Home Posts tagged Wistariahurst Museum

Public Invited to Celebrate Juneteenth at Wistariahurst Museum

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Daily News

HOLYOKE — On Friday, June 19, Wistariahurst Museum and Genuine Culture welcome guests to the Wistariahurst gardens for Celebrate Juneteenth. This annual event commemorates freedom and the country’s second independence day through community and celebration.

Wistariahurst and Genuine Culture are collaborating for the fourth year to bring back this celebration for the Holyoke community and beyond. Attendees will enjoy activities throughout Wistariahurst’s grounds, including playing games in the gardens, getting creative with hands-on art projects, and more activities for people of all ages.

This event will feature performances including Voices of Praise, storyteller Eshu Bumpus, and DJ Pzo Pete. Local food vendors will also be selling food and drinks for guests to enjoy, including Souper Sweet, White Lion Brewing Co., and Thai Chili Street Food. Other performers and food vendors will be announced.

Black-owned businesses, makers, and artists will be selling a variety of locally made items. Local organizations will also have tables at the event, sharing information about their initiatives and the work they’re doing in the community.

Juneteenth serves as a poignant reminder of the remarkable resilience of Black lives, symbolizing the challenges and victories of formerly enslaved individuals striving for unity, education, and political engagement during the Reconstruction period. Celebrate Juneteenth aims to be going to be a day of joy, making memories, honoring history, and uplifting the voices of the Black community in Holyoke.

Admission to this celebration is completely free and open to the public. The event is sponsored by the Adams Foundation of South Hadley.

Wistariahurst Museum to Host Mother’s Day Market, Plant Sale on May 2

By
Daily News

HOLYOKE — Wistariahurst Museum will welcome spring with its second annual Mother’s Day Market on Saturday, May 2 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. This event features a variety of vendors selling locally made products such as art, jewelry, and food.

Vendors will be stationed indoors throughout the first floor of the museum. As guests shop and explore, the Brookline Trio will play live music for visitors to enjoy. Guests are welcome inside the Carriage House as well, where they can shop the gift shop, take photos in the carriage, and view the frog circus.

During the event, visitors can also participate in a free hands-on clay experience and cup exchange with Pots on Wheels. The Pots on Wheels truck will be parked in Wistariahurst’s driveway, ready for guests to come on board and get creative.

During the Mother’s Day Market from 10 a.m. to noon, Wistariahurst’s gardeners will host the first on-site plant sale of the season. Witariahurst has an array of annuals and perennials to brighten up any garden. Best of all, visitors can take home one plant for free (while supplies last) thanks to bankESB, which is sponsoring this event.

“Wistariahurst Museum’s Mother’s Day Market offers something for everyone. From plants to textile pieces and prints, vases, and home décor, you’re bound to find something your parent will love,” the museum stated.

This event is free and open to the public, but registration is encouraged by clicking here.

Two Holyoke Educators Honored for Promoting Civic Learning

By
Daily News

HOLYOKE — Two Holyoke educators were recently honored by the city and state for their work engaging students in civic learning.

During a Civics Learning Week ceremony at Wistariahurst Museum on March 9, Vanessa Martinez, Holyoke Community College (HCC) professor of Anthropology, and Nicholas Cream, an Ethnic Studies and History teacher at Dean Technical High School, received proclamations recognizing their work from Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia, the state House of Representatives, and the state Senate.

“We’re here today to honor two civic leaders who have gone far and beyond to inspire their students to think critically, engage respectfully with different perspectives, and understand their roles as active citizens,” Wistariahurst Director Morgan Seiler said. “Civic education is about empowering students to participate, lead, and contribute to the communities they call home. Teachers like Vanessa and Nick make that possible by bringing these lessons to life and showing their students their voices truly matter.”

Martinez, a health anthropologist, is co-founder of the Springfield-based Women of Color Health Equity Collective and coordinator of Community-based Learning at HCC. In 2023, Martinez’s students began collecting stories from Holyoke residents for two oral history projects, one on the COVID-19 pandemic and another that examines living conditions in the city and their impact on public health. Those interviews have become part of the Wistariahurst Museum’s permanent archives, and those projects continue.

“That was the beginning,” Martinez said. “Even my 100-level classes are now involved. They do interviews, they learn about oral history, they develop research skills. I feel so blessed to be able to continue this project and show students the importance of working in their communities and feeling their work will live beyond them.”

Cream is president of the Holyoke Teachers Assoc. and an advocate for civic participation and for teachers striving to improve education in Holyoke.

“Our nation’s long-standing audacious experiment in self-governance requires a populace with an understanding of the nation’s laws and government, the skills for discussion and working together across differences, and a commitment to civic strength,” Garcia said. “Educators play a central role in the essential daily work to support young people in the development of an informed and empowered civic identity.”

State Rep. Patricia Duffy presented Martinez and Cream with proclamations from the House and Senate.

“Being in public office, I know how important it is that we start early to get our kids engaged and really know what’s going on in this way-too-complicated world,” Duffy said. “That’s why it’s so important that we’re honoring Nick Cream and Vanessa Martinez, because of both how you teach and how you model for your students that civic life is not just what you learn in the classroom, but how you engage in the greater community, and Holyoke is all the better for it.”

Wistariahurst Seeks Submissions for Women’s History Month Art Exhibit

By
Daily News

HOLYOKE — Wistariahurst Museum is seeking artist submissions for the fourth annual Women’s History Month juried art showcase for the month of March. This year, the theme is women’s labor and community.

“Liberty and Labor” is an exhibit that corresponds with Massachusetts’ 250th anniversary and urges artists to consider the efforts women have made throughout history through labor and community building. Historically, women’s labor has been undervalued and overlooked. Oftentimes, the work women have done in areas such as homemaking, community building, and parenting has not even been viewed as work. “Liberty and Labor” aims to highlight these efforts, and others, that showcase the hard work and dedication of women throughout history.

All media are welcome for submission. Submissions are open to anyone who identifies as a woman and non-binary artists of any age. Artists are welcome to submit three or four pieces with high-quality images. To submit their work, artists should click here for the online submission form. Submissions are being accepted through Feb. 10.

Wistariahurst is an artist-friendly space that encourages creativity and supports the growth of this region’s artists. All questions are welcome and encouraged. Up to five artists will be selected as featured artists and awarded a $100 stipend.

This program is funded in part by a grant from the Holyoke Local Cultural Council, a local agency supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.