Happy New Year, Ridgefield! This year, we hope you take the time to explore new things to do around town – from arts and culture experiences to outdoor adventures and fun town-wide events, Ridgefield has plenty to enjoy every month. This January, see what events pique your interests as you explore art and museum exhibits, live performances, historic events, and fun family happenings all around town.
“A Rising Fury” Special Film Screening Event and Fundraiser for Ukraine
Sunday, January 8th
The Ridgefield Playhouse
Join the Ridgefield Independent Film Festival and Ridgefield Responds in a screening of “A Rising Fury” followed by a Q&A panel and reception with Ukrainian food and music. All proceeds go to provide housing and shelter in Ukraine for some of the millions of families displaced by the brutal war in their country.
Alice Paul Day
Tuesday, January 10th
Keeler Tavern Museum & History Center
Join the League of Women Voters of Ridgefield as they kick off the New Year celebrating “Ridgefield’s Radical” suffragist Alice Paul’s 138th birthday. Learn about Alice and other important women, as well as the status of the Equal Rights Amendment (authored by Alice) and other significant issues. The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.
School Day Open House with Ridgefield Academy
Thursday, January 12th
Ridgefield Academy
See joyful learning in action! Families interested in Kindergarten through Grade 8 are invited to attend a School Day Open House. This event will feature a student panel with students from Lower, Middle, and Upper School. Families can visit classrooms for observation, and meet teachers and administrators. From discovering invasive species on campus in science class, to taking a field trip to a local art museum, to Grade 8 students meeting up with their kindergarten buddies on their new Outdoor Campus Center, hear firsthand what the RA experience is all about!
“Kathleen Ryan: Head and Heart” Exhibit
Opens January 12th
The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum
The Aldrich is pleased to announce Kathleen Ryan: Head and Heart, the fourth installment of Aldrich Projects, a quarterly series that features one work or a focused body of work by a single artist on the Museum’s campus. Ryan’s work ranges in scale and includes larger-than-life sculptures that reference seventeenth-century vanitas paintings, Americana, kitsch, and Pop art.
Escape Room 2023: The Lost Track of Time
Opens January 13th
Ridgefield Library
The 2023 Escape Room Fundraiser at the Ridgefield Library invites you to board a 1903 luxury passenger train — can you solve the clues to stop the runaway train before time (and track) run out? This annual fundraiser helps to support the Library’s operating budget. Each private 60-minute session costs $250 and accommodates between 3-8 participants.
“Between Light and Dark” Exhibit
Through January 14th
D.Colabella Fine Art Gallery
View the featured works of Udo Spreitzenbarth’s film noir inspired celebrity photograph series. In addition to Spreitzenbarth’s celebrity portraits, local Ridgefield residents are also recognized for their dedication to the arts, culture, and community in the surrounding area. Proceeds from the local portraits will benefit local arts and community organizations.
“Day & Night: A Study in Contrast” Exhibit
Through January 14th
RPAC Gallery
Visit RPAC Gallery to view the works of Jennifer Williams in the “Day & Night: A Study in Contrast” Exhibit. Jennifer Williams’ paintings are lively expressions of landscapes, cities, figures and abstract themes. Building on a long-standing history that has led from ancient art and impressionism to the art of today, her paintings bring a sense of joy and light to the senses.
“Anything Goes” Exhibit
Opens January 14th
Ridgefield Guild of Artists
View the RGOA’s first exhibition of the new year, themed “anything goes”! Members will present their tried and true, or try something new in works of all mediums. This member themed show will open on January 14th and be on exhibit through February 12, 2023.
Book Sale
Saturday, January 14th
Ridgefield Library
The Friends of the Ridgefield Library invite you to stop by the Friends Sorting Room on the Lower Level of the Library for their monthly Secret Stacks Book Sale, held on the second Saturday of the month. See what you find among books for all ages and interests – fiction, mysteries, trade paperbacks, children’s books and more.
27th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration
Monday, January 16th
The Ridgefield Playhouse
This annual tradition honors the memory of Dr. King and celebrates how that memory lives on in the good works of Ridgefielders today. This year’s ceremony honors Wendy Lionetti, who has served the community of Ridgefield – both officially and unofficially – for nearly 20 years, in the Town Assessor’s office, the First Selectman’s office and now as Town Clerk. Wendy volunteers her time and service to several community activities and organizations.
Yellow Rain: An Abstract Series
Opens January 19th
D.Colabella Fine Art Gallery
Join us for the newest exhibit at D.Colabella Fine Art Gallery, Natasha Karpinskaia’s Yellow Rain: An Abstract Series. Natasha Karpinskaia is a Russian-born artist, art historian, and educator. She has had numerous solo and group shows both nationally and internationally and her works are in many private and some corporate collections in the U.S. and Europe. She has been teaching courses in abstract painting, mixed media, printmaking, and art history at the Silvermine Guild of Art, Pyramid Atlantic in Washington, D.C., and other art centers and she was a professor of art history at the New York Academy of Art.
Third Saturdays
January 21st
The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum
Visit the Museum for free the third Saturday of every month! Participate in a Story Time at 10:30am and an All Ages Discovery Tour at 1:00pm featuring new Aldrich Box: creating moments, guided by a Museum Educator. All ages welcome, registration required.
Music at the Mansion Featuring The Elyrica Trio
Saturday, January 28th
Lounsbury House
Music at the Mansion, an exciting new collaboration between Lounsbury House and the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra, premiers with a performance by the Elyrica Trio. This exceptional trio of musicians features violinist Deborah Wong, cellist Robert La Rue, and RSO principal harpist Wendy Kerner. Doors open at 5:00pm for wine & hors d’oeuvres and the concert begins at 5:45pm.
For all the latest events in Ridgefield, visit our Events Calendar and follow us at @inridgefield!
