn new things we’ve never done before.
Our meetings cover BVAA organization business for the first 10-15 minutes and then go into the workshop part of the evening. Feel free to come for whichever part interests you the most. In general, our monthly meetings are held on the third Tuesday of each month unless otherwise announced.
All are welcome – this workshop is open to members and non-members. Feel free to bring along a friend! We’d love to see you there to learn some new things and explore your creativity!
Our meetings are supported in part by grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
Attention artists! The Charlton Library in Charlton Massachusetts is offering FREE gallery space to local artists! Each artist gets a month for their personal art show. You could do one solo by yourself, or you could get a friend or two to share the space! If you’d like to do a joint show with someone, let me know, and I’ll hook you up with someone to share a space.
Here’s the beautiful venue:
Charlton Public Library 40 Main Street Charlton MA 01507
For the month of January 2026 I (Lisa Shea) am presenting an art show of my cyanotype artworks. My show is in the Charlton Library foyer space, which holds about 9 -18 pieces depending on how you decide to hang items and how large / small they are. When you stand in the Charlton Library lobby and look at the hallway to your right, there are two art spaces on the left and one on the right. There’s a pillar separating the two left-hand areas – the library puts a sign there to describe your art and provide a link to your website.
Here’s a direct view of the left hand wall.
Here’s the right-hand wall.
The hanging metal strips can slide left and right along the moulding rail.
The art is connected to those strips either by a small hook or a long rectangular metal piece. For either option, it’s really best if your art is WIRED on the back. That is, a metal wire should stretch left to right across the length of the back of your piece. Here’s what the hanging units look like.
The small hooks / horizontal hooks can slide up and down the strip. Generally you can fit 1 or 2 hanging items per strip.
For the artwork labels, it’s best to tape those TO your art so they aren’t damaging the wall paint. So what you do is this. Make your label. Put blue painter’s tape on the back of your label, with extra tape off the top. Now connect that extra tape to the back of your artwork, with the label facing forward. That way the label “hangs” off the bottom of your artwork, facing the viewer.
The Charlton Public Library also has a main meeting room which is in constant use. This is well suited for larger items. Here is Brandi Van Roo who is in the space in January 2026. You can see that the space works well for art items of all sizes. Note how Brandi has attached her labels to the bottoms of her artworks.
For more information on the space, the hanging system, and to sign up, visit:
Talented local Mendon painter Ellen Gould walks us through how to do an oil painting of a still life object – in this case a gorgeous ornate money box from the Mendon Massachusetts historical society! A perfect way for everyone to learn more about Mendon’s treasures and how to approach an oil painting project.
To see photos from the Mendon Historical Society museum watch here:
We have a bunch of videos celebrating Mendon! Here you go!
Our 2026 Choco l’Art show is the perfect melding of chocolate and art! Enjoy the taste sensation! This our 10th Annual celebration of the theme!
All forms of hanging art are welcome – photography, watercolors, acrylics, oils, fabric art, drawings, etc. The art must be wired to work with Charlton’s panel system. The art doesn’t have to be about chocolate. It can be about anything you wish :).
Submissions The submission deadline for label-making purposes is Friday, January 30th, 2026 at midnight EST. There’s a $5 fee for up to 3 works. It’s open to all BVAA members. As this is a judged show, only pieces which have not been previously entered into a BVAA judged show are eligible for participation. Full BVAA terms: BVAA Show Terms and Conditions
Drop-Off To be determined with the library and with Brandi Van Roo, who is in the space before us.
Public Reception The reception is on Tuesday February 10th from 6pm to 7:30pm. All are welcome! There’ll be lots of chocolate in all shapes, sizes, and varieties. Artists – please bring in some chocolate of your own to share (no nuts please). If you know of a local store that could donate chocolate, please let us know.
Pick-Up Pick-up for the show is probably around Feb 28th or March 1st, depending on who comes in next.
Prizes This show has the visitors vote on a “People’s Choice” award. There’s a ribbon plus a cash prize. The prize amount is based on the number of entries.
Theme You can do a romantic theme or a chocolate theme if you’d like, but it’s not required!
Volunteers Needed The BVAA is run by volunteers – please lend a hand! We need volunteers for the following activities: * Assembling the show * Watching over the reception * Bringing of chocolate for the chocolate reception (please do not include any nuts) * Take-down of the show
Let us know on your submission form how you’re able to help out.
If you have photos from the first show please let us know!
The 2016 winner for this show was Carole Plante with her chocolate lab! Quite appropriate :).
Here’s what Carole did for 2018 :).
Again, you don’t have to include chocolate in your submission. For some reason it seems that the “people’s choice” voters seem to vote for chocolate things while they are eating chocolate. So it does help your chances. Still, we’ve had non-chocolate winners in the past!
Want to learn more about taking lovely photos? Join us on Friday December 19th 2025 from 1-3pm for our photography workshop at the Worcester Art Museum! All levels of photographers warmly encouraged to participate. This event is open to the public.
NOTE THE LOCATION! We usually do our workshops at the New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill. However, due to the inclement weather, we will be inside at the Worcester Art Museum.
