‘Great and Small’ exhibit to open Saturday

Contributed story

SHARON — The Sharon Historical Society and Museum is hosting a solo exhibition of recent ceramics, papier-mâché and photographs by local artist Alison Palmer, “Creatures Great and Small,” opening Saturday with a public reception from 4 to 7 p.m. The show runs through Oct. 19.

A portion of all purchases will support the Sharon Historical Society and Museum’s mission. The opening will be held in conjunction with the second Sharon Art Walk, during which the art exhibitions at Hotchkiss Library of Sharon, Sharon Town Hall, Standard Space and Ice House Project Space will also be open to the public, along with the studios of several local artists.

Palmer was born and raised in New York. After graduating from high school, she attended Kansas City Art Institute as well as the California College of Arts and Crafts, where she received her BFA in ceramics.

She then returned to New York, where she implemented a “treatment through crafts” program at Four Winds Psychiatric Hospital in Katonah, N.Y.

While teaching at Four Winds, Palmer opened her own studio in a converted old schoolhouse in Croton Falls, N.Y., then met and married musician Steve Katz.

Together they created a company called Ashes to Ashes that produced funerary urns for animals. The urns were to be designed and handmade by Palmer, while Katz did the sales and marketing.

The pressures of dealing with grieving clients, however, were too much for the couple so they concentrated solely on Palmer’s handcrafted ideas. By 1986, she was exhibiting her work at a few of the finer craft galleries in New York City and elsewhere.

Gallery SHS is located at the Sharon Historical Society & Museum, 18 Main Street, Route 41, Sharon. The gallery and museum are open Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Wednesday through Friday from noon to 4 p.m., and by appointment.

For more information and directions to Gallery SHS, call 860-364-5688. For additional information about the museum, visit www.sharonhist.org.

Contributed photo “Bunny Box,” by Alison Palmer, is part of her exhibit, “Creatures Great and Small,” opening Saturday in Sharon.