Wistariahurst Museum

VISUAL is an outreach program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst based on the premise that the visual arts provide an effective means to educate and stimulate the general public as well as students of all ages on the importance of scientific research in our everyday lives. Each captivating image is a direct experimental result from research conducted on the Amherst campus or at its partner institutions. Works on view through February. Admission to the gallery $3

Angelo Hair Pasta by Angelo Pedicini

Learn more about the art in our February gallery as well as the experiments behind them at a light reception. Admission to the gallery $3

Storm by Sam Fakhouri

Name that tune! The music on the program is a mixture of the sacred and secular, combining mass movements and the secular tunes they were based upon. Composers include Josquin, Ockeghem, Isaac, Palestrina and many other masters of the Renaissance. Special guests playing an array of Renaissance-style string and wind instruments will join Cantabile for a sound and texture treat. Suggested donation $15

Photograph from left to right: David Olsson, James Mead, Diana Brewer, Dorie Goldman, Peter Shea, and Kayla Werlin

Learn about wine, try new flavors and meet new friends at our annual “I Love Wine Event.” Don’t miss this fun and flavorful evening! Light refreshments will be provided. All proceeds will benefit Wistariahurst Museum. The event is sponsored by Liquors 44 and Historic Holyoke at Wistariahurst. Reservations necessary. Advance tickets $25 each/$40 couple; Door admission $30 each/$50 couple

View antique valentines for inspiration during this fun and creative program that will inspire the artist in everyone. Come to this festive event and make some of your own valentines to send to special friends, family and sweethearts. Reservations are suggested. $5 per person

Last year's sold-out concerts of music by Latin American composers in the Chamber Music Society at Wistariahurst series convinced us to make another midwinter trip south (as if we needed much convincing!) On Sunday, Feb. 12, at 3:00 p.m., at Wistariahurst Museum, the Society's fine musicians return to perform fresh pieces of music and one repeat masterpiece: Heitor Villa Lobos' Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5, a haunting and hum-able piece for soprano and eight cellos that is rarely heard in live performance--presumably because eight cellos aren't easy to round up. Astrid Schween, professor of cello at UMASS-Amnherst and a nationally acclaimed cell soloist, will lead the piece with seven of her students, with the radiant soprano, Junko Watanabe, again as the soloist.

Why did WFCR's classical music host John Montanari recently refer to the Chamber Society's concerts as "a New England musical pleasure"?  You can find out on Feb. 12, when the pleasure will have a hot Latin flavor.

The program will also feature Duo Fusiòn, the flute and guitar team of Sarah Swersey and Joe Belmont, in Pujol's dancing "Suite Buenos Aires."  

Just added: Two tango dancers from Latin America will add anexciting addition to the show on February 12. The distinguished Argentina-born pianist Estela Olevsky will perform solo piano works by A. Ginastera. Ms.Olevsky and Ms. Astrid Schween will collaborate in A. Piazzolla's passionate "Gran Tango" with tango dancers Armando Orzuzo and Nuria Martinez, who now reside in Boston adding a fabulous twist to the program! As a finale, the UMASS cello ensemble under Ms. Schween will perform the first two movements of Villa Lobos' Bachianas Brasileiras. No. 1. This concert is certain to be a sell out! Please call Wistariahurst at (413) 322-5660 to make a reservation as seating is limited. Tickets are $20 adults/ students free

Reservations are encouraged as seating is limited

Photograph from left to right: Astrid Schween and Estela Olevsky



Your heritage is not just a city, state or country. The roots of your family should be explored and celebrated! Take a trip to Wistariahurst to document what you already know about your family and their heritage, and discover ways to find out more. Scouts will have the chance to learn what kinds of questions to ask their elders, how to record stories and lessons, and what significance their names may hold. Fulfills badge requirements, patch not included. Reservations required. $10 per scout, cost covers materials

Professor emeritus Alan C. Swedlund will share his research into diaries, letters, newspapers, and other sources to tell the story of mortality in the Connecticut Valley. He will identify epidemics, causes of death and mourning rituals from the 18th and 19th centuries. The lecture will be accompanied by historical images from the area. Suggested donation $5

Anyone who has an Irish ancestor in their family tree is usually eager to find out just where in Ireland they came from. This can be a very difficult task for researchers, especially those of the famine era (1840’s – 1860’s). Lisa Dougherty’s presentation will focus on sources to use here in the United States to help identify a place of origin for your Irish ancestor, and hopefully help further your research in Ireland. Suggested donation $5

Carol Kostecki will lead a hands-on demonstration of making pisanki in the art of dying eggs for a traditional Easter holiday. Appropriate for adults and children 12 and up. Reservations required. $35 per person

Dennis Picard will discuss Helen Storrow, whose  influence and legacy can be seen to this day in the “New EnglandVillage” she created at the Eastern States Exposition. Hear about the life and times of this amazing woman and all her social and charitable projects from the PioneerValleyand beyond. Admission $5

The illustrious tango dance halls of Golden Age Buenos Aires come to life at Wistariahurst! Our evening immersion into this captivating social dance will begin with an introductory tango lesson, taught by local instructor, Veronika Kruta. Following the lesson, the floor will be open to dancers of all levels, with a break for our world-renowned guest performers, Nick Jones and Diana Cruz. Age (1930’s and 40’s) costume or elegant attire is encouraged. Light refreshment will be served. Reservations required. Tickets $30 for entire evening/ $20 dancing and performance only/ $12 lesson only 

Terry Allen will give an informal talk about the life and work of the poet Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), who was born and died in the family Homestead in Amherst. Illustrating the talk will be excerpts from the film “Seeing New Englandly,” which provides rarely seen historical photographs and view of the Connecticut Valley of Dickinson’s day. Admission $5

Internationally renowned bonsai artist, Geoffrey Holmes, returns to Wistariahurst to demonstrate repotting techniques for bonsai plants.  Holmes will discuss the basic elements such as balance, proportion, style, and will field questions from the audience as he demonstrates. Techniques will be applicable for those who have previously created bonsai plants and now wish pot in decorative container. Plants, pots, kits and stands will be available for sale. Reservations suggested. Admission $10

For the past six years, Joe Manning has been identifying some of the more than 5,000 child laborers that were photographed in the early 1900s by Lewis Hine, and then tracking down and interviewing their descendants. Manning will show many of these historic photographs, tell the stories of the children, and talk about the exciting process of searching for descendants, most of whom were not aware of the historic pictures. Suggested donation $5

Martha Leonard was a pioneer contributing to the earliest beginning of the Pioneer Valley. Born in Springfield in 1649, she lived in an exceedingly complex and dangerous time. Martha Leonard is the eighth great-grandmother of speaker Ralmon Joe Black. He will discuss her life and the mystery still surrounding her. Suggested donation $5

Join us to discover what Art in 3-D is and view several pieces of such artwork! Participants will get to discover origami techniques, learn the difference between mobiles and stabiles, as well as create their own. Reservations required. $10 per scout

Learning in Mrs. Towne’s House is the story of author Tzivia Gover’s first years teaching at The Care Center, and how, with her students, she discovers that their school building was once home to Elizabeth Towne. Towne was an early suffragist and leader of the New Thought movement. She set out on her own and created a magazine that went on to become a leading New Thought journal in the nation--the Nautilus. Suggested donation $5