Our next Artist Demonstration on the Porch will be Saturday, September 16, 2023 from 10:00 to 1:00. League of New Hampshire Craftsman Larry and Victoria Elbroch will demonstrate their process of combining Larry's photography of trees with Victorie's printmaking. Together they create beautiful, amazing prints in addition to their own individual work. Hope you can stop by and meet the artist!​

Sandwich Home Industries, which will be celebrating its 100th birthday in just two years, is offering something new this fall, a Lakes Region Guest Artist space in the Gallery. 
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The brainchild of Sandwich resident Mary Coolidge, the Home Industries was founded to help local craftspeople on the eve of the Great Depression earn an income from their work. The building supplied a space where local craftspeople could display and sell the fine crafts they made at home and where they could teach others, so traditional NH crafts would be passed down through the years. When the League of NH Craftsmen was formed a few years later (with Mary Coolidge as its first president) those goals expanded to craftspeople throughout NH.

The Sandwich Fine Craft Gallery at 32 Main Street in Sandwich, is open 7 days a week until October 15, 2023. Hours are from 10:00-5:00 Monday thru Saturday and 12:00-5:00 on Sundays. We hope you will stop in and check out the amazing work of artists from all over the state of New Hampshire! ​

Please join us for Opening Day festivities at the Sandwich Historical Society, on Saturday, June 24th, from 12pm-3pm.

There will be live Traditional Skills Demonstrations outside the Quimby Barn Transportation Museum, and the opening of the Annual Exhibit in the Elisha Marston House. We will also show the rare 19th century curtain painting of Mount Israel in the upper level of the Grange Hall. 

All of this, plus an outdoor food grill near the demonstrations, outside of the Transportation Museum! First, Live Demonstrations of Traditional Arts, outside of the Quimby Barn Transportation Museum will feature:
 
Brian Stockman, of Tuftonboro, NH, has dedicated his life to the study and practice of a variety of traditional indigenous and colonial artisan craft media, and large-scale figurative sculpture. For our event, Brian will demonstrate the art of scrimshaw carving. His work is in numerous private and public collections.

Alli Plourde, from Durham, NH, is a seasoned potter and figurative sculptor working in clay who currently teaches art at Oyster River HS, and formerly at Holderness School. Alli will demonstrate throwing functional pottery on the potter’s wheel. She has a BFA from Rochester Institute of Technology, and a Master’s degree from RI School of Design, and is a member of the NH Potters’ Guild. ​

Tina Greenfield, from Rensselaer, New York, will be sharing her skills in decorative painting, often known as “tole” painting. It is the folk tradition of embellishing household utilitarian objects with surface paint to transform that object into one of beauty. Ms. Greenfield has been painting in this style on wood and metal for close to thirty years, and has received both regional and national recognition for her work. Her pieces have been shown at the Library of Congress and the White House, as well as at several New England conventions in this field.

Corey Slater, from Ashland, NH, is a second-generation pack basket weaver. He will be showing and creating backpack baskets out of traditional materials. They are especially loved among mushroom collectors. Corey has been making custom heirloom pack baskets for people worldwide for about ten years.

Second, the Annual Exhibit entitled, “Tiny Treasures, Great Joys”, will open its doors as well. It highlights and celebrates vintage, handmade dollhouses, and other unique, miniature objects from our vast collection; In the Wentworth Room of the SHS.
 
Please join us for this festive day. And stay tuned for other summer events hosted by your Sandwich Historical Society. 
 
—Franz Nicolay, 
with the Sandwich Historical Society
Programs and Education Committee
Summer, 2023

Artisans on the Green is a one day fine craft fair on the green in downtown Center Sandwich. This event is sponsored by The Center Sandwich Fine Craft Gallery (aka Sandwich Home Industries) during our town's Old Home Week and it has been a tradition for many years.  Artisans on the Green will be held on August 10th from 10 am - 4 pm. 

There is still space for artists and craftspeople at our one day, well-attended fine crafts and art fair. We are looking for artisans who might be interested in securing a tent space for that day.  We are always excited to have new artists join us, both young and old.  A committee will review the applications and will select participating artisans.

Please read through the attached application and let me know if you have any questions. It is best to email [email protected] with questions.
If you are ready to apply, please download the form from our website, fill it out, and mail it in with your check.
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We just extended our due date for applications to May 15th. The last date to cancel is June 15th. If you have any questions, please feel free to call Ralph, the gallery manager at the number below or check out the Artisans on the Green info on the website. 

