Second Saturday Art Gallery hop in Beacon

Want To Sponsor This Art Gallery Guide?
Learn About Sponsor Opportunities

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.

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.

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, February 9: Happy Second Saturday, Beacon! What else is going on around town? 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 February’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. Many people point to the museum's arrival as a turning point for Beacon's arts-intensive revival. 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: In Dia’s Saturday Studio, held every Second Saturday, visitors can join practicing artists for a free monthly workshop of art-making and play in the Learning Lab at Dia:Beacon. Designed for all ages, Saturday Studio is a family-friendly program that is most suitable for children ages 5 and up. Saturday Studio begins promptly at 10:30 am. The sign-up process begins in the admissions area at 10 am. Reservations are not required. All families participating in the Saturday Studio program 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 aren't necessary, but may be made at the admissions desk.
Hours: Friday to Monday, 11 am to 4 pm (January-March hours)

Mother Gallery
18 West Main St. #7
Beacon, NY
(near the train station in the complex with Brett’s Hardware, Two-Way Brewing and Beacon Pilates)
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: In the Garden of Forking Paths, featuring Brigida Caramagna, Colin Hunt, and Karsten Krejcarek, borrows a name from and mirrors the surreal, nonlinear writings of, Argentine author Jorge Luis Borges. Paintings by Caramagna, a New Jersey native, reflect spirituality and light through meditative works. Brooklyn-based Hunt flips assumptions with his paintings that seem like photos of portals into other dimensions. In his sculptural works, Krejcarek explores personal traumas and the different avenues we can take to make sense of them - like a psychedelic “Choose Your Own Adventure” book, maybe. Through Sunday, March 24.
Hours: Thursday to Saturday, noon to 5 pm; Second Saturday opening reception, 6 to 9 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: Spurred by Blood Art Archive & CelebrateWomxn845 present CYCLES, an art show exploring often-complex relationships with menstruation. Menstruation is having a moment. Over the past few years, there has been a big push to destigmatize many things that bodies do (or may have done to them). But it’s not just bad things - plenty of people frame these events positively. According to CYCLES organizer Regina Williams, the impetus for this art exhibition began in a Facebook post: “A few months ago a friend posted a personal account of the joy and pain that her journey into menopause brought her, within minutes at least a hundred people responded with their own complex relationships to menstruation. Every emotion possible was shared. … a shout went up of ‘there is art in this.’” A salon-style group art show was born. “We hope that the works on display will spark further conversations,” Regina adds. As part of the exhibition, there will be a Red Tent shindig on Sunday evening, as well as a reading of The Vagina Monologues on Saturday, February 16. Through Monday, February 18.
Hours: Second Saturday opening reception, 6 to 9 pm; check with @celebratewomxn845 or email bloodartbeacon@gmail.com for more information on gallery hours.

Beacon Fine Art Gallery at The Inn & Spa at Beacon
151 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 205-2900
Ongoing: 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, through Sunday, May 15, 2019. Glass works from Barbara Galazzo also will be on view, as well as paintings by Anamario Hernandez.
Hours: Daily, 11 am to 5 pm

Marion Royael Gallery
159 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(727) 244-5535
Ongoing: 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 / Fovea
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: As far as this Guide editor can track down, Richard Bruce has been exhibiting in Beacon since at least 2006, when his Wet Lands and Bodies of Water opened at the Beacon Institute. See what changes a decade holds in Richard Bruce: New Paradigms. Through Sunday, March 3.
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: The seventh annual [In]Action Figures opens, with oodles of collectibles that will remind you of pop culture icons - usually with a sly twist. Also opening is Toy Pizza’s Knights of the Slice - now in 8-inch scale! Don’t forget: Clutter’s openings frequently have refreshments, and (even better) usually have artists, too! Come on out and meet ‘em.
Hours: Monday to Friday, 10 am to 6 pm; Saturdays, noon to 5 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: Photographer Nancy Faulds roamed the abandoned Scranton Lace Factory, capturing scenes that juxtapose “beauty, chaos and melancholy,” according to RiverWinds Gallery. Beauty Among the Ruins marks Nancy’s return to RiverWinds Gallery; she showed last December her works combining Polaroids and woven lace.
Hours: Monday and Wednesday, noon to 4 pm; Thursday, Friday, and Sunday, noon to 5 pm; Saturday, noon to 6 pm; Second Saturday opening reception with the artist, 6 to 9 pm.

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.
Ongoing: See Hudson: Future Memories of a Magnificent River, featuring art and objects inspired by and used in two canoe expeditions this year along the Hudson River. The trips were sponsored by the Netherlands-based nonprofit Ninth Wave Global, who works around the world to “encourage quiet, humble and slow exploration of places and people,” with an eye toward promoting growth, programs, and solutions led by local people and local values. Open weekends, through March 2019.
Hours: Sunday, 10 am to 2 pm; Monday, 1 to 5 pm; Saturday, 3 to 7 pm; Second Saturday, 3 to 9 pm

THE MIDDLE & MARKET SQUARE

Howland Public Library
313 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 831-1134
Special for Second Saturday: Art Is Elementary, artwork from students in Beacon City School District’s elementary schools. The opening was last month, on a messy snowy day, so get to the library and see the drawings, paintings, and more! Through Saturday, February 16.
Hours: The Community Room is open during regular library hours; Second Saturday opening reception, 5 to 7 pm

Big Mouth Coffee Roasters
387 Main St.
Beacon, NY
Special for Second Saturday: This relatively recent arrival to Main Street has quietly been supporting loads of artists, and hosting a ton of art shows. Visuals, a photography exhibition hosted by Kerry Soeller and curated by Claire Deane, features prints from Soeller, Anthony Sarcone, Stamper, Bryan Caprari, Emad Jamal, Steph Woman, and John De Marco. Through March 2019.
Hours: Monday through Saturday, 8 am to 7 pm; Sunday, 8 am to 5 pm

THE EAST END & BEYOND
(Closer to the mountain)

Howling at the Edge of Chaos
428 Main St.
Beacon, NY
As of December 2018, Howling at the Edge of Chaos has closed after owner Valerie J. Mitchell was diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer. Read more in our article about the store closing. Then keep in mind, as Valerie posted on Instagram, “What is important to you? Stop saying you don’t have time and start saying I made time for this ____. See where that takes you.”

Matteawan Gallery
436 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 440-7901
As of October 2018, Matteawan Gallery has closed. But keep a look out for owner Karlyn Benson's name and keen eye: "I plan to curate exhibitions under the name Matteawan Projects and to write about art in the Hudson Valley," she says. Follow along with her projects via Instagram, at @matteawanprojects and @kb_creativeconsulting.
New in this 436 Main St. space - La Mère Clothing + Goods! Get the scoop on this burgeoning boutique - and every other storefront! - in A Little Beacon Blog’s Shopping Guide.

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 artist’s 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. 
Extended: The run of incredible, unique, incredibly unique concepts continues at No.3 Reading Room and Photo Book Works. This Second Saturday, don’t miss Manos Sucias/Dirty Hands, a collaboration between poet Seán Monagle, visual artist Greg Slick, and book artist Paulette Myers-Rich. The limited-edition books - only 30 were made - were crafted, from poetry to illustrations to pressing each page to hand-binding the finished products, by these Beacon residents. “Beauty and radical voices are not mutually exclusive - indeed, truth and beauty work hand-in-hand with integrity and respect to offer power and presence to the words,” Paulette writes on her website. Manos Sucias/Dirty Hands is the sixth title in Traffic Street Press’ “Trafficking in Poetry” series; a limited number of copies may still be available for purchase. (Earlier titles in the series will be on display and available for perusal.) Through Sunday, February 24.
Hours: Saturday and Sunday, noon to 6 pm

TERRESON:BEACON
475 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(914) 772-6570
Jeffrey Terreson's paintings are in the collections of various Fortune 500 companies, as well as the United Nations. His work is inspired by 20th-century post-war masters such as Julian Schnabel, Jasper Johns, Mark Rothko and Joan Snyder. 
Hours: By appointment; Second Saturday, usually 10 am to 10 pm

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: The Howland Cultural Center celebrates African-American History Month with the 25th annual exhibit spotlighting the work of black artists from the Hudson Valley. This year’s exhibit will be dedicated in memory of artist Michael White, who died Dec. 20, 2018, at the age of 33. The Poughkeepsie native had participated in the annual Beacon exhibit for more than a decade. In addition to White’s paintings, see art from Jean Benoit, Ronald Brown, Yvette Byrd, Ramona Candy, Destiny Faulkner, Shaunda-Sekai Holloway, Kyra Sukenya Husbands, Robert E. Lewis, Corey Lightfoot, Richard Outlaw, Samantha Outlaw, Dwight Reed, Eddison Romeo, Oliver Spearman, Gina Waters and Donald Whitely. Through Monday, February 25.
Hours: Friday to Monday, 1 to 5 pm

Maria Lago Studio 502
502 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 765-8421
Maria Lago's super-textural paintings come to life with her larger-than-life sculptures. Her gallery is filled with the looming, evocative figures. Come meet Women Warriors, Maria Lago's latest painted additions to her family of haunting, elongated beings.
Hours: Call for hours

bau Gallery
506 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 440-7584
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: bau stalwarts and Beacon faves Carla Goldberg and Melissa Schlobohm take over the Main Gallery for bau 170. Goldberg’s pieces often have intricate bubbles that look like an ocean wave just rolled through. Schlobohm’s work also frequently references the natural world, whether in hand-colored and hand-cut illustrations or whimsical sculpture.
In the Beacon Room: Zachary Skinner combines humans’ interaction with and irreversible influence on the environment in the post-industrial landscapes of Troubled Waters.
Hours: Saturday and Sunday, noon to 6 pm; Second Saturday opening reception, 6 to 9 pm

Russell Cusick Gallery
530 Main St.
Beacon, NY
(845) 202-7787
Way down to the East End, right across from the Roundhouse, you'll find Russell Cusick's gallery. He has transmuted photography and painted Hudson Valley vistas, rendering the familiar scenes into hypervivid dreamscapes. But he's also known for turning manhole covers into art. (Yes, really. See for yourself!)
Hours: Call for hours and Second Saturday happenings.

BEACON near Route 52

Ethan Cohen Kunsthalle Beacon (KuBe)
192 Verplanck Ave.
(The old Beacon High School)
Beacon, NY
(845) 765-8270
Kunsthalle Beacon is the official name for what many people refer to as "the artist studios in the old high school." Since 2010, the corridors and classrooms have housed dozens of studios and gallery spaces. Maybe you've visited before, maybe for a Beacon Open Studios jaunt. If you haven't yet checked it out, now's the time!
Ongoing: There is more than meets the eye to Isaac Aden’s No Regrets: Bars and Irish Chains at KuBe. Glance at this blurb’s accompanying photo, the red and blue pieces on a white background. Those aren’t paintings! Aden uses industrial canvas, sewn in patterns inspired by Amish quilting traditions. Through Friday, March 1.
Hours: Thursday to Sunday, noon to 7 pm

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.
Opening Sunday, February 10: La Luz - Reflejos de Semana Santa en Suchitoto, photographs by Michael Sibilia. Amid a working trip to El Salvador, after days on a perfectly lit film set, Sibilia set out at night to shoot photos from the town. He relied on environmental light - la luz - to illuminate the scenes he captured. From shadowy doorways to candlelit gatherings, Sibilia shares his reflections from Holy Week in Suchitoto.
Hours: Monday and Thursday, 9 am to 7 pm; Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, 9 am to 5 pm; Saturday, 9 am to 4 pm; Sunday, 11 am to 3 pm; opening reception with the artist on Sunday, February 10, 1 to 3 pm