The cost of the photography workshop is FREE for December.
Non-photographers are welcome to join us to walk around and enjoy the exhibits. We will appreciate the artwork while we’re there.
Note that because we are holding this month’s workshop at the Worcester Art Museum, YOU MUST SEPARATELY PAY AN ENTRANCE FEE TO THE WAM. That entrance fee is $22. You can find discount or free tickets at many local libraries. Check with your libraries to find an inexpensive way to get into the museum. If you are an individual served by Open Sky, talk with Open Sky about being sponsored for this event. You pay that entry fee directly to the museum when you arrive.
We will meet inside the Worcester Art Museum by the Roman mosaic / entrance to the Chapter House at 1pm. Photographer Lisa Shea will provide a brief introductory discussion of ideas for taking photos in an indoor setting. Then we will explore the museum from 1-3pm. You can roam on your own, stay with the group, and ask questions whenever you wish. Feel free to come early or stay late!
Please be sure to RSVP to join the group. Let Lisa know what type of cellphone or camera you plan on bringing. Lisa can then send you a PDF of ideas to get you started. If you don’t have access to any cellphone or camera, we have a few we would be able to lend for the afternoon.
Let us know if you have any questions! And please make sure you research your Worcester Art Museum tickets beforehand. That way you can get discount tickets from your local library or from Open Sky (if applicable) to save on your entrance fee.
Whether you participate in the field trip or not, please consider then sending in a few of your Darkness and Light photos to participate in the free ValleyCAST virtual art show. This show has a deadline of Tuesday, December 30th, 2025!
Celebrate the beauty of the Blackstone Valley in Massachusetts! Our “Local Beauty” community art show is open to ALL forms of art – photography, watercolors, acrylics, oil paintings, pastels, printmaking, sculpture, and more. The topic is our local Blackstone Valley in Massachusetts. We eagerly look forward to seeing local landscapes, architecture, visions, and interpretations of:
Do you have a photo of Purgatory Chasm in Sutton? A watercolor painting of the Millville canal lock? An abstract interpretation of Worcester City Hall? We’d love to see how you interpret this topic!
This show is FREE to participate in and is open to all community members! You don’t have to live in a listed down to participate. The image itself needs to somehow represent one of those towns.
When: Feb 28th to April 4th, 2026
Where: BVAA Open Sky Uxbridge Community Gallery 5 South Main Street Uxbridge, MA 01569
There is a TON of free parking immediately next to this building. It is fully and easily handicapped accessible.
Participation is open to the public. Each participant may exhibit up to three pieces of art.
Entering the Show Artwork can be any size. That being said, please contact us first if you plan on bringing anything over 20″ x 30″ in size. We need to arrange for space for those separately.
All art must be family friendly and properly wired for hanging. Our hanging system does not work with saw-tooth or triangle hangers. 3M stick-on hangers are notorious for falling off – please don’t use those. If you are new to preparing photography for shows, read our page on How to Mat and Frame a Photo. Please also check out our Show Terms and Conditions
All art which is entered is displayed. There is no “pre-selection” process where some are accepted and others are rejected. If you submit artwork, and it is family-friendly and wired properly, it will be part of our show. You can have your art listed with a price for sale, or you can have it Not For Sale if you wish.
Submissions To submit your entries use our BVAA Online Submission Form. The deadline to submit the online label information is midnight on Saturday, February 28th, 2026. Work must be dropped off on Saturday, February 28th, 2026 between 10am and 3pm. Please only bring artwork in on Saturday – the staff in the location during the week do not handle artwork processing. All artwork which is brought in will be hung (as long as it is properly wired and is family-friendly).
Please indicate on your label which town each image represents. We’ll be using that information to create our town-specific slideshows, explained below.
Judging This show will be a community choice voting. Every person can vote for a first, second, and third place. Winners will be announced at the reception.
Video Slideshows
In addition to the in-gallery experience and the traditional full show video walkthrough, we will also do town-specific slideshows as part of this project. We’ll create a slideshow of the images representing Uxbridge, the images representing Grafton, and so on. That way people who are interested in art from a particular town can easily find it.
Reception The reception for this show will be on Friday, April 3rd, 2026 from 5-7pm. Prizes are usually awarded around 6pm. Winners will receive ribbons and certificates.
Pick Up Pickup of the art is on Saturday, April 4th, 2026, from 10am to 3pm. If you aren’t able to make this date, please contact us for other arrangements. Please do not stop by the gallery during the week to pick up art – the weekly staff are not able to process the art items.
Ask with any questions! We look forward to seeing your entries!
To get inspired, here is our Local Beauty show from 2024!
This Uxbridge gallery is supported in part by BVAA member dues, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and by ValleyCAST. The space use is kindly donated to us by ValleyCAST, the community outreach department of Open Sky Community Services. Open Sky uses this space for special-needs client activities during daytime weekdays. They allow the BVAA use of the space – and its gallery walls – on evenings and weekends. We actively support their inclusive mission. All are welcome to all of our events and activities!
