The old shoe factory, now home to various artists and businesses, welcomed visitors this glorious fall weekend. 

Richard Kattman, landscape artist, said that despite an 11 o’clock opening, the bulk of visitors on Saturday came in the afternoon.  He was doing some leisurely reading when I caught him in his studio Sunday morning, expecting more after the noon hour again.

Various concerts were planned for the afternoon, but I was lucky to hear acoustic guitar music of lyricist Katie Frassinelli in the upstairs hallway before noon.

Holliston artist Laurie Leavitt hosted a selection of treats in her studio, home to an array of beautiful pieces acrylic paintings.  The birch bark in the photo (above and on the left) was created through Leavitt’s use of New Yorker magazine pages.

Popping into various studios, each having its distinct décor, I was distracted by a leg cast on artist Kristin Stashenko, sitting in a straight-back chair, hooked up to an “icing machine.”  Only one week out from knee replacement surgery, she was in fine fettle for the open house. 

One of my last visits took me to the studio of Laura McGann, stained glass artist, where I met her dad, Peter Grandy, a recent transplant to Holliston from Connecticut (like me).  Grandy noted that there are 3-generations working in this studio.  We spoke briefly about the Moravian star, a concept McGann and Grandy create in stained glass and that our family makes with recycled straws (a former Holliston Reporter article).

Back into the hallways of the former factory, I found more visitors had begun to gather, viewing the walls, enjoying the music, and chatting about art. 

How lucky is Holliston to offer such a warren of studios where artists might gather and work, and so welcoming to sponsor such an event.