For over 40 years, a two-day holiday fair and sale has magically appeared across the town of Sandwich on the first weekend in December. This year’s Christmas in the Village features 19 locations with over 40 participants, selling a wide variety of crafts, fine art, gifts, goodies, and holiday ornaments, greens and décor. 
You’ll find the holiday spirit everywhere with with many venues offering hand-crafted ornaments and holiday décor. 

Your Neighbors Flowers and Something Wild Farm is a collaboration between two North Sandwich Farms offering local and sustainably harvested spruce and fir Christmas Trees, table top trees, wreaths and other handmade gifts Saturday 12/3 & Sunday 12/4 9am to 2pm on both sides of the Green in Center Sandwich.

Pam Urda will have beautiful evergreen wreaths and centerpieces at Wayside Farm, Amy Brown will have holiday wreaths, kissing balls, centerpieces and ornaments at the Doris Benz Center, and Shirly Glines will show fresh holiday arrangements at the Sandwich Home Industries.

Craftspeople and makers will set up in small groups at various locations.  At Partridge Hill Farm, you’ll find four vendors in a spectacular barn, open only on Saturday 10am - 2pm only. Rachel Bartlett will have her hand thrown, high fired, functional pottery, glazed to reflect colors of the natural world. Macrame Christmas ornaments, winter paintings, & gnomes are available from Jodi with an Eye. Vicky Dworkin will bring her Fabrications:  fabric collage landscapes of local scenes; as well as table top Christmas arrangements from recycled and vintage materials. Laser Focused Designs & Gifts will have unique gifts ranging from charcuterie boards, earrings coasters, holiday ornaments & more. Custom orders are available to make your gifts more personalized.

​The Doris Benz Community Center will be open Saturday only 9 am- 4 pm, Little Apiary on the Hillside will have local raw honey, beeswax candles, honey based soaps, lotion bars & lip balm, as well as handmade patchwork quilts. You’ll also find hand-dyed napkins, dish towels & clothing, hand carved block printed, silkscreen and real leaves from Robin Cornwall and original photo card of flowers, animals and local landscapes by Jessica Kelly. 

Thank you so much to those who came out to support live demonstrations of traditional skills, and the summer opening of the Sandwich Historical Society! We enjoyed your presence and participation. —Franz Nicolay, Programs & Education Committee.
​All photos are by Charlene Oulette, except where otherwise noted.

July 9th through July 26th. Local artist, Wendy Ketchum, has created an intriguing series of woodcut monoprints based on 19th century New England textile mills.  Her exhibit will open at Patricia Ladd Carega Gallery on July 9.   

The series was inspired by her love of history, 19th century photographs and the “many long rows of massive brick buildings” that dot the New England landscape.  Her meticulous technique combines with her subject matter in a series of poignant pictures relating to the history of the “Mill Girls.” The work is inspired by old photographs of mill workers, as well as actual patterns made from fabrics created at the mills.

Join us for a reception to meet the artist on Saturday, July 9th from 5 to 7 pm.   Ketchum will also host a “conversation” about the “Mill Girls” and their place in our history on Saturday, July 16 at 9:30 am. 
 
Ketchum’s artist statement best describes The Mill, a project that has taken her several years to complete:  “In the years between 1830 and 1860 tens of thousands of young single women were recruited to leave their family farms in northern New England to seek social and economic independence through employment in the textile mills. Despite the yoke of corporate paternalism, millwork put a new kind of power into women’s hands economically, providing them with the highest wages offered to female employees anywhere in the US at the time.

Coming from farms where time was dependent on the seasons, the “mill girls,” as they were called, were faced with the tyranny of the bell and clock tower dictating every minute of their working day. The cotton that fed the mills was grown and processed by slave labor in the American South, and a portion of it was woven by mill girls into coarse cloth to clothe those very slaves creating a closed circle of labor. Many of the mill girls became ardent abolitionists, in addition to becoming labor reform activists fighting for better working conditions through walkouts, mass rallies, strikes, and the creation of one of the first labor reform leagues in the country. 
 
