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Everyone in the community is invited to attend. Light refreshments will be served. The opening reception at 6 p.m. will feature remarks from Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling. At 6:30, the Norwalk Redevelopment Agency will host a Community Conversation to discuss "Made in Norwalk: Recognizing Norwalk's Creative Economy."
Elizabeth Stocker, director of economic development in the mayor's office, will serve as moderator for this panel-style talk. Panel participants include Laura Einstein, executive director of the Center for Contemporary Printmaking; Jeffrey Price, owner of The Artist’s Market, a long-established Norwalk business that is known as, “An oasis of art, that blends a gallery, a museum, and a busy framing workshop”; and musician and teacher Gerald Myles, owner of Norwalk recording studio, Myles of Drums.
According to a national research study conducted in 2012 by Americans for the Arts, the arts in Fairfield County are big business. The study, done in cooperation with the Fairfield County Cultural Alliance, revealed that nonprofits, cultural and creative organizations and, by extension, creative businesses, generate more than $130 million annually and support more than 4,000 jobs.
The Mayor’s Gallery exhibit will focus on a number of Norwalk businesses and organizations, including Music Theatre of Connecticut, TFI Envision, the Fairfield County Makers Guild, illustrator Maggie Swanson, musician and teacher Gerald Myles, and SONO Entertainment.
Mayor’s Gallery curator Melissa Slattery said “While researching creative organizations and businesses in Norwalk, a consistent element I found is how much these groups and individuals give back to the Norwalk community through education, various kinds of financial and volunteer support and, certainly, economic growth."
"This show is a celebration of the vibrant creative community that enriches quality of life in Norwalk for everyone who lives and works here," she added. "We’re excited that people from the business and residential communities of Norwalk will have the opportunity to join our conversation about Norwalk’s creative economy.”
The Mayor’s Gallery is on the second floor of City Hall. For information about these events, contact Slattery at 203-803-9964 or email melissaslatteryct@gmail.com.
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