CHESTER – It’s August, and the Chester downtown merchants are fired up to beat the heat and kick off the last month of summer during First Friday festivities on Aug. 2. All shops will be open until 8 p.m. serving samples of delicious libations and snacks.
Blackkat Leather will unveil a new collection from Crystal-Anne Chijinduis, a New York-based photographer specializing in narrative portraiture and still-life photography. Her work reflects her passion for people, culture and visual storytelling, which she explores through fine-art work. She recently earned her master’s degree in Digital Photography from New York City’s School of Visual Arts.
The “Pop & Beyond” exhibition at Chester Gallery has been extended due to popular demand. The gallery features the serigraphs, lithographs, etchings and gouaches of Andy Warhol, James Rosenquist, Jim Dine, Sam Francis, Adolph Gottlieb, Keith Haring, Robert Indiana, Robert Motherwell, Robert Rauschenberg and Chester’s own Sol LeWitt.
Elsewhere around town:
- Dina Varano Gallery is showcasing a collection of raw crystal and gemstones. From Amazonite to Labradorite to Zeolite, the gallery is explaining the myths and legends that surround the stones.
- The E-List Shop is having its End of Summer Sale and previewing fall fashions.
- The band Arrowhead will play from 5 to 8 p.m. outside Leif Nilsson’s eponymous gallery on Spring Street, which is also showing the artist’s travel-inspired paintings.
In addition to on-street parking in Chester, there is free parking available in the town’s public lots on Main Street by the cemetery, on Water Street and on Maple Street.
More information about First Friday is available on Facebook.com/VisitChesterCT or by calling (860) 322-4047.