The exhibit will be on view through July 26th. The gallery is located at 69 Maple Street in Center Sandwich.  Gallery hours are from 10 to 5 Tuesday through Saturday.  Sunday and Monday, if the door is open, come on in. www.patricialaddcaregagallery.com, 603 284-7728 ​

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Save the Notch Campaign.  As it was in the 1970s, the debate of conservation versus use and development remains at the forefront of discussions regarding the wilds of, not only New Hampshire, but many areas of the world. In our small corner, we have decided to highlight the persistence of our community to persuade those with the power to preserve the Sandwich Notch for future generations. 

Our seasonal exhibit can be seen in the Elisha Marston House, Barn & Gift Shop, which will be open on June 25 from 10 AM - 3 PM.  Don't forget to check out the Gift Shop and all the new items!

Elisha Marston House Reimagined:  If you're new to Sandwich or the area or you have not visited us in a few years, this summer is a great opportunity to see what our Collections team, led by our Museum and Collections Coordinator - Lauren Hansen - have been up to!  Lauren shares, "The last two years of quarantine and limited visitors have allowed us to do some thinking on more than just conservation. 

We have had some significant acquisitions in recent years, so we decided to rearrange some rooms throughout the house.  Some objects have been on display for many years.  It was with this in mind that we put some to bed for a rest, brought out some to say hello, and are highlighting those who have recently joined "our family." Visit, and see if you can spot all of the changes we have made!

Advice To The Players, Sandwich’s own Shakespeare company, is proud to present their 3rd annual Fall Festival of Shakespeare. Fall Festival is an education program where students work with a directing team of teaching artists who lead the teens through a language-based exploration of Shakespeare. At the end of 10 weeks, the groups come together at Plymouth State University and showcase their work.

This year they have two groups of students participating: Newfound Regional High School and the Sandwich Cobble. Both groups have been participating since 2019. NRHS will be performing Much Ado About Nothing followed by the Sandwich Cobble’s production of The Tempest. The production will take place in-person at Plymouth State University on December 10th starting at 6:00 with Much Ado About Nothing. The Tempest will begin at 7:30. Tickets are $9 and are available at plymouthstatetickets.com. Only one ticket is needed to attend both performances.

Heading these productions is a team of dedicated teaching artists. The lead Director for the Sandwich Cobble’s production is Jessie Chapman, ATTP’s executive producer. Lead Director for Newfound Regional High School’s production is Lucy Randal-Tapply. The team of teaching artists working on these shows include Plymouth State University students and alumni Sarah Anne Bailinson, Garrison Barron, Frederick, Bickford, Mikayla Caterino, Ethan Fifield, Emma Littig, and Stephanie Wiencek at Newfound. The evening will be full of revelry, magic, and two audience favorites from the Shakespeare canon. Don’t miss it. 

3 Day Tickets for the Sandwich Fair are available in the Sandwich Fair Office (7 Wentworth Hill Road) until the end of September (Thursday, 9/30).  Daily tickets to the Fair are $12 for ages 12 and over. Children under 12 are free. The three-day ticket is $24 which gives you three days of fair fun for the price of 2 days.

As the saying goes, "it takes a village." Can you donate 3 hours of your valuable time (or longer) as a building monitor or ticket taker? A 3-day  fair pass is available in lieu of payment. Come be a part of our fair family during the 2021 Sandwich Fair, Oct. 9-11.  Please call, email or stop into the office to learn more! 

Also, if you have a drawer full of unwanted pens (that work)? The Fair can use them! Please feel free to drop off all you extras. Come on into the Fair Office Building and say hello, or leave them in the black mailbox out front. Thanks for helping us recycle/reuse!

Martha Nichols writes: For one special day during August, over 25 New Hampshire craftspeople will gather together at the beautiful Sandwich, NH town green in front of the League of NH Craftsmen gallery for the annual craft demonstration and sale day, called Artisans on the Green. This year the event will be held on Thursday, August 12, when the Main Street of Center Sandwich will once again become a center of craft celebration and fun for the entire family.

This year’s Artisans on the Green, held during the annual town-wide Sandwich Old Home Week, promises to have something for everyone: craft demonstrations, access to artists, beautiful crafts for sale, animals to pet, and delicious food by the Sandwich Woman’s Club. The Center Sandwich Fine Craft Gallery organizes this remarkable day and is also the sponsor. The entire event is free: there is no admission charge and there is plentiful parking at marked locations in the historic and beautiful town of Center Sandwich. The event is held in rain or shine from 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

There are many favorite artists returning this year, such as Diane Johnson of Soft Touch Farm needle felting, Marion Federspiel digital paintings of landscapes, Zee Hayford sterling silver jewelry, Marcy Greene canvas bags, Dick Devens architectural watercolors, Jennifer Libby soaps and pottery, and Hog Hill Pottery. New this year are Sandwich potters Suzanne Weil and Rachel Bartlett, Anne Richards and Donna Carlucci fiber artists, Martha Spaulding mosaics, and Ralph Watson Fiber art.

