Second Saturday Art Gallery hop in Beacon

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For years, Beacon has had hoppin' Second Saturdays with gallery openings and art happenings. But art refuses to be confined to a hashtagged event schedule. That's why we've expanded this Guide to showcase as many art openings as we can within Beacon's city limits. Artistic endeavors are going up on walls (and sidewalks, and lawns) all the time around town, so keep your eyes glued to this space and refresh often to stay in the loop. We try to update the bulk of this Guide on the Monday before Second Saturday, or as venues list their happenings. But we're constantly updating the Guide as we hear about new events and openings.

Are you planning for the fourth Thursday of the month? Or maybe you're already a seasoned #2Sat pro? Skip the Second Saturday 101 below if you'd like, and head straight for the listings, starting with Dia: Beacon.

Our Second Saturday Art Gallery Guide is sponsored by No. 3 Reading Room and Photo Book Works, at 469 Main Street, down toward the east end of Main Street near the Story Screen Beacon Theater. At the reading room, you’ll find not just rotating exhibits, but cool collections of handmade books that the public is encouraged to peruse.

Do you have an art opening coming up? Tell us about it: Drop a line to editorial@alittlebeaconblog.com with the who/what/when/where, and include a representative photo, to be considered for inclusion in this Guide. 

Second Saturday 101

Second Saturday is a lively day into night in Beacon, and is a celebration of Beacon's galleries, restaurants and other businesses on the second Saturday of every month. Dan Rigney, former president of BeaconArts (the organization who encouraged this movement to happen over a decade ago, and who still heavily promotes the events) says: "Back then, Beacon was one of the last places people outside of town thought to go on a Saturday night. Now Second Saturday has become a part of the fabric of Beacon. It's such a part of it, many galleries have their opening events on other Saturdays, so that they get two big crowds each month." Second Saturday provides a great reason to walk Main Street and beyond, and explore the events going on around town. It's always a pleasure to dine your way through Beacon, so turn to our Restaurant Guide to help you puzzle out where to eat and drink as you explore special exhibits and happenings.

What to Know About This Guide:

• This Guide includes gallery and art showings that may be hosted in the gallery or in a shop or restaurant.

• Many of these shows run through the current month, so check back often if you are on an art hunt.

• Closing times posted here are for Second Saturdays only, and may not reflect regular Saturdays. Always call an establishment directly for current hours, offerings, or any other questions.

• Parking can be found on side streets, on Main Street, and in municipal lots. Click here for A Little Beacon Blog's Free Public Parking Guide, with pictures and cross streets!

• Share your way through Second Saturday by using #2SAT, the hashtag created by BeaconArts, and tack on #beaconny or #SecondSaturday if you have room in your tweets or Instagram postings.

• If you are a gallery and have something special to add, please email editorial@alittlebeaconblog.com.

Late-Night (After 9pm) Spots to Eat and Drink: 

After you walk the galleries, you'll be hungry and need (another) drink! See our full list of restaurants who are open prior to 9 pm in our Restaurant Guide. 

• Bank Square 129 Main St.

• Chill Wine Bar 173 Main St.

• Meyer's Olde Dutch 184 Main St.

• Max's On Main 246 Main St.

• Baja 328 328 Main St.

• Quinn's 330 Main St.

• The Towne Crier (bar only) 379 Main St.

• Oak Vino Wine Bar 389 Main St. (call first to see if cheese plates and dessert are still being served!)

• Draught Industries 394 Main St.

• The Beacon Hotel Restaurant 424 Main St.

• The Vault 446 Main St.

• Joe's Irish Pub 455 Main St.

• Roundhouse 2 East Main St.

• Dogwood 47 East Main St.

• Melzingah Tap House 554 Main St.

Leave all of our Guides open on your phone, because they include addresses and phone numbers. Tap on a phone number to call anyone!

