Summer at The Carle: Let the Art of Summer Begin!
Special programming for all ages, July 1–August 31.
This summer, The Carle is a joyful gathering place filled with art viewing, art making, storytelling, live music, and more. From July 1–August 31, 2025, Summer at The Carle presents thought-provoking exhibitions and fun programs for visitors of all ages.
On Thursday evenings, the Museum stays open until 8pm for Sunset Thursdays, hosting live jazz and global music performed by local artists, co-presented by the Northampton Jazz Festival. Visitors can enjoy drinks, order picnics to-go from area restaurants, or bring their own food to enjoy on the Museum’s beautiful grounds.
On view in the galleries this summer is the new exhibition The Art of Grace Lin: Meeting a Friend in an Unexpected Place, which celebrates all aspects of the Massachusetts-based artist and author’s work with original art, sketches, manuscripts, and videos. Also on view is Open + Shut: Celebrating the Art of Endpapers, a unique exhibition that explores the pages pasted inside book covers that creatively set the scene for the story inside; and Artful Collaboration: Eric Carle & Ann Beneduce, about the 50-year professional relationship between beloved picture book artist Eric Carle and legendary picture book editor Anne Beneduce.
“Summer at The Carle will be a feast for the eyes, ears, palate, and soul,” said The Carle’s executive director Jennifer Schantz. “With inspiration flowing from the galleries to the art studio to outside in the meadow, visitors will savor delicious food and drinks, and immerse themselves in jazz and global music. It is sure to become a highlight of the season.”
“Music and art go together like bread and butter,” said Ruth Griggs, president of the Northampton Jazz Festival. “Add in the beautiful outdoor setting of The Carle, a picnic supper, and you have a wonderful family evening. The Northampton Jazz Festival is thrilled to partner with The Carle to bring a diversity of local jazz musicians to make the summer sunsets at The Carle linger a little longer.”
Summer Calendar
July 3
Sunset Thursdays, 5–8pm
Enjoy breezy, late Thursday evenings while you picnic on our beautiful grounds and take in the rhythms of live jazz and global music. Featured musicians are Ben Malynoski Plus 2 (saxophone trio).
July 10
Sunset Thursdays, 5–8pm
Enjoy breezy, late Thursday evenings while you picnic on our beautiful grounds and take in the rhythms of live jazz and global music. Featured musicians are Ryan Hollander and Allan Bezame (vocals & guitar).
Twilight Tales, 7pm
Join us for storytime featuring some of our favorite, strange, surreal, and spooky picture books. Weather permitting, we’ll gather around the imaginary campfire in Bobbie’s Meadow—and otherwise, indoors. Next stop, the Twilight Zone!
July 17
Sunset Thursdays, 5–8pm
On this very special evening, we welcome our community partner Chinese Association of Western Massachusetts (CAWM) to offer food samples and a medley of activities celebrating Chinese art and culture in conjunction with our current exhibition, The Art of Grace Lin: Meeting a Friend in an Unexpected Place. Art projects include calligraphy and origami. Live performances include Kung Fu with The Chinese Kung Fu Wushu Academy, traditional Chinese dance by the Xi Wang Dance Company, and a waist drum dance by the Chinese Association of Western Massachusetts.
July 24
Sunset Thursdays, 5–8pm
Enjoy breezy, late Thursday evenings while you picnic on our beautiful grounds and take in the rhythms of live jazz and global music. Featured musicians are mp3, including Dylan Walter on piano, Aeneas Strozier on bass, and McCoy Plaisted on drums.
July 31
Sunset Thursdays, 5–8pm
Enjoy breezy, late Thursday evenings while you picnic on our beautiful grounds and take in the rhythms of live jazz and global music. Featured musicians are Vernon David & Rob Fontana (cello & piano).
August 7
Sunset Thursdays, 5–8pm
Enjoy breezy, late Thursday evenings while you picnic on our beautiful grounds and take in the rhythms of live jazz and global music. Featured musicians are BR413.
Twilight Tales, 7pm
Join us for a story time featuring some of our favorite, strange, surreal, and spooky picture books. Weather permitting, we’ll gather around the imaginary campfire in Bobbie’s Meadow—and otherwise, indoors. Next stop, the Twilight Zone!
August 14
Sunset Thursdays, 5–8pm
Enjoy breezy, late Thursday evenings while you picnic on our beautiful grounds and take in the rhythms of live jazz and global music. Featured musicians to be announced.
August 21
Sunset Thursdays, 5–8pm
Enjoy breezy, late Thursday evenings while you picnic on our beautiful grounds and take in the rhythms of live jazz and global music. Featured musicians are The Wolf Pit Collective, including Ed Orgill, Peter Coutsouridis, Richard Goldstein, Wayne Roberts, and vocalist Aaliyah Brown. Sweet and savory items from Wandering Waffles food truck available for purchase.
August 28
Sunset Thursdays, 5–8pm
Enjoy breezy, late Thursday evenings while you picnic on our beautiful grounds and take in the rhythms of jazz and global music. Featured musicians to be announced.
Talks, Tours and Workshops
- July 11, 2pm: Curator-led Gallery Tour
- July 15, 6pm: Intro to Gelli Plate Printmaking
- July 17, 11am: Explore the Barbara Elleman Research Library
- July 22, 7pm: Indigenous Community Forum (virtual)
- August 1, 2pm: Curator-led Gallery Tour
Programs and Events
Join us for programs and events that encourage literacy and the love of art!