Always popular demonstrations on the green and hands-on activities will be available for kids. In addition, many artisans will show you examples of pottery making, needle felting, digital painting, and watercolors in their individual tent locations throughout the day. Every craftsperson on the green is eager and ready to answer questions while encouraging visitors to learn about the skills, materials, and production steps necessary to “do it yourself.” Everyone is encouraged to wander on the green, learn, have fun, and find unique crafts to own or gift.

A founding member of the League of NH Craftsmen, Center Sandwich Fine Craft Gallery continues to support craftspeople from all regions of New Hampshire and to educate children and adults through its programs. The gallery of fine crafts is open daily from May through October. For a list of craft courses available during the 2021 season, see: https://centersandwich.nhcrafts.org/classesworkshops/

League of NH Craftsmen Center Sandwich Fine Craft Gallery
603-284-6831
centersandwich.nhcrafts.org
Gallery Hours
10-5 Monday - Saturday
12-5 Sunday

Please join us for an exhibit that bursts in color and joy from the palette of Margery Thomas Mueller.  Large and small blooms painted in watercolor on Yupo paper will adorn the gallery walls beginning Saturday, July 24th with a reception to meet the artist from 5 to 7. Patricia Ladd Carega Gallery is located at 69 Maple Street in Center Sandwich.  Visit our website for more gallery information.

Margery Thomas Mueller lives and works in Alton, NH.  Her large multi media paintings were first exhibited at Patricia Ladd Carega gallery in 2015 and at the Red Dot Gallery at Mueller’s studio.  Drawn in India ink and gesso on Yupo paper, an unforgiving industrial plastic, these paintings talked of troubled souls moving through the thickets of life. The travails of others dominated Mueller’s work at the time. As we continued to soldier through Covid, Mueller added decoupage birds to her branches, a symbol of freedom and flight.   

In her latest series of work on view at the gallery, India ink and gesso have given way to intense color.  Fascinated by the effects of watercolor on Yupo, this new series of work shimmers with the happiness of a garden in spring.   In Mueller’s words: “Liminal space…the world in between – between a world I live in and a world I listen to, that has always been what has driven my imagery.”  

Like all of Mueller’s work, the flower paintings are strong and energetic.  Though color impacts the first view, a second glance reveals how delicate this work is.  We welcome you to spend some time with Color Awakens.  Does it awaken a reaction in you?
 
Patricia Ladd Carega gallery is open from 10 to 5 Tuesday through Saturday and from 12 to 5 on Sunday.  We are closed on Monday but if the barn door is open, come on in.  603 284 7728.
 
Patricia Carega
Patricia Ladd Carega Gallery
www.patricialaddcaregagallery.com
603 284-7728 

Artist, Elizabeth Nelson, has often been inspired and guided by the ancient Chinese divination text, I Ching or Yi Jing, one of the oldest of the Chinese Classics. It is studied as a book of wisdom throughout the world and provides guidance to religion, literature, art, psychology, science, diplomacy and business.  I Ching uses hexagrams to reach solutions. Nelson has painted 64 Symbolic Landscapes representing the I Ching texts that make up each hexagram. Twenty-seven of these are on exhibit at Patricia Ladd Carega Gallery. 

Nelson will give a talk at the gallery on I Ching, the paintings and her book on June 12 at 4 p.m. A reception to meet Elizabeth Nelson will follow the talk.

I Ching is a big subject with a history of more than 3000 years of interpretation.  The texts and hexagrams have been used by many to find solutions to questions or problems. I Ching uses coins to determine these solutions.  A practitioner will toss three coins six times to create a new hexagram related to his or her question.  The response is determined by looking up the meanings of the hexagram in the I Ching text.  
 
Elizabeth Nelson has long been interested in Chinese painting. An early childhood memory reveals a fascination with scrolls her father brought back from Shanghai, India and Europe after his service in WWII.  Chinese and Asian art have remained a ‘foundation of her aesthetic.’
 