Second Saturday, December 14: We’re updating as events come in, so keep checking this space! Looking for more ways to keep busy this Second Saturday? Check out our Event Guide to fill you in on the rest of the happenings - if you're out and about in Beacon and see something that you think we shouldn't miss, tag us on Twitter or in your photos on Instagram (we're @alittlebeacon on both). Now, let's get to November’s art openings and events. 

NEAR THE TRAIN, BEFORE MAIN STREET

Dia:Beacon
3 Beekman St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 440-0100
One of the preeminent modern art museums in the world, Dia:Beacon opened in 2003 in a former Nabisco box-printing factory on the shore of the Hudson River. Take a closer look at Dia:Beacon's giant shapes, piles of glass, grayscale geometry, neon tubes and so. much. more. Dia:Beacon offers complimentary admission with identification to all residents of Columbia, Dutchess, Greene, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester counties on the last Sunday of every month. Dia:Beacon is free for residents of Beacon, Fishkill, Chelsea, and Glenham every Saturday and Sunday, year-round. (Thanks, Pete Seeger.)
Special for Second Saturday: A trio of pretty-new openings at Dia: Better known for her work with sculpture and light, Marian Zazeela instead brings to Dia her works on paper, which ”showcase the range of materials and motifs that stem from the artist’s deep interest in calligraphy and ornamental forms,” according to Dia’s press release. It’ll be interesting to see how those more ornate pieces leap out from the less-decorative works that Dia’s known for. Mel Bochner’s new site-specific, large-scale work, commissioned by Dia, recalls his Measurement series from the late 1960s, delineating and drawing attention to the space that surround us. Barry Le Va’s work, likewise, showcases spaces we might not normally pay attention to: floor-based installations that he focused on in the 1960s.
Also: Saturday Studio! At 10:30 am, visitors can join practicing artists for a free workshop of family-friendly art-making and play. It begins at 10:30 am; sign-up begins in Dia’s admissions area at 10 am. Advance reservations are usually snatched up, but Dia keeps a few first-come, first-serve spots open! All families participating in Saturday Studio receive free admission to Dia:Beacon for the day. Once the Learning Lab wraps up, check out a guided tour of the museum at 12:30 or 2 pm. Reservations for the tour aren't necessary, but may be made at the admissions desk.
Hours: Thursday to Monday, 11 am to 4 pm (November-December hours)

Mother Gallery
1154 North Ave. (downstairs)
Beacon, NY
(845) 236-6039
Mother Gallery is a co-creative, artist-run, exhibition space located in Beacon, NY. Conceived and stewarded by Kirsten Deirup and Paola Oxoa to foster collaboration, community, and open dialogue amongst all people in the Hudson Valley and beyond.
Special for Second Saturday: Don’t miss this! It’s the closing weekend for Shigeko Kubota: Duchampiana Restored in Beacon. From 3 to 5 pm, there will be a gallery talk with Shigeko Kubota Video Art Foundation staff and exhibit curator David A. Ross. The exhibit brings to a new audience Kubota’s pioneering “video sculpture.” Ross, a Beacon resident and former director of the Whitney museum who worked with the late Kubota as early as the 1970s, partnered with Kubota’s husband to restore the videos to their optimum quality. Beacon art scene fixtures Jon Reichert and Kazumi Tanaka structurally reconstituted the pieces. Through Sunday, December 15.
Also for Second Saturday: At 5:30 pm, get acquainted with George Maciunas, the founder of Fluxus, a radical avant-garde art movement of the 20th century. Mother’s press release describes how he left his mark on the art world: “The Lithuanian-born iconoclastic polymath assembled an international network of artists, musicians, and poets that provoked social and political change through performance, ready-mades, and artworks aimed at collapsing the boundary of art and life.” David A. Ross and “George” documentary director Jeffrey Perkins will speak about Maciunas and the film before a screening at 6.
Hours: Saturday and Sunday, noon to 6; Second Saturday Shigeko Kubota gallery talk, 3 to 5 pm; “George” documentary screening, 5:30 pm

