In 1894 the first book in the handwritten shelf list is Walt Whitman, poems like Leaves of Grass. In 1874, you might have been more likely to find Edmund Morris’ Ten Acres Enough.’ … When the Williamstown public library first opened to the town, it began with a collection of 100 agricultural books in a corner of H. Cole’s General Store.
Read articleThis place is a living ecosystem of people and places and ideas, and this broad category brings together their stories — you may find stories of healing, teaching, celebrating, taking care of people and the land, reaching out to many parts of the world and feeling the roots of this one, in the past, present and future.
Daf Moby project immerses in Melville — one page a day
Last fall, on Rosh Hashanah, Williams College professors Jeffrey Israel and Edan Dekel began reading Moby-Dick together … and they have found the experience transformative.
Read articleWCMA maps the Unfinished Project of Liberation
From many perspectives, internationally acclaimed artists are looking closely at the roots of the nation’s ideas of freedom, and how they play out in the 21st century.
Read article10×10 Festival
The city in the hills is at play. The annual 10×10 Festival is in town, and you can watch a new play or dance to Afro-Cuban rhythms, try a new microbrew or listen to jazz, or walk in the winter sun ...
Read articleFinding places where we belong — #berkshireweekend
We have ways of moving in and out of each other’s spaces, a friend tells me. We’re driving back roads through the hilltowns in the dusk, and we’re talking about how people in this country live together.
Read articleCommunity imagines new futures for the West Side
Pittsfield architect Tessa Kelly opens a conversation with local leaders on the legacy of ‘Urban Renewal’ in Pittsfield and ways to re-envision and strengthen neighborhoods.
Read articleEnergy stirring in the heartwood of trees — #berkshireweekend
We’re coming up on the full moon at the heart of winter, and on Sunday I sat in a room full of windows, looking out at a vast willow and listening to songs about trees budding.
Read articleReflections and hopes for the future — #berkshireweekend
We’re in the calm after the holidays, and we have some time to look ahead, so let me ask you … What are you looking for in the Berkshires this year?
Read articleHappy new year in the Berkshires! — #berkshireweekend
Happy holidays! I’m with family this week, and I’m writing to you sitting by the fire with a Yule-sized log sending a spark or two up the chimney.
Read articleBerkshire Candle burns cleanly at both ends
Light glimmers in glass, or in a wooden bowl, warm and moving gently in the air. When Jenna Gable of Lanesborough pours her own for Berkshire Candle Co., the room can fill with a scent of balsam fir or cinnamon.
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