It was during a “fallow” period in her painting career that Nelson asked I Ching for “advice and inspiration.”  The answer was hexagram #2 Natural Response (K’un).  At first Nelson was puzzled by the response but the next morning as the moon was setting over her snow-filled pasture, the answer was clear.  She “would paint 64 hexagrams and choose the sequence at random by throwing the coins.” The entire symbolic landscape series took 6 years to complete. The oil paintings on cradled birch panels are 20 x 20 inches. 
 
I Ching is a fascinating subject especially for those interested in systems of divination and astrology.  There is much more to be studied and learned but for now join us for an enlightening talk.

Patricia Ladd Carega Gallery is located at 69 Maple Street in Center Sandwich.
The Gallery is open for the summer.  Gallery hours will be Tuesday – Saturday from 10 to 5.  Sunday 12 to 5 and Monday by appt.  www.patricialaddcaregagallery.com or 603 284 7728.

For more information:  Kim Weeks, The Sandwich Fair Association,
7 Wentworth Hill Road / POB 161,  Sandwich, NH 03227
603 284-7062, [email protected] 
 

Advice To The Players, Sandwich’s own Shakespeare company, is proud to kick off their 2021 season with a virtual performance of ​A Midsummer Night’s Dream​, available online from April 23rd- May 2nd. For this production, ATTP staged this production to be filmed and presented virtually for the safety of both their actors and audience.

The link to watch the performance will be available starting on April 23rd, Shakespeare’s Birthday and audience members can be sent the link by emailing ​[email protected]​. In celebration of Shakespeare’s Birthday, and the release of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, ATTP is hosting their Bard’s Birthday Campaign- if they can raise $5,000 before the end of May, the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative Foundation will award them with a $5,000 matching grant. These funds will allow ATTP to produce our 2021 Summer Season and continue to bring the literary and performing arts to our community.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream​ features everything from fairy mischief, a play within a play, and dramatic fights in the name of love! This production will not be one to miss, with wonderful returning favorites including Chris Boldt as Theseus, Ethan Fifield as Nick Bottom, and Lucy Randall-Tapply as Puck. Last season’s director of ​Winter’s Tale​ and ​As You Like It​, Maryssa Wanlass graces the stage as Titania, with her husband, Mark Vashro, completing this dynamic fairy duo. The lover quartet includes 4 returning artists who among them have a long and rich history with the company- Caitlin Cremins, Alicia Edgar, Rowan Heard, and Julia de Aveliz Rocha. And as always we have a wonderful group of teens and community members completing this remarkable cast, such as Tom Hyde and Marion Posner.

For more information, please visit www.advicetotheplayers.org/

Diane Johnson writes: Saturday turned out to be a perfect day for the Community Tree Party. The weather was amazing. Santa and Mrs. Claus were perfect and there were folks of all ages around the Library and Quimby Field and the Tennis Courts. Families and children were talking to Santa, leaving wish lists and letters, getting gifts, candy canes, and $10 family gift certificates to their choice of E.M. Heath Grocery and Hardware, Bayswater Bookstore, or Innisfree Bookshop. 

​Kids and families were sledding and sliding, building snowmen, XC skiing, and a group of middle school youths were hard at work building forts and a maze in one of the tennis courts. Some families tromped through the snow to read the Story Trail--Ox Cart Man by Donald Hall--which is set up on the Library lawn. Many thanks go to all the elves, generous donors , and families who came out to set a truly Currier and Ives scene. It was Sandwich at its best. Covid protocols were followed and didn't dampen the atmosphere. 

The Community Christmas Tree Party has been a Sandwich tradition since at least the Great Depression in the 1930’s. Even the oldest folks in town can't remember a year when this party didn't happen so it is likely been going on for nearly 100 years. In the 30's and 40's, the local girl scouts under the direction of Helen Ingles and others decided to make gifts, put on a skit, sing carols, and have a party for all the children in town. Fresh fruit was hard to come by in December so an orange or banana was a special treat. 

The Sandwich Woman’s Club was organized in 1928. It is a 501c3 civic and social organization that exists to do good in the Sandwich Community. In a normal (i.e. non-pandemic ) year, members meet four times a year for lunch, an interesting speaker or program, and a short business meeting. The ladies raise funds for book and supply money for college students from Sandwich and sponsor the annual holiday party for all children in Sandwich. Woman of all ages in Sandwich and environs are welcome to join.