Parts & Labor Beacon
1154 North Ave. (upstairs)
Beacon, NY
(917) 664-8861
This recent arrival to the Beacon gallery scene, opening last May, uniquely pairs works by one younger or emerging artist and one more-established artist. Writer Alison Rooney and the gallery’s co-founders, Nicelle Beauchene and Franklin Parrasch, explain the concept really nicely in this recent Highlands Current piece.
Continuing for Second Saturday: Ray Johnson and Mark Gonzales are paired in the latest iteration of Parts & Labor’s exhibitions. Johnson, close with Andy Warhol, expressed his sardonic take on Pop Art through democratizing work like collages and his mail art, as pieces went through the USPS from collaborator to recipient, and each was encouraged to contribute to the piece before sending it along to yet another recipient. Decades later, Mark Gonzales took a similar DIY ethos and ran (rather, skated) with it, creating poetry and illustration-filled zines. Through Sunday, January 26, 2019.
Hours: Saturday and Sunday, noon to 6 pm, or by appointment; by appointment only Saturday, December 21, to Sunday, January 12.

Beacon Historical Society
17 South Avenue
Beacon, NY
(845) 831-0514
Special for Second Saturday: Get your vintage on! Beacon Historical Society is showing off a tree decorated with ornaments from the mid-century, a 1920s dollhouse with holiday décor, and Christmas-themed advertising and postcards. Shop for Beacon Historical swag, including ornaments, pens, books, postcards and T-shirts. (They’ll even gift wrap!) Also at the BHS, Barry Ross’ collection of historical postcards depicting scenes along the Hudson River. Maybe you’ll spy a scene you recognize!
Hours: Thursdays, 10 am to 12 pm; Second Saturday, noon to 4 pm

THE WEST END
(Close to the train station)

Catalyst Gallery
137 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 204-3844
The intention of this artist-run space is to create an opportunity for individual artists or groups to show and sell work in a vibrant community that supports the arts.
Special for Second Saturday: The seventh annual Catalyst Small Works Show! Painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, prints and mixed media work by more than 70 artists. You know how a lot of times, it feels like art galleries are for “fancy people,” and “normal people” (whatever that means) like us don’t quite fit? Well, we do fit, especially in Beacon’s galleries, and especially-especially at Catalyst’s Small Works Show. This is such a great chance to start a little art collection of your own, but there will be lots of gift-able pieces, too, if you’re shopping. Check out the recent posts here to peek at the art before you go. Through Sunday, January 12.
Hours: Open Saturday and Sunday, noon to 6 pm and by appointment; Second Saturday, open until 9 pm

Bannerman Island Gallery
150 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 416-8342
This gallery is devoted to showcasing the beauty of Bannerman Island Castle, as well as the Hudson Highlands that surround the former arsenal. Works in the gallery are available for purchase, benefiting the Bannerman Castle Trust's preservation efforts.
Special for Second Saturday: Bannerman Island Gallery hosts its annual Winter Holiday Exhibition. Over 25 Hudson Valley artists are featured in the exhibition. Primarily a small works show - subject matter and media for this show is open! The Holiday Exhibition features smaller paintings, photography, drawings, printmaking and mixed media works, as well as 3-D objects of glass, ceramics and sculpture. There will be representational works of landscape and still-life as well as abstract and other contemporary works. As always, there will also be works featuring Hudson Valley local points of interest and Bannerman’s Island and Castle. Through Sunday, January 12.
Hours: Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 5 pm, and weekdays by chance or appointment; Second Saturday reception, 4 to 7 pm

Beacon Fine Art Gallery at The Inn & Spa at Beacon
151 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 205-2900
Continuing for Second Saturday: The lobby of The Inn & Spa at Beacon has been rededicated as the Beacon Fine Art Gallery! Stop by to see the representational landscape and still-life paintings of Keith Gunderson. Glass works from Barbara Galazzo also will be on view, as well as paintings by Anamario Hernandez and the photography of Smiljana Peros.
Hours: Daily, 11 am to 5 pm

