5 Things To Do This Week – 1/6/21
Newton Cultural Alliance highlights virtual arts & culture things to do
NCA is keeping you connected with each other and with your favorite local arts and culture organizations.
*From December 28th to January 31st, Newton Free Library is participating in Beanstack’s Fourth Annual Winter Reading Challenge, sponsored by Simon & Schuster. This year’s theme is “Books Like Us” — a celebration of diversity, harnessing the transformative power of seeing oneself reflected in a book. Participating communities are invited to explore these books, from authors spanning an array of diverse backgrounds. We challenge our kids, tweens, teens & families to read at least 400 minutes during the month and keep track of their reading on our Beanstack site. Click here for more information and resources.
*Join the New Art Center for their upcoming online class Painting Foundations, beginning on Wednesday, January 6th at 9:30 AM, and lasting until March. Set your inner artist free in a studio painting class! Working from observation, beginners will complete exercises in value, color, and chroma. Advanced beginners begin to generate their own projects while absorbing instruction, critique, and healthy doses of encouragement. All will explore new techniques and painting concepts. This class provides a solid, comprehensive foundation in oil or acrylic for students intent on developing their ease, skill, and facility with paint. See website for materials list.
*Amherst Early Music will hold their online class “JamKazam: Introduction to Distance Playing in Real Time with Gwyn Roberts ” on Saturday, January 9th at 3:00 PM. If you’ve been hearing about the wonders of playing with your friend(s) over the internet but haven’t had the chance to learn more, take this class! JamKazam is one of several low-latency platforms for playing music together online, in real time. Gwyn Roberts has done extensive work in helping students and colleagues set up the JamKazam app. You will be able to ask questions, and will receive Gwyn’s notes on setting up JamKazam, including a list of the required equipment and tips for making it work better. Classes are $25 per session. Click here to register.
*Join the Newton Art Association for their next Online Artists’ Demos. Join Adria Arch on Sunday, January 10th at 2:00 PM for a lesson in Printing for Painters over Zoom. Adria Arch, a visual artist, instructor, and art administrator, will demonstrate how to make unique and layered prints using acrylics and a gel plate. She will introduce several simple and effective techniques for creating designs using a slow-drying acrylic paint. The printing techniques can easily be integrated into your acrylic paintings and also be wonderful starts for paintings. Learn the basics and be ready to make your own prints at home with just a little set up, no big press, and soap and water clean up. Click here to learn about the artist and get the Zoom link.
*The Newton Free Library invites you to attend Environmental Justice and the Crisis of Environmentalism, a virtual conversation that is part of the Green Newton Series, on Tuesday, January 12th at 7:00 PM. Humanity and the planet face an existential threat from climate change. Dr. Daniel Faber, Director of the Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative, argues that we must embrace a more transformative politics of environmental justice that addresses the root causes of the ecological crisis, as well as an inspiring vision of a new and better world. Join him for this virtual session in which he will speak about climate change and the ecological crisis, as well as issues of environmental/climate injustice. Please register here.