WHAT:  A multi media event exploring themes of freedom and multicultural misunderstandings from a recent exchange of Northampton and Amherst High School Students and students living in The Hague, The Netherlands.  Meet the participants and see and hear about their experiences.
WHEN:  June 24th and 25th          
WHERE:  APE Gallery 126 Main St. Northampton
WHO:  The American participants from the exchange
Contact Person: Sheryl Jaffe can be reached at sheryljaffe@yahoo.com.

The event at APE will include photos, digital video, slides show, Q & A, discussion and artifacts from the following exchange:                                           

For three weeks in April 2 NHS students, Isabella Sanchez Leo, Christopher Gonzalez, and Art Teacher Sheryl Jaffe completed the Netherlands portion of the SUN-Youth exchange program.  Traveling together with Ala’a  El-Shaar, Munther El Alami, and Sister Fatma Abdelwahab all from Al Noor Academy in Mansfield, we were reunited with our Dutch friends who had been here in February.  We spent two weeks living with host famlies and attending City+ College, exploring Den Haag, and working on the themes of the exchange.                                                                                                                                                   
High school students from all these different backgrounds got together to do a variety of cultural activities and really get to know each other.  We went to a comedy show called “Allah made me funny”, a canal boat tour, and attended a National Voetbol (soccer) tournament. The whole group collaborated on an innovative, funny, video exploring themes of freedom and multicultural misunderstandings. This extraordinary, life-changing experience opened all of our eyes to the joys of just being together, sharing and learning about the worlds we share and those we don’t, but maybe could. We are planning a community event at A.P.E. gallery in June and everyone is welcome and invited.  This exchange program was coordinated by the Institute for Training and Development, ITD, and was funded by the U.S. State Department. It promises to be a great community event! 
 

A.P.E.'s new Exhibition and office spaces at Window.

If you are interested in applying for a exhibition or event at A.P.E. please contact us at (413) 586-5553 or send an email and we will provide you with our submission guidelines.

After the sale of Thornes Market to new owners in 2006, A.P.E. signed a one year lease to continue it’s programming and events on the Third Floor and to have time to look for a new location in the center of town. That search resulted in the purchase of  Window, LLC, a five story building at 126 Main Street, Northampton, just a few doors down from Thornes Market.  A.P.E.’s one year lease with Thornes was over at the end of September 2007 and A.P.E. will leave Thornes the end of January, 2008. A.P.E. will open a new office and begin to develop new programs at Window, LLC, beginning early in 2008.

During its search for a new location in 2006-07, A.P.E. began conversations with other arts organizations, the city and members of the community about the need to keep the arts vibrant in Northampton, in particular, how to keep spaces open and affordable.  Identifying different spaces and buildings became part of that conversation and resulted in A.P.E. writing a Feasibility Grant for the Cultural Facilities Fund, a newly created entity through the Massachusetts Cultural Council, to administer state funds awarded to projects devoted to cultural development and advancement.   A.P.E. received a $18,750 matching grant to study the feasibility of creating a community arts center in the former Northampton Institute for Savings, located at the corner of Gothic and Main St. in the center of town.  A.P.E. was the only recipient of this grant in Northampton!

A.P.E’s concerns revolve around the issue of affordable space for artists to create and show work in the center of town.  It is a well known fact that a number of spaces devoted to the arts are in jeopardy at this point in time and A.P.E. is at the forefront of leading the effort to retain, hold and find ways for the community to own buildings for the long term so that the arts can remain an essential part of the fabric of this community.    A.P.E. is using the model of the land trust to explore the idea of a community “arts” trust, that would enable the community to purchase and hold spaces in town for arts and culture, thus creating real sustainability for the arts to thrive.

If you would like to be kept informed or would like more information, go the following links and add your name to our mailing list!

http://www.massculturalcouncil.org/facilities/facilities.htm

http://www.schumachersociety.org/about.html