Darryl’s
155 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 831-2808
Continuing for Second Saturday: The clothing we normally spy here could be described as wearable art, but the shop owners have decided to celebrate Beacon tradition and put up some fine art. Continuing Darryl’s Second Saturday participation is art from Catherine Welshman. She has participated in group and solo shows around Beacon for a long time, and with this exhibition of oil paintings, she adds another venue to her list.
Hours: Daily, 11 am to 6 pm

Marion Royael Gallery
159 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(727) 244-5535
Continuing for Second Saturday: How sweet it is! A new batch of treats is revealed behind the gallery, in MR Yard. This cozy space packs in a lot of art. (We wrote about the gallery and yard a couple years ago, here.) Take a peek, take your time, look around.
Ongoing: Inside the gallery, see Candelabra: Things That Carry the Light of the World, featuring "finely executed visual perspectives" in various mediums by more than a dozen artists. What carries the light of the world to you? How do you carry light? Don't hide it under a bushel. Bring it to Main Street and the MR Gallery. 
In the MR Yard outside, don't miss The Bird's Nest, a site-specific installation.
Hours: Noon to 7 pm (sometimes later)

Hudson Beach Glass
162 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 440-0068
This glass studio has been casting functional and sculptural objects for over 20 years - a truly special establishment to have in Beacon. Stop in to find blown-glass objects of all kinds, from lights to bowls to wind chimes. Sometimes on Second Saturday, you can watch them blow glass!
Special for Second Saturday: Vibrant botanicals brighten up the chilly winter, with monoprints by Carol Struve and ethereal photographs by j.d. weiss in Listening to Light. Works are curated by Carl Van Brunt.
Continuing: Ceramic sculptures by Alison Palmer. Through Sunday, January 5.
Hours: Monday to Saturday, 10 am to 6 pm; Sunday, 11 am to 6 pm; Second Saturday opening reception, 6 to 9 pm

Clutter Magazine Gallery
163 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(212) 255-2505
The Clutter Gallery is a branch of the Clutter Media Group family, and is focused on showing quality work by both established and emerging artists in the fields of toy design and customization, as well as modern pop and lowbrow art. Clutter Gallery's exhibitions are open to the public and free of charge. 
Special for Second Saturday: Here’s another gallery with a long-running winter show that is super for people just dipping their toes into the art-buying waters! More than 100 of the artists you’ve seen all year at Clutter will have pieces in this show, and they are all looking for a home - your home! “Each piece in the show has a maximum retail price of $200, and unlike our usual exhibits, all sold pieces will be able to be taken home on the night of the opening [cash and carry style] (or shipped shortly thereafter). This is a perfect opportunity to get a unique gift for someone special or a little something for yourself,” Clutter says. Come for the art, stay for the refreshments: Second Saturdays at Clutter have libations from Lagunitas Beer! Through Friday, January 3.
Hours: Monday to Friday, 10 am to 6 pm; Saturdays, noon to 5 pm; Second Saturday opening reception, 6 to 9 pm

RiverWinds Gallery
172 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 838-2880
RiverWinds Gallery features Hudson Valley artists. Work includes fine art paintings and photography, plus contemporary crafts including ceramics, jewelry, fiber arts and more.
Special for Second Saturday: Add Clutter’s seven years and Catalyst’s seven years of holiday group art shows, and you’ll have almost as much longevity as RiverWinds Gallery, presenting its incredible 16th holiday show of works by Hudson Valley artists. You’ll find jewelry, pottery, paintings, photography, glass work, encaustics and collage work, but special for this year is the collection of one-of-a-kind ceramic mugs. Ongoing at RiverWinds is Postcards From Oz, a collection of postcards that are part of an exchange with Australian artists. First, postcards from the Hudson Valley were exhibited at an artisans gallery in Benalla, Victoria, Australia. Now, postcards handmade by the Northeast Artisans group have come to RiverWinds. The 6x8 postcards - each one unique - are for sale. (If you’re up for going down an Instagram rabbit hole, #artistpostcard is pretty great.)
Hours: Monday and Wednesday, noon to 4 pm; Thursday and Sunday, noon to 5 pm; Friday and Saturday, noon to 6 pm; Second Saturday, open until 9 pm.

