Season 3 - Coming Soon

This season, host Ray Hardman heads back on the road, crisscrossing the state to learn more about artists and the various arts communities in Connecticut. This year, stops include the Farmington Valley, Fairfield County, Western and Northeast Connecticut, Hartford, and towns along the lower Connecticut River. You’ll meet artists like muralist and graphic designer Lindaluz Carrillo, visual poet Monica Ong, bronze sculptor Chad Fisher, handweaver Peggy Church, pastry chef Kim Hoàng Wood, and so many more. We’ll also bring you behind the scenes with our “what’s in your attic” segments exploring costumes at the Goodspeed Opera House, the Wadsworth Atheneum’s restoration studio, and other local treasures along the way.

• Ep. 1 - Western Connecticut - Sunday, June 9 at 7:30 PM
• Ep. 2 - Farmington Valley - Sunday, June 16 at 7:30 PM
• Ep. 3 - Fairfield County - Sunday, June 23 at 7:30 PM
• Ep. 4 - Lower Connecticut River Valley - Sunday, June 30 at 7:30 PM
• Ep. 5 - Harford - Sunday, July 7 at 7:30 PM
• Ep. 6 - Northeast Connecticut - Sunday, July 14 at 7:30 PM

Connecticut’s Quiet Corner

Episode guide Bruce John, Co-Founder of Bread Box Theatre in Willimantic, introduces Ray to the local arts community and Outsider Artist Kerri Quirk. Quirk is a person with autism who is deaf, and her art is truly her voice. Her work is consistently featured in Chicago and New York Outsider Art Fairs. UConn English professor, author, and poet Sean Frederick Forbes shares his latest poetry writings. Plus, David Foster from Shaboo Productions gives us a peek at music memorabilia and the stories behind the iconic venue, The Shaboo Inn.
This episode premiered on July 31, 2022.

East Hartford and Wethersfield

East Hartford and Wethersfield are two of the oldest towns in Connecticut. In this episode, Roz White from the East Hartford Mayor's office highlights two area artists for Ray to visit. Andre Rochester is a mixed media artist who creates images of people and symbolism to illustrate experiences of trial, tribulation, and triumph. Grace Wright is a costume designer and choreographer who incorporates her Caribbean culture. Our ‘What's In Your Attic?’ segment takes us to the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum, where Executive Director Joshua Campbell Torrance and curator Rich Malley will share with us many items from the 1700s: spinning wheels, looms, and a letter from Thomas Jefferson.
Special thanks to the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art.
This episode premiered on July 24, 2022.

Greater Danbury

Show guide Brigid Guertin, Executive Director of the Danbury Museum and Historical Society, starts Ray’s journey in Bridgewater with artist and illustrator Pamela Sztybel. We learn how Pamela’s family history inspires her to sketch daily images of news in Ukraine and its war with Russia. A stop at the Danbury Museum and Historical Society reveals 17th-century artifacts and an exquisite wardrobe from iconic singer Marian Anderson. In Ridgefield, mixed media artist Jackeuline Walters tells her story of transitioning from a corporate professional to a full-time artist. Watch Jackeuline work on her current piece in acrylics and batik that captures her Caribbean culture.
This episode premiered on July 17, 2022.

North Central Connecticut

Located behind the Wood Memorial Library in South Windsor, Ray begins with a stop at Nowashe Village to learn more about New England Indigenous culture from Miciah and Taylor Stasis. The Stasis sisters from Herring Pond Wampanoag demonstrate cultural art through basket weaving and porcupine quill embroidery. Our local guide, Liz Bologna from Arts Center East in Vernon, also introduces Ray to Suffield illustrator Rick Stromoski. Rick’s story started in newspaper comics, creating humorous illustrations like his syndicated strip Soup to Nutz.. A trip to the New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks to gives us a behind-the-scenes look at “Area 51”, a warehouse packed with historic aviation and military restorations.
This episode premiered on July 10, 2022.

Waterbury Region

Exploring the arts in the Waterbury region of the state, episode guide David Macharelli from the Mattatuck Museum sends Ray to Meriden to meet iconographer Marek Czarnecki. Marek creates stunning religious images using gold leaf and self-made natural pigment from egg yolks and other natural materials. Ray gets a tour of the attic at The Barnes Museum, full of 18th-century items, including written diaries from the Civil War. Ray also meets with students from Bravo Waterbury!, an after-school music education program developed by the Waterbury Symphony Orchestra.
This episode premiered on July 3, 2022.

Middletown

Middletown is a city with a unique blend of history, culture, and art. The city’s arts coordinator, Kisha McWilliams Michael, starts Ray’s journey at the residence of instrument and aviary builder Michael Pestel. He’s built instruments and architectural sound installations related to bird song and bird extinction. Across town, see where Oddfellows Playhouse stores circus equipment for The Children’s Circus of Middletown, a summer program that’s been in operation since 1988. Haitian-American artist Pierre Sylvain welcomes us to his home studio to view his latest creations in mosaics featuring historical figures.
This episode premiered on June 26, 2022.

Southern Fairfield County

Picture That owner Valerie Cooper introduces Ray to Iranian-American painter Afsaneh Djabbari-Aslani. She was an art student in the U.S. during the Iranian revolution, and her evocative work focuses on the politics and religion of her native country. Ray checks in with Beechwood Arts and Innovation, a center known for its arts programs, workshops, and signature salons. Then Ray visits the studio of artist JAHMANE at Norwalk’s Firing Circuits Studios. His multi-media works and fashion designs combine social awareness and spirituality with a nod to his graffiti arts roots.
This episode premiered on October 25, 2020.

The Eastern Shoreline

According to New London’s WCNI radio host Ali Kaufman, besides great beaches and fried seafood stands, the shoreline is also home to a wide range of artists. Singer, producer, and musician Kolton Harris sings music from his EP, 4 Freedom, his response to the Black Lives Matter movement. Then Ray pops into Tumbleweeds in Niantic to learn more about their rare vinyl and eclectic clothing collection. Finally, Ray spends time with Annawon Weeden, a Mashpee Wampanoag artist working under the name First Light Fashion. Weeden makes beautiful jewelry from traditional wampum harvested from our coastal waters.
This episode premiered on October 18, 2020.

Greater New Haven

Musician and composer Paul Bryant Hudson talks with Ray about the vibrancy of New Haven’s art scene and introduces us to pointillist artist Isaac Canady. He shares how art has saved his life in many ways over the years. Ray learns how the Bradley Street Bike Co-op is getting the community back on their bikes. Artist, activist, and Black Haven creative director Salwa Abdussabur tells us about the transformative power of art, poetry, and spoken word.
This episode premiered on October 11, 2020.

Hartford - Connecticut’s Capital

Hartford may be considered the “insurance capital of the world,” but arts and culture are woven into its fabric. Ray talks with Hartford Fringe Festival producer Jeffrey Kagan-McCann before heading to the iconic Artists Collective to talk with jazz pianist Damian Curtis about his craft. Ray pops into Capital Ice Cream to look at the art of creating sweet treats. At the studio of puppet sculptor Anne Cubberly, Ray gets a tour of the giant, fantastical puppets that are the basis of the yearly “Night Fall” show in Hartford.
This episode premiered on October 4, 2020.

The Litchfield Hills

Ray ventures into the Litchfield Hills to uncover a few hidden gems under the guidance of Northwest CT Arts Council Executive Director and artist Steph Burr. We meet artist and illustrator Jasmine Bailey at Torrington’s Five Points Gallery. She creates bright, fantastical creatures that she works into her art and animation. Darin Ronning and Travis Messinger left New York City to create a life in the small town of Bantam, creating custom ceramic tiles for clients worldwide. Ray carefully makes his way through Bantam Tileworks to see how they do it. And Paula Josa-Jones is an artist who mixes choreography and horses! We spend time with her on a farm in Cornwall to learn what it’s like to learn to dance with these majestic animals.
This episode premiered on September 27, 2020.

Bridgeport

Bridgeport is home to an eclectic mix of world-class artists and performers, many of whom you’ve never heard of, who are dedicated to making art in the “park city.” Artist John Torres sends Ray to the Arcade Mall to visit with fiber artist and weaver Ruben Marroquin and see a work in progress. Visual artist and art educator Alicia Cobb gives a lesson on body painting at her studio in the Nest Arts Factory. And if the walls at Tarquin Studios could talk. Hear some stories from Grammy Award-winning record producer and studio owner Peter Katis.
This episode premiered on September 20, 2020.