- July 11, 11am: Open Book, Open Play
- July 25, 11am: Family Jam with Ben Anna Band
- August 1, 11am: Word Play with the Center Dance Studio
- August 15, 11am: Braille Storytime with Mary Westgate
- August 23, 11:30am: Yoga for Kids
- August 29, 11am: Story Chasers
Special Storytimes
Listen to authors and illustrators as they share their new work. The reading is followed by book signing.
- July 5, 11am: Regina Linke
- July 12, 2pm: Winsome Bingham and CG Esperanza
- July 26, 11am: Scott Rothman
- August 2, 11am: Xindi Yan
- August 16, 11am: Lauren Stohler
- August 16, 2pm: Beth Krommes
- August 30, 11am: Wunneanatsu Lamb-Cason
Everyday Art Programs
Marvelous Maps
July 4–13
Inspired by the maps on display in the Open + Shut: Celebrating the Art of Endpapers exhibition, collage your own marvelous map!
Dragon Tales
July 16–August 24
Inspired by The Art of Grace Lin: Meeting a Friend in an Unexpected Place exhibition, design your own flying creature!
In The Carle Bookshop
The Carle Bookshop will offer special packages throughout the summer, including Roadtrip Goodies with boredom-busting car activities and Camp Bundles with games, activities, art supplies, camp stories, and pre-stamped postcards for a camper care package. Plus, it will recommend curated booklists celebrating Juneteenth, Pride, and Disability Pride, among other thematic selections. The Bookshop will be part of a Bookstore Crawl—visit seven participating Pioneer Valley indie bookstores July 1–August 30, and one lucky participant will win $350 in books in the form of a $50 gift card to each bookstore.
Summer Exhibitions
The Art of Grace Lin: Meeting a Friend in an Unexpected Place
June 14, 2025 – January 4, 2026
This retrospective exhibition explores all aspects of author-artist Grace Lin’s creativity through more than 90 works from her prolific 26-year career in picture books, books for young readers, and chapter books. On view are works of original art, sketches, manuscripts, and videos from more than 22 acclaimed titles and other work from throughout her career. Born to Taiwanese immigrants in upstate New York, Lin expresses her heritage through storytelling. Much of her work features Asian and Asian American characters—something she longed to see in the books she read as a child. Today, Lin is a dedicated advocate for diversity in children’s literature who believes “a book can make all cultures universal.”
Support for The Art of Grace Lin: Meeting a Friend in an Unexpected Place is generously provided by Hachette Book Group.
Open + Shut: Celebrating the Art of Endpapers
Through November 9, 2025
Endpapers are the unsung glory of contemporary children’s publishing. Once a purely functional form—sturdy pages glued to the inside of a book’s cardboard covers—endpapers today are often full of wit, surprise, and deep emotion. As one of the first (and last!) visual elements readers encounter when interacting with a book, endpapers set the mood for the story inside. More than 50 works on view, ranging from classics such as Blueberries for Sal and The World of Pooh, to contemporary works by Yas Imamura, Eliza Kinkz, Paloma Valdivia, among others, show how endpapers can extend the main story, offer a conceptual take on a theme or action, or provide additional visual and narrative information.
Artful Collaboration: Eric Carle & Ann Beneduce
Through September 7, 2025
The author-editor relationship is a collaborative partnership built on mutual respect, trust, and a shared commitment to creating the best possible work. It can also be a highly personal alliance. This exhibition explores the 50-year professional relationship between the beloved picture book artist, Eric Carle, and a legendary picture book editor, Anne Beneduce. It includes never-before-exhibited art, correspondence, and photographs from their work together on The Very Hungry Caterpillar in 1969 to The Nonsense Show in 2015.
Food Partners
Enjoy Asian food samples by Chinese Association of Western Massachusetts (July 17) and purchase sweet and savory items from Wandering Waffles food truck (August 21).
Bring your own picnic or enjoy food from our neighboring vendors all summer:
Atkins Farms
Enjoy 10% off deli menu on Thursdays (pickup only). Coupon
Sibie’s Pizza
Enjoy 10% off their menu for pickup and delivery.
Membership
Join The Carle as a member in June and enjoy free admission to our unique programs, exceptional exhibitions, and shop discounts all year! Memberships prices will increase on July 7, so sign up now and join in the summer fun!
Sponsors
Sunset Thursdays is made possible through the generous support of Greenfield Savings Bank.
Live music for Sunset Thursdays is co-presented by Northampton Jazz Fest.
About The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art
Founded by Eric and Barbara Carle in 2002, The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art is the international champion of picture book art. Situated on 7.5 acres in Amherst, Massachusetts, The Carle houses a rich and deep collection of art of more than 20,000 works of art from more than 2300 picture book artists, including Eric Carle (The Very Hungry Caterpillar), and illuminates its collection through exhibitions, education, programming, and art-making—making it a critical resource for picture book artists and authors, and art-loving communities locally, nationally, and abroad. The Carle’s mission is to elevate picture book art and inspire a love of art and art creation. Since opening its doors more than 20 years ago, The Carle has welcomed more than one million visitors—plus more than four million additional museumgoers who have enjoyed its touring exhibitions around the world.
For further information, please contact: Amanda Domizio, Amanda Domizio Communications, 347-229-2877 / amanda@domiziopr.com
