By DOROTHY HARTZ

As the area eases into full-blown summer, opportunities abound to not only see and hear good works, but to see and hear the work behind the works. The Upper Delaware region is increasingly renowned for a thriving arts community, and we have the further distinction of intimate and casual venues. In the coming week or so, you can gear down for several close encounters of the artistic kind. Further details of most of these and other cultural events can be found elsewhere in TRR.

The first “Informal Friday: At Work and Play Behind the Notes,” a segment of The Weekend of Chamber Music, takes place on July 6 at 8:30 p.m., in the Hortonville Presbyterian Church. This relaxed occasion to meet the artists and understand more about their processes features six musicians engaged in Ligeti’s “Six Bagatelles for Wind Quintet.” Reservations can be made at 845/932-8414.

Sullivan County visual artists and crafters open their studios and share their thoughts on July 13, 14 and 15 for the sixth annual Catskill Art Society (CAS) Tour, offering us 35 different versions of the creative process. Pick and choose or visit all the sites over the three days. More information is at 845/436-4227, 845/887-5740 or 845/583-7025.

An Art History Lecture Series, also sponsored by the CAS, gets underway on Wednesday, July 11, with Richard Arnold taking an artist’s look at sketchbooks of the last two centuries. It happens at the Sullivan County Museum in Hurleyville at 7:00 p.m. For information call 845/436-4227.

The Callicoon Writer’s Collective presents its first ever Read Aloud from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, July 8, at the Braman Arts Conservatory, 79 Main Street, Callicoon. Call 845/887-1901 for details.

An evening of poetry readings with the Alchemy Club puts more writers in the limelight. Hear them at the Liberty Public Library on Sunday, July 9 at 7:00 p.m.

For the ultimate artistic encounter, do it yourself. Young people aged 12 to 17, and adults are invited to join videomaker Ron Littke in creating an original video at the Tusten-Cochecton Branch Library during a workshop series covering steps from brainstorming through editing. Workshops will be held July 10, 12, 17 and 19. Call the library at 845/252-3360 for information or registration.

Questions about other local arts activities? Call the Delaware Valley Arts Alliance, your arts connection, at 845/252-7576.