Clarkson University’s Beacon Institute for Rivers & Estuaries
199 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 838-1600
This historic brick storefront houses a variety of Institute programs: the WOW! gallery, the Hudson River bookstore and gift shop, its administrative headquarters, and a new venture, Sensor Place. Events feature talks by artists and regional Hudson Valley authors.
Special for Second Saturday: The River, pastels from Croton-on-Hudson artist Evan Turk continues in the Main Street gallery. Turk created the series of more than 150 pastel paintings in the span of an entire year, through all four seasons, reflecting on continuity, impermanence, and change. See his website for more information. On view through March.
Hours: Friday and Saturday, 3 to 7 pm; Sunday, noon to 4 pm

THE MIDDLE & MARKET SQUARE

Oak Vino Wine Bar
389 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 765-2400
Not just a place to kick back with a glass and unwind, Oak Vino is also a great spot to see art.
Special for Second Saturday: Thomas Van Winkle brings his intricately layered, geometric, hand-cut paper art to Oak Vino. Through Friday, January 31, 2020.
Hours: 3 to 11 pm; Second Saturday reception, 7 to 9 pm

THE EAST END & BEYOND
(Closer to the mountain)

Daniel Aubry Gallery
426 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(917) 647-6823
Special for Second Saturday: Daniel Aubry Gallery presents the Robin Rice Collection of fine art photography. There will be mulled wine and other treats to help you keep cozy! Organizers request that you RSVP to robin@robinricegallery.com or daniel1aubry@gmail.com.
Hours: Second Saturday opening reception, 6 to 9 pm

Morphicism
444 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 440-3092
Moveable art in frames - art you must see and experience. Jay Palefsky taught art in New York high schools for more than two decades, then packed his bags to pursue life as an artrepreneur, with a steadfast commitment to doing things differently. 
Hours: Call for hours and events

No.3 Reading Room & Photo Book Works
469 Main St. 
Beacon, NY
Two doors west of the Howland Center, No. 3 Reading Room & Photo Book Works is an artist-run venue, featuring select artists’ books, artist photobookworks, photography books, work on paper and poetry from small and independent presses. Contact Paulette Myers-Rich at photobookworks@gmail.com for additional information. 
Special for Second Saturday: Paulette describes this season at her storefront in such a lovely, evocative way, that we’ll let her tell you what’s going on: This time of year at “No.3 Reading Room & Photo Book Works brings new and rare poetry and photography books just right for these early, dark evenings. Perhaps you’re tired of screens and screeds right about now. Or you may be on the lookout for a special gift for a special person. Something meaningful, something beautiful, something full of light. It’s what we long for. So I’ve filled the Reading Room with dozens of very special books for the long winter ahead. There are too many books on the shelves to list, so visit and browse.” A couple that caught our eye: Two from Beacon resident Edwin Torres, his book of poetry, XoeteoX: the infinite word object, as well as his limited edition handmade artist book, Of What Is, which incorporates die-cut pop-ups!
Ongoing at the Reading Room: Poetry, photography and artists' books published by small and independent presses, including Hudson Valley writers and artists, are always available for browsing and for sale. “There are always books about poetry, book arts and photography that are not for sale or circulation, but are available for anyone who wants to take the time to read,” Paulette adds. “You’re always welcome to do so.”
Hours: Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 6 pm; Fridays by appointment

Howland Cultural Center
477 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 831-4988
Beacon's Howland Cultural Center is not just another arts organization. Its beautiful home is a Victorian building, a library for a long time, that was born specifically to serve the community as a cultural resource.
Special for Second Saturday: More than a dozen Latinx artists contribute to Inclusion, celebrating Latin American Artists of the Hudson Valley. Through Sunday, December 29.
Hours: Friday to Monday, 1 to 5 pm (closed 12/15 for special event); closing reception, Sunday, December 29, 2:30 to 4:30 pm

Maria Lago Studio 502
502 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 765-8421
Special for Second Saturday: You know Maria Lago for her looming, evocative, larger-than-life sculptures. Her latest work, though, returns to hypertextured painting with Ideograph Materica.
Hours: Thursday, Friday, and Sunday, 11 am to 5 pm; Saturday, 11 am to 6 pm

Bau Gallery
506 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 440-8089
Bau (Beacon Artist Union) is a platform for members and artists to grow, present and market their work and collaborative curatorial projects, while hosting events of related disciplines: performances, talks, film and music. BAU builds a vital link between artists' activities and rest of the community.
Special for Second Saturday: In Gallery 1, Eileen Sackman returns to the theme of threatened wildlife, calling attention to them via ceramics in Endangerment.
In Gallery 2: Melissa Schlobohm’s Beauty Found/Beauty Wrought includes a series of vignettes, moments frozen in time, inspired by a trip out west and back, and visualizing answers to the question, what makes us happy?
In the Beacon Room: Small works by all Bau artists. Through Saturday, December 7. All shows through Sunday, January 5.
Hours: Saturday and Sunday, noon to 6 pm; Second Saturday opening reception, 6 to 9 pm

King + Curated
530 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 440-3368
King + Curated has become well-known around Beacon for modern fine jewelry that is pretty darn artsy all on its own, but the shop is officially joining the Second Saturday fest with the addition of a full-time art wall! The inaugural artist featured is Jo Rigol, with 12 pieces from her Las Lloronas (“weeping women”) series. She describes the work as, “The merging of universally opposing forces such as beauty, fashion and death, attempting to openly confront the societal norm that separates these in an effort to introduce a vivid and conceptual contrast, while still maintaining the individual ideals and interpretations of the observer.”
Hours: Monday to Friday, noon to 7 pm; Saturday, 11 am to 6 pm; Sunday, noon to 4 pm; Second Saturday opening reception, 7 to 9 pm.

BEACON near Route 52

The Lofts at Beacon Gallery
18 Front St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 202-7211
The Lofts at Beacon brought back to life a 19th-century brick mill that once made textiles in the Hudson Valley, located by the Fishkill Creek and situated near the Hudson River in the artists' haven town of Beacon. The Lofts have been completely remodeled into beautiful spaces, providing excellent loft rental units for the working artist.
Special for Second Saturday: Meet the artist behind Dog, Cat and Horse Days of Autumn photography by Jim Dratfield. He’ll be at The Lofts at Beacon from 1 to 4 pm on Second Saturday to talk about how animals’ personalities emerge in portraits of cats, dogs, and horses. His “petography” has been profiled on ABC’s “20/20” and “The View,” and featured in Town & Country, The New York Times and Oprah’s O. magazine. He is the author of 12 books and recently moved to Beacon and is enjoying living here in the Hudson Valley. Through Monday, December 30.
Hours: Second Saturday, meet the artist, 1 to 4 pm

Industrial Arts Brewing Company
511 Fishkill Ave.
Beacon, NY
Special for Second Saturday: Industrial Arts Brewing Co. keeps pushing the boundaries of what we expect when visiting a brewery. First, they scored a resident food truck with Eat Church. Now, there’s art up on the walls. Industrial Arts welcomes Casey Inch, who was born in Brooklyn and raised in Connecticut. He went out to Colorado to earn his BFA in Painting, then in 2007 he moved to Brooklyn to deepen his painting and drawing studies pursuing an MFA at Pratt Institute. Inch exhibits his work nationally, and continues to work in his Brooklyn studio. Through Sunday, April 5, 2020.
Hours: Second Saturday opening reception, 4 to 10 pm