The club is run by a membership of nearly 70 women and an executive board. Regular meetings, programs, and luncheons in are held on Wednesdays in March, May, September and December at local restaurants. Funds are raised by a summer raffle held during Old Home Week, a snack bar during the Old Home Week Art Show, and by dues and donations. Annual dues are $10. Donations are always welcome (Sandwich Woman’s Club, PO Box 485, Center Sandwich, NH 03227). Please consider joining and being a part of this wonderful group. For more information follow Sandwich Woman's Club on Facebook or email [email protected]

We all need extra love this year. The Sandwich Woman's Club  wants to make sure that all families with children from birth through grade 6 get a little extra community attention and some holiday joy.  

The list of children and families includes all children in Sandwich from birth through Sixth Grade no matter where they go to school. Children who are younger siblings of children at the Sandwich Central School and all students at the school are included as well as all Children at the Sandwich Children's Center and their siblings. Grandchildren who are in town can be accommodated. If you are a family who is new to Sandwich, or if you know of a new neighbor, or child, please let Diane Johnson(284-7168 call/text, [email protected]) know their name and age so a bag can be made up.

The annual Christmas/Holiday Party will happen. However, it cannot be the same type of gathering as in the past due to Covid.  Modifications have been made to have a socially distant and safe event on Saturday December 19, from 1-3 pm.  Families are invited to come to the area around the Library, Tennis Courts, and Quimby Field. Santa and Mrs. Claus will be outside the Library to visit with and wave to children and to accept Christmas wish lists in a container destined for the North Pole and later reading from Santa. Elves have prepared gift bags for each family and contactless distribution is planned.  The wicked weather/snow date will be Sunday, December 20, from 1-3.

Veterans Day, Wednesday, November 11, the Sandwich Super Sew-ers 4-H Club and Club Sandwich 4-H are preparing a delicious Spaghetti Supper to honor veterans and first line helpers. Dotty Burrows and her 4-H Sewing Group have been hosting these suppers for many years. Usually, the community gathers and enjoys a homemade supper with veterans while the 4-H youths serve and wait tables. This year the supper is take out only because of COVID. 

Veterans and First Line Helpers are guests and will enjoy their meal at no charge. Everyone else is invited to order and enjoy a meal and support this supper while thanking our Veterans and Helpers. the cost is $8.00 for adults and children under 12 are $3.00. 

Dotty Burrows, and 4-Hers will spend Wednesday afternoon safely preparing sauces, spaghetti, homemade rolls, and desserts. Suppers may be pre-ordered by calling Dotty Burrows at 603-247-5270. Placing your order well ahead helps Dotty and the kids know how much food to prepare. Please let Dotty know how many dinners you want, and if you want meat sauce or meatless sauce. Give her the time you plan to pick up the meals and call her when you arrive at the Methodist Meetinghouse. A 4-Her member will bring your meal(s) out to your vehicle.  

Suppers may be picked up on Wednesday, November 11 between 4:30 and 6:30 pm. The Methodist Meetinghouse of the Community Church of Sandwich is on Main Street (Route 109). The kitchen is in the basement and is most easily accessed from the back parking lot. Take Church Street and just beyond the OLD Fire station there is a driveway on the right that takes you to the back of the church. The new granite steps to the front of the church are arriving Monday 11/9. The exit to the church parking lot is on the side of the church. 

Julie Deak writes: Started over 40 years ago by a enterprising group of local craftspeople, Sandwich Christmas in the Village has grown into a two-day holiday tradition, expanding and reinventing itself with each new generation. Keeping with tradition, the 44th Annual Sandwich Christmas in the Village will be held the weekend of December 5th and 6th.

Things will be a little different this year, as we face the challenge of organizing in a way that will help to keep customers and vendors safe. Detailed plans are still in the works, but we do know there will be return to smaller venues, and for the first time, some craftspeople will be “virtual” participants - selling their work only online.

Partridge Hill Farm is one location providing socially distance spaces for 4 vendors from Sandwich. Juli Hird will have her “woolery” open selling fleeces and roving for hand-spinning and quality yarns from her flock of Romney, Merino, and Romney-Dorset cross sheep.

In the spacious barn, will be Marci Greene selling her modern everyday bags handmade with lots of love, and Rachel Bartlett offer her high fired, functional ceramics, designed for everyday use. Donna and Ken Carlucci from Kindred Spirit Farm will be there as well with herbal soaps, scented candles and gourmet dog treats, along with warm, hand-knit hats, wool dryer balls, and yarns from their Fine Fleece Shetland sheep and nesting balls for your fine feathered friends.

That’s just a sample of what will be happening. As plans progress, all the details will be posted on the Christmas in the Village - Sandwich NH Facebook page, including a list of locations and links to virtual booths online. For more information, please contact Diane Johnson 603-284-7168 (call/text)  or email Julie Deak at [email protected].

Center Sandwich, NH, – Off The Dock Players are at it again—this time, on the porch! After the success of such thought-provoking plays as The Humans, by Stephen Karam and A Doll’s House, Part 2, by Lucas Hnath, the troupe is producing a Covid-careful, slightly immersive, outdoor theater experience including two one-act plays written by the inimitable Tennessee Williams. Starring in At Liberty and Something Unspoken are Ashley Bullard, Rebecca Cole, Marena Harris and Lisa Thompson. The production will be directed by Nancy Blaine.

A mother waits for her daughter who is out too late on a chilly southern night. A secretary avoids her employer’s insistence to verbalize what she does not dare. Tennessee Williams is known for exploring the depths of the human condition with dialogue so sharp and telling that we might find ourselves a little embarrassed at the truths he reveals. All with a lyrical southern sarcasm that makes you laugh out loud at the audacity with which his characters speak to one another. Audacity and truth—two characteristics of any Tennessee Williams play.

In these socially-distant pandemic times, Off the Dock is carefully managing seating (limited tickets), offering a pre-packaged southern-type picnic snack on the lawn, with an elevated porch as the perfect stage for two funny, yet deeply moving, southern tales of discontent.

The first weekend performances on 9/25 and 9/26 are at the Cole home at 161 Holderness Road in Center Sandwich. The second weekend performances on 10/3 and 10/4 will be performed at the beautiful Highland House in Tamworth. Picnic and seating begin an hour before each performance and the running time of the 2 one act plays is one hour.

“We wanted to reach out to our two nearby communities because the actors’ residences are split between Sandwich and Tamworth,” said Nancy Blaine. “Additionally, we love to collaborate with local businesses and offer an experience as much as a play. This production, due to the pandemic, has forced us to rethink staging, and what works better than Tennessee Williams on a porch?! I have always been interested in working in less traditional theater environments and Rebecca’s porch along with Dale’s barn seemed like a perfect start.”

Tickets can be purchased at offthedockplayers.com and show times/venues are as follows:  Cole Residence, 161 Holderness Road, Center Sandwich, September 25th and 26th, 5:30 picnic/6:30 show. A Sunday, September 27th matinee has been added due to the demand for tickets.

The Highland House, 654 Cleveland Road, Tamworth NH, October 3rd at 5:30/6:30 and October 4th matinee at 3:00/4:00

NOTE: We are delighted at the response!  Sold out shows for Friday and Saturday and an added show for Sunday at 3:00 (tickets still available). We also have some seats available for our October 3rd and 4th performances in Tamworth. 

You are invited to attend a poetry reading of Deep Beauty, by Rosemary Winslow and Catherine Lee (editors) on Friday, September 4, 12:00 noon  on the Quimby Green in front of Sandwich Home Industries. Please feel free to bring a chair and lunch if you like. Rain date September 5, at 4 pm.

Poets from Sandwich and Tamworth are included in the new book, Deep Beauty. Rosemary Winslow, editor, will introduce the book and poets will read excerpts. Books will be on sale at the reading and inside the League of NH Craftsmen gallery (Sandwich Home Industries).

About Deep Beauty: As our global discourse continues to be dominated by border walls, white nationalism, sexual assault, and autocratic leaders, many of us find our basic human values under constant attack. Deep Beauty is one collective attempt to counteract this discourse. The essays presented herein offer curious and thoughtful inquiries into experiences of wonder and beauty through the eyes of a diverse group of beholders, at a time when such considerations are often lacking from public discourse.

These writers help create an emotional and psychological space for us to meditate on how peace, safety, compassion, and dignity are integral to a fulfilled and fulfilling life. These essays examine beauty from a number of different perspectives, including the arts, culture and counter-culture, the physical world (from our individual bodies to our embattled planet), successes and failures, remoteness, and spirituality. This collection is perfect for students of writing and philosophy--and for anybody who needs a moment of respite from the chaos exploding in the world around us.

