17th Annual Bridgeport Art Trail - Citywide Open Studio/Arts Celebration Weekend
The art community welcomes the public to the 17th annual Bridgeport Art Trail, a city-wide open studios arts celebration weekend, November 6-9th. Meet the artists, tour their studios. See how creativity rejuvenated dormant industrial spaces. Enjoy receptions, exhibits, music, performances, screenings, demos and spoken word. To see the full schedule of events go to bridgeportarttrail.org/schedule
This is a 4 day arts celebration weekend, starting with a Thursday night downtown kickoff at City Lights Gallery at 265 Golden Hill St, Housatonic Museum of Art at 900 Lafayette Blvd, and Read’s ArtSpace at 1042 Broad St, all within a few short blocks. Mingle, munch and meander with the arts community. Art receptions continue on Friday at MNTD Studios, the Arcade Mall and Ursa Coffee Roasters and Gallery. The art studio buildings are open on Saturday and Sunday.
Along with the 9 art studio buildings, visit galleries like City Lights Gallery, Housatonic Museum of Art, the Schelfhaudt Gallery at the University of Bridgeport, The Eliza and Mary Freeman Center, Ursa Coffee Roasters and Gallery and Gallery 9104.
After the studios close on Saturday evening, join the arts community at the Schelfhaudt Gallery at 84 Iranistan Ave on the campus of the University of Bridgeport to view the BIG Bridgeport Art Trail show and honor Yolanda Vasquez Petrocelli with the Bridgeport Art Trail Ricky Award for serving the community through art. Learn more about the Ricky award here. The reception on Saturday, November 8, 2025 runs 5:30-8pm.
The Bridgeport Art Trail collaborates with the University of Bridgeport as they ramp up community-based cultural activities at the Bernhard Center. This large group exhibit, with the subtitle “Connections”, demonstrates how the Bridgeport Art Trail extends throughout the city, county, state and beyond. Among the works on view are a selection of larger works, sculpture, drawings, paintings and fiber art and a wall full of small works representing Bridgeport Art Trail artists. In the adjoining gallery space will be works from the Artists Collective of Westport.
For the BAT, “Connections” exhibit curator Suzanne Kachmar brings back some Art Trail favorites and introduces new works. Highlights include fiber art by Carlos Biernnay, sculpture by Carlos Davila and Iyaba Ibo Mandingo, drawings by Rick Shaefer, paintings by Looketha, Ellie Mesa, and Francine Fanali, large scale portraiture by Will Corprew and Francis Pressley, photography by Dustin DeMilio, Darius Kanarek, Thomas Mezzanotte, Yolanda Vasquez Petrocelli, and Tamara Pienko, beadwork and drawings by Scott Schuldt, and the interactive “Bicker Booth” by Robert Gregson.
Family fun activities along the Art Trail include an art scavenger hunt, a hands-on clay workshop, a public art walk, and a plastic toy horse rescue installation. The fascinating exhibit “Becoming Plastic” at City Lights Gallery features artists as environmentalists who present bold, innovative art made from plastic to raise awareness of the growing hazard of plastic trash and microplastics. Another relevant exhibit is “The World Is on Fire” at the Arcade Mall, a gem of Victorian architecture with a stunning solarium ceiling. The exhibit challenges viewers to reflect on the current social and political climate and climate change. For something more nostalgic visit the Housatonic Museum of Art for the “Poli’s Palace & Majestic Theaters Memories Project” and “Ink and Impressions: 110 Years of the Society of American Graphic Artists”.
“The Art Trail is the most engaging way to explore Bridgeport art,” says Art Trail director Suzanne Kachmar. Printed guides with the full calendar and directory will be available at participating venues, with QR codes that lead to a GPS map and full artists’ directory. Art lovers can stay connected to the Bridgeport art scene year-round by visiting BridgeportArtTrail.org. Sign up for the bimonthly newsletter. Inquiries can be sent to [email protected]
