First Annual Berkshire Festival of Women in the Arts

Inspiration
When Jennifer Browdy de Hernandez, founder and director of the International Women's Day Conference at Simon's Rock, began considering "The Power of Women in the Arts" as the theme for the 8th annual conference, she quickly realized that this was far too rich a topic to try to cover in a single day. “We have an incredible wealth of talented women in the arts in the Berkshires who ought to be recognized and celebrated for the powerhouse force they are,” she says of the impulse to create larger happening.

Bringing the Festival to Life
Browdy de Hernandez brought her idea to Eugenie Sills, founder and publisher of The Women's Times, who enthusiastically embraced the festival and became its presenting sponsor. “We’ve had a great time working with Jenny and moving the festival forward,” says Sills. “The Women's Times has always cast a spotlight on women’s art, women artists and women working behind the scenes. A few years ago, we began an annual feature in our summer arts preview called ‘Where the women are—and aren’t.’  We’ll continue to ask the question, but this March, the answer will be resounding: everywhere in the Berkshires!”

Festival Overview
During the month of March, over 60 events at 30-plus venues will be held including film screenings, exhibitions, performances and talks. The festival will include diverse programming that ranges from the historical to contemporary, traditional to radical, political to apolitical. Venues run the spectrum from the Berkshires’ most established cultural organizations to new and improvised locations. There are opportunities for festival goers to examine the role of women in the arts, celebrate the achievements of women artists or simply enjoy a diverse cross-section of artistic work.

Signature Events
On March 6-7, the 8th Annual International Women’s Day Conference will be held at Bard College at Simon’s Rock, with the theme: The Power of Women in the Arts. Featured speakers include Carol Gilligan, Karen Allen, Kristin Jones, Martha Richards and Susan Fisher Sterling, Executive Director of the National Museum of Women in the Arts.

On March 13, She’s Got Moxie! The First Annual Festival Awards will be presented by The Women’s Times in Founders’ Theatre at Shakespeare & Company. The awards will recognize the individual contributions of selected honorees and celebrate the power of Berkshire women in the arts. Honorees will be announced in early February.