Norwood to Hold First Town-Wide Arts Exhibition on the Common-September 11, 1978

Local residents will soon get a chance to find out what some of their neighbors have been up to lately in the world of art when the town holds its first arts exhibition on the common on September 23 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Community-Sponsored Town Green Exhibit

The event is being sponsored by the Norwood Women’s Community Committee in cooperation with the newly formed Norwood Art Association and the Morrill Memorial Library.

Any Norwood resident 18 or older can enter up to three works in the showing. Categories include paintings, drawings, prints, and photographs, and Norwood High School students can also enter three works through the school system. Inez E. Reardon, publicity chairman for the Norwood Art Association, explained that there will be no judging because the association wants to encourage everyone to enter the show.

There are no entry fees for the event, and while works can be sold at the exhibition—tagged by price or the words “not for sale”—the sponsors will take no commission. Entry forms are available at the Morrill Memorial Library and should be returned before Wednesday, with artists delivering their works to the library between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. on September 18, 19 and 20.

“The Women’s Community Committee — they’re the real Santa Claus of this thing,” Mrs. Reardon said enthusiastically, noting that the committee sponsored and is organizing the event for the fledgling art association. Mrs. Reardon added, “Town Manager John P. Mogan has been very gracious and is quite excited about the whole thing. The town Department of Public Works will help us set up for the exhibit.”

Library Director Carl Himmelsbach will provide pegboards for hanging artworks, and Town Recreation Director Robert Ivatts will assist. Rachel Leavitt, outgoing president of the Women’s Community Committee, was the originator and moving force of the project. The rain date is set for September 30, with indoor exhibits planned at the library if necessary.

Special Attractions and Norwood Art Week

A special feature of the exhibit will be a musical performance by the Norwood High School Band. Additionally, the Nor Hood Workshop’s New English Players will stroll through the exhibit in costume to promote their upcoming presentation of “The Importance of Being Earnest” at 8 p.m. on September 22 and 23 at Norwood Junior High North, with special reduced admission tickets available for senior citizens and students.

The “Town Green Exhibit” will serve as the highlight of what selectmen have proclaimed as Norwood Art Week (September 18–23). During the week, the Morrill Memorial Library will also host a special display of articles from the Day House, which belonged to renowned local photographer Fred Holland Day, whose works are exhibited at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger