“Please, sir, may I have some more cheese?”

Although Labor Day is commonly thought of as the “end of the season” here in the Catskills, it is by no means the end of a full roster of events to attend throughout the rest of the year. Just because the bungalows close down and the leaves begin to turn is no reason to think that artists stop creating, that musicians stop playing, or that actors all fly south for the winter.

I did not attend any barbecues this weekend. Instead, I went (as promised) to see Loretta Swit in “Doubt” at the Forestburgh Playhouse, which was well cast, well received, well directed, well written, well performed and, in short, well done. To receive updates on what’s next for the playhouse (there will be events throughout the year), visit the website ( fbplayhouse.com ) and sign up for the newsletter.

Meanwhile, over at the Delaware Valley Arts Alliance ( ArtsAllianceSite.org ) in Narrowsburg, NY, two new exhibits premiered. I attended the opening reception of E. Morisot’s new show, entitled “Vachement Vache” (which translates as “Holy Cow”).

This is an ongoing theme for the local artist and she explains by saying that “in this show the cow is becoming a space I can play with and bring to a new dimension. Cows represent a symbol of positive Earth.”

Morisot, who studied at La Grande Chaumiere and Les Beaux Arts in Paris is (in my humble opinion) quite charming and made her way through the reception, explaining her thought process with the guests and encouraging everyone to express their own views on her work, good, bad or indifferent. My kind of gal, for sure!

Upstairs at the loft gallery, Julia Helen Murray is on the move (which is ironic, since her newest installation is all about sitting down). Murray is currently moving from Harrisburg, VA to Brooklyn, NY and states that “this show acts as the segue between places and a unique opportunity to focus on my work as I enter a new environment.

“The armchairs are available as a place to sit and enjoy the atmosphere I have created. They are symbolic of me, the artist, with molds of my hands and feet attached to the chair to create intimacy."

According to Murray, “the chairs are also symbolic of the idea of the ‘armchair artist’—someone who is not a professional but makes art occasionally, or as a supplement to another job.” The installation incorporates astroturf, a fake grass that is “trying to look real,” which, for the artist, symbolizes what could be interpreted as things in our every day lives that are fake, should be walked over, or stomped out, as the case may be. Interesting? Thought provoking? You be the judge. Both shows run through September 26th at the DVAA. Admission is free. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

In keeping with the theme, I made my way to yet another reception (honestly, how much wine and cheese can one person consume?) at Photios Giovanis’ gallery, Callicoon Fine Arts, located at 27 Lower Main Street in Callicoon, NY. The new exhibit, which runs through October 24, is created by Glenn Fogel and titled “Call me and we can buy love together.”

Fogel, who is completing his MFA program at Bard’s Milton Avery Graduate School of the Arts, is showing two installations. The first is a series of numbered photographs taken with a cell phone camera that depict closely cropped faces in advertisements that have been vandalized with graffiti.

The images, though sometimes humorous, are illustrative of a persistent homophobia, racism, sexism and violence. According to Fogel, “they exhibit both a reaction to and a complicity in the spectacle of capitalism and its advertising apparatus.”

The second part of the exhibit is audio/visual, with computer-generated spoken-word excerpts from letters written to the artist