Art on the Trails 2024

Above: Art on the Trails organizers are asking artists to start thinking about “Legacy” in memory of “a remarkable friend” of the program. (scroll down for image credits*)

Starting in two weeks, artists can submit proposals to be part of 2024 Art on the Trails. This will be the 8th annual exhibit at Beals Preserve. 

This year’s theme will be “Legacy”.

Usually, the theme is introduced with it’s definition from the dictionary and a philosophical prompt. This year, organizers instead tapped into a theme that is personal to them and the Southborough community.

For this summer’s exhibition at Beals Preserve, artists are asked to consider the legacy of Whitney Beals, who helped oversee the stewardship of the 58.5 acres of open space his parents donated to SOLF.

As explained on the Art on the Trails website the exhibit:

is dedicated to the memory of Whitney Beals, who passed away in September 2023. Whit was the President of the Southborough Open Land Foundation and dedicated his life to land conservation and forestry. As a child, the land across the street from his house, now Beals Preserve, was his playground. While he was well educated, he would attest that he was educated by and in the Forest. In his honor, we invite artists to consider the legacy that he and his family have left for the town of Southborough and propose art installations that support this theme.

For art submissions, organizers will “welcome all interpretations of this concept, in all materials”. For the fourth year, each selected artist will receive a $100 stipend. 

The juror for this year’s exhibition is Marie Craig, artist, curator, and owner of Fountain Street Gallery.

As always, the art on the Southborough Open Land Foundation’s preserve must leave no permanent trace to the environment and be installed without harm to surrounding trees or vegetation.

The window for submissions is February 15th – April 15th. Selections will be announced on May 1st. Works will be installed by artists on June 15th to be on display through September 15th. (The trails are generally open to the public from dawn to dusk.)

Those interested in potentially applying can request a guided tour of the site.

If you’re feeling inspired, or think you know someone who might be, you can check out the website here and the full submission guidelines here. (You can also look at past coverage and photos on the blog here.)

Each year, the exhibit is also used to inspire poetry for a chapbook. Stay tuned for news on a Call for Poetry later this summer.

Once again, the outdoor exhibit is made possible through support from the Southborough Community Fund, SOLF, the Southborough Cultural Arts Council, and the Mass Cultural Council.

*(cover images clockwise cropped from photo by Chelsea Bradway of Matthew Haberstron’s 2023 contribution “Good Tree with its Voice”, 2024 theme image by art juror Marie Craig, and photo of Whitney Beals from Facebook)

Updated (2/5/24 9:09 am): It was pointed out by a commenter that I referred to Beals as open dusk to dawn, when I meant to write dawn to dusk.