NORTH LEVERETT — An exhibit of artwork inspired by the North Leverett Sawmill and its environs will be on display at Leverett Library throughout September and October. A public reception, hosted by Friends of the North Leverett Sawmill, the nonprofit behind the show, will be held at the library from on Saturday, Sept. 13 from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.
The exhibition, titled “Art & Crafts Inspired by the 1774 North Leverett Sawmill,” will feature the work of dozens of professional and aspiring artists, including some Pioneer Valley favorites. Paintings, etchings, photographs, and sculpture will be on view, along with fabric art, collage, sketchbook drawings, and digital art.
“The historic mill, its working components, and environs have been inspiring artists for at least a century,” said Cynthia Baldwin, who co-curated the show with fellow board member Steven Stroud. “This is exemplified by the show’s 1930s etchings by Frank Waugh, the founder of the University of Massachusetts School of Landscape Architecture.” Other historic works include a 1947 oil painting by Stephen George Maniatty and sculptures by Lloyd Kirley, the mill’s last private owner.
Many of the exhibit’s works were displayed inside the sawmill in June as part of a one-day launch event for the adjacent heritage park and nature trail. Developed in partnership with the town of Leverett and encompassing 4.6 acres of land along the Sawmill River, the park represents the first phase of the nonprofit’s larger effort to preserve and document the region’s early industrial heritage and make the site publicly accessible for recreational and leisure activities.
Friends of the North Leverett Sawmill has received grants from the National Park Service, Massachusetts Cultural Facilities Fund, town of Leverett, and Greenfield Cooperative Bank to rehabilitate the historic sawmill for adaptive reuse as a museum and community space. Once completed, exhibits and programming will focus on industrial New England from the 18th to 21st centuries.
To learn more about the sawmill project or make a donation, visit leverettsawmill.org.