League of NH Craftsmen Center Sandwich Fine Craft Gallery, 32 Main Street
Center Sandwich, NH 03227 www.centersandwich.nhcrafts.org Follow us on Facebook! OPEN for our 94th season . 2020 hours Thursday - Saturday 12:00 - 5:00

This Fall Patricia Ladd Carega Gallery is featuring the work of three local artists who are successfully emerging onto the NE art scene. The last exhibit of the season opens on Labor Day Weekend and continues throughout the month of  September. Ashley Bullard, Liz Wilson and Valerie Vermeulen are all from the Lakes Region. Each of their paintings reflects their very personal journeys connecting them to the world around them.  The exhibit is colorful, contemporary, playful and highly creative. 
 
Ashley Bullard lives and works in Sandwich.  Bullard’s abstract landscapes are painted with energy and emphasize color and texture to achieve their mark.  The series at the gallery this summer is about Ice Out on Squam Lake.  The subtle reflections seen in the snow and ice as it cracks and melts are rendered in delicate hews that transfer via the artist’s brush to canvas.   One can feel the cracks in the jagged lines and smell the spring in the pastel palette.   Bullard spent many days last spring perched above Squam Lake  watching the lake melt.  These painting are about new beginnings.

Liz Wilson lives and works in New Hampton.  Her work is colorful, active and to a degree playful.  It engages the viewer in a conversation, an invitation to look deeper and enjoy.   Wilson’s words best describe her work: These paintings are impressions of my experience in the world at a specific moment.  When I am able to focus inward, I see in my minds’ eye my sensory experience translated into shape and color.  This experience is a part of my reality: it is the author, creator of my painting language. In the process of making the images I simplify and to a degree caricaturize my experiences.  The source of the images is specific. However, what I am depicting is the sensation that I took from the moment.”

Valerie Vermeulen lives and works in Holderness.  The subtle color and undefined shapes in her abstract landscapes challenge, soothe and engage.  Vermeulen talks about her work: “I spend my days studying and recording the constant, subtle, changing elements of nature and life. My work provides a nostalgic sense of place and simplicity, yet is ultimately defined by the infinite. I hope to elevate the viewer, both aesthetically and spiritually. The images are reflective, surreal, and organic in nature. The work also explores the mystery and the solitude of the anonymous human experience. I am driven to capture the changing atmosphere and the endless nuances of a landscape, both physical and psychological, to reveal the truth of a limitless reality. In the image, a dream is reflected, and the esoteric quality of a moment has been remembered. 

Patricia Ladd Carega Gallery is located at 69 Maple Street in Center Sandwich.  Gallery hours are from 10 to 5 Monday through Saturday and 12 to 5 on Sunday.  You will also find work by all our artists on line at patricialaddcaregagallery.com. 

Diane Johnson writes: In April, before the Sandwich Fair was cancelled for this year, a new pole building was built on the Fairgrounds near the Cattle Sheds and the Craft Barn. The intent was to eliminate the need to rent a tent every year to cover the Cattle Show Area. While there will be no cattle show this fall, the new open structure is getting a lot of use in this time of Covid-19.

Moultonborough Academy used it (a couple of tents, and the nearby grounds) for graduation, a week later Moultonborough held their School District Meeting there. Their town meeting was scheduled for the same day but it was just too hot and humid that Saturday. Last Saturday, the Outreach Committee of the Community Church of Sandwich, held a Dessert Auction in the Pole Building; they raised $1914 for Inter-Lakes Caregivers.

The Fairgrounds in general has had a lot of use this year. Sunday evening, a group held a concert and movie night  to benefit members of the military.  On any day, you will find people exercising, dog walkers, families riding bikes, and people just enjoying the space. The Sandwich Fair Association welcomes responsible use of the grounds. In this Covid time, safe social distancing is expected.

The Fair Association always expects users to be thoughtful and safe; this includes cleaning up after animals and never leaving a mess behind. Any organized activity also requires the written permission of the Sandwich Fair Association, Inc. The Fairgrounds are not town lands but are privately owned and operated by the by the Sandwich Fair Association, Inc., a 501c3 organization run by volunteers.  For more information, please visit www.thesandwichfair.com