![Gingerbread ‘House Proud’ in Kent and Salisbury, Conn.](https://lakevillejournal.com/media-library/brittany-hrabcsaks-cookie-recreation-of-whoville-from-how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-won-first-prize-in-the-kent-conn-ging.jpg?id=48209981&width=980&quality=90)
Brittany Hrabcsak’s cookie recreation of Whoville from “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” won first prize in the Kent, Conn., Gingerbread Festival.
Photo by Melissa Roth Chernisk
In just nine years, the Kent Gingerbread Festival in Kent, Conn., has gone from being just fun to being quite a big deal. It’s one of the biggest gingerbread festivals in the region and has become a big draw to town, even in years when there’s a pandemic quarantine. This year, to make it easier to access the houses, the festival organizers used space in a retail area in the center of town owned by Rocco and Candi Valeri, that was converted for the holiday season to Gingerbread Station.
The cookie creations were on display for the month of December. Awards were announced Jan. 1; the judging this year was by state Rep. Maria Horn (D-64) and Jill Owens Zinzi, of Kent Coffee and Chocolate Co., described as “the mother of the Kent Gingerbread Festival herself.”
The grand prize winner this year was Brittany Hrabcsak, who has been an award winner in the festival for several years in a row now (for her first foray into gingerbread decoration she was young enough to qualify for the Youth Award). This year, Hrabcsak created Whoville from Dr. Seuss’ holiday tale, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”
Sue Hanneman won second place for her recreation of Rapunzel in her castle tower.
Third place was awarded to the Swyft restaurant team.
The people’s choice award went to Denise Howard, Teddie Miner, Cat Heidel, Karen Heuvel, and Janette Ireland.
“Social Media’s most loved creation” went to Isabel Carrington and Emily Creighton, whose post of their gingerbread Warner Theatre reached 19,200 followers and elicited 3,100 comments.
The Youth Award was won this year by Jordana Berman, Abby Berman and Alexander Berman, who recreated the Kent train station (now home to the Kent Station Pharmacy).
The prize for Most Realistic creation went to Tom Doyle, for building a fully edible cookie version of the exterior AND interior of Foreign Cargo.
Just starting out this year, the Salisbury, Conn., gingerbread festival and holiday decorating competition announced two winners at the end of December. Heidi Hoeller and Wanda Hoeller won the gingerbread contest with their Gingerville Ski Chalet; and the Hussey Family of Lakeville won first place in the Light Up Salisbury contest. Both contests were sponsored by the Salisbury Volunteer Ambulance and Salisbury Recreation.
Isabel Carrington and Emily Creighton not only know how to bake and decorate like pros, they also collected tens of thousands of views on social media for their cookie version of the Warner Theatre in Torrington, Conn. Photo by Melissa Roth Chernisk
Rapunzel and her tower were captured in cookies by Sue Hanneman, whose baking and decorating efforts won her second place in the Kent, Conn., Gingerbread Festival. Photo by Melissa Roth Chernisk
David Colbert with one of his sculptures on the sculpture walk he has created over 35 years.
The Cornwall Open Studio took place on Saturday, Aug. 31. It is a Cornwall tradition and has been taking place for eighteen years.
It is a day when Cornwall artists invite the public into their studios to see what they are working on and how they do it. The artists work in various media, including painting, sculpture, photography and artistic shoes.
To participate, prospective tourists go to cornwallct.org/event/cornwall-open-studio-2024/ where a map and a list of the artists is available to download and print. The event is free, there is no registration, and so armed with the map, those taking the tour are set to explore not only artists’ studios, but the beautiful drive through Cornwall.
David Colbert, sculptor, is the initiator of the event. He said of his work, “I was smitten by the geometry and eventually the geometry led me to art.” Behind his studio in Cornwall Bridge he has a quarter mile sculpture path which he has been building for the past thirty-five years. Those on the tour could meander down the path and enjoy the beauty of the geometrically derived works.
Asked if there were any special artists and studios that should not be missed, he said, “I can’t help but mention Tim Prentice, whose shop, barn and whole place is pretty amazing.” At Prentice’s studio in West Cornwall, an old barn, mobiles, and other kinetic works of art hang from walls and ceilings and populate the surrounding fields. Across the road, another barn holds larger sculptures.
At 93, Prentice still works most days in the studio beside his house. He said he works on “small things.” He struggles with fading eyesight due to macular degeneration. He will be in a film by The Vision and Art Project, which seeks to bring awareness of macular degeneration by featuring artists like Tim Prentice. The film will be shown at the Cornwall Library sometime in the coming months.
In spite of his failing eye sight, he enjoys getting out to the studio and working and was welcoming visitors on the tour.
Another interesting studio is that of Lauren Brinkers Shoes in Cornwall Bridge. The shoes are hand painted and “one of a kind.” “I studied in London and went to shoe making school there,” Brinkers said. “I studied traditional men’s shoe making and transitioned into women’s.” She wanted to bring “more color and expression into shoes.” She learned how to work with leather dyes and paints the shoes to accomplish this goal.
A display of Lauren Brinkers handmade, one of a kind , hand paintied shoes on display at her Cornwall studio.Robin Roraback
Next to Lauren Brinkers’ studio is that of Stephan Sagmiller, who shows with his photographs that “The world is worth looking at closely. You’ve got to look at them up close. That’s my ethos as an artist.” His photos are large and colorful and invite you to do just that — look up close.
In West Cornwall, the abstract landscapes of Suzan Scott were on display at the Souterrain Gallery. Scott says of her work, “I’ve always had a strong connection with nature. I see everything, every blade of grass.” It was overwhelming for her. She began to paint still lives thinking they’d be easier, but in doing so she realized that still lives are similar to landscapes in that she could break down the parts as she did for still lives. “Why not go out and do landscapes and simplify them — abstract them?”
Her process is to layer tinted glazes, sometimes as many as thirty. She will work on a painting, let it rest, go back to it, work some more, and continue this until the painting is finished, which can take a week or months.
Scott paints scenes from the northwest corner and has “favorite spots” that she revisits. “The more I see it, the more I can interpret it, and it becomes mine.”
These are just a few of the artists on the tour. There were also Curt Hanson’s beautiful landscapes and the looser, colorful paintings of Magaly Ohika, Katherine Freygang and Sally Van Doren. Photographers Nick Jacobs and Bela Selendy also opened their studios. They use their cameras to explore life and nature.
If you missed the tour this year, be sure to keep an eye out for it next Labor Day Weekend. It is a wonderful way to spend a Saturday. To contact these artists or find out more about their work, go to: cornwallct.org/history-culture/arts-artists/ or go to the tour website to find links to their websites.
Fresh donuts by Hanna Rybolt at ILSE Coffee.
Something scrumptious is cooking beneath Colonial Theatre.
Pastries by Hanna was established in February of 2024 at 27 Railroad St. in North Canaan. The owner, Hanna Rybolt, is a resident of Canaan who studied in the pastry program at Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island.
Her interest in baking is rooted in fond memories with her family. The baked goods and pastry products are sold locally at ILSE Coffee just next door, as well as the Great Barrington farmer’s market. Her pastry kitchen is located below Colonial Theatre.
Rybolt aims to ensure the goods are produced with locally grown products and sold in community businesses. Pastries by Hanna’s best-selling product is brioche-style donuts.
The business is solely owned and operated by Rybolt, who stated she is looking forward to what the future will bring for the bakery and is hoping to collaborate with more companies in the area.
Customers can custom order goods online at pastriesbyhanna.com or check out her Instagram page @PastriesbyHanna.
On Sept. 15, The Triplex Cinema in Great Barrington, Mass. will host a special screening of “Geraldine Ferraro: Paving the Way,” a documentary directed by Donna Zaccaro, Ferraro’s daughter. The film celebrates the life and legacy of Geraldine Ferraro, the first female vice-presidential candidate in U.S. history. As we approach the 40th anniversary of Ferraro’s groundbreaking campaign, this screening offers a timely reminder of the significant strides made by a trailblazer who forever altered the landscape of American politics.
Zaccaro, a seasoned filmmaker and the founder of Dazzling Media and Ferrodonna Features Inc., has dedicated her career to producing films that center on women, women’s issues, and social justice. “Ferro means iron, and Donna means woman in Italian,” Zaccaro explained, highlighting the significance behind the name of her nonprofit production company. “It’s a nod to both my mother’s strength and my mission to tell women’s stories.” The documentary is both a tribute to her mother and a poignant exploration of the barriers Ferraro faced during her 1984 vice-presidential run on Walter Mondale’s ticket.
While Geraldine Ferraro’s historic campaign is widely remembered as a milestone in American politics, what’s less known is the story of how she got there. Ferraro’s journey from a hardscrabble childhood to breaking barriers in Washington is a tale of relentless determination and grit. She faced personal and professional challenges at every turn—struggles that would have stopped many in their tracks. And though her campaign ultimately ended in defeat, the way she conducted herself throughout left a lasting impact. “There are a lot of lessons in the film,” said Zaccaro. “I mean look at the people who are successful in Congress now. They do exactly what was being done then — they work across the aisles, they find common ground, they’re respectful to each other. This was a lesson that my mother taught — even though you might disagree with people, you still respect them, you can even become friends with them. The only way you reach compromise is if you treat everyone with respect and try to find common ground.”
Originally released to critical acclaim, the film had a robust festival run before airing on Showtime. As the film makes its way back to the big screen during this pivotal moment in American politics, the lessons from Ferraro’s life resonate even more strongly. “These are lessons that we desperately need today, especially as we look toward the 2024 presidential race,” said Zaccaro. The connection between Ferraro’s trailblazing campaign and Vice President Kamala Harris’s current political journey is undeniable. “She would have been absolutely thrilled to see Vice President Harris,” said Zaccaro, who was preparing her remarks for the Democratic National Convention at the time of this interview. “I wanted to show that the reason that she was willing to give up her congressional seat, and she loved being in Congress, was because she knew that even if they lost, which they were likely to given what was going on with the economy and Reagan’s popularity, was how she conducted herself during that campaign would make a difference for what women thought was possible.”
The screening will be followed by a talkback moderated by author, journalist, lecturer, social activist and a founding editor of Ms. magazine, Letty Cottin Pogrebin. Pogrebin, a longtime friend of Geraldine Ferraro said, “She was just one of the most vibrant, forward thinking, high energy, positive people I’ve ever known. She was a great agitator for good things. You wanted to be part of whatever she was part of.” Ferraro’s commitment to her Catholic faith and her unapologetic fight for reproductive freedom was a particular brand of bravery, Pogrebin explained. “She understood how all things flow from freedom inside one’s own skin. You can’t be free if you’re not free to make decisions about where and how your body is used, how your body is seen and respected.”
“Geraldine Ferraro: Paving the Way” is more than a historical retrospective; it’s a call to action, a reminder of the enduring fight for equality, and an inspiration for those who continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible in American politics. Don’t miss the chance to revisit the past and look toward the future on September 15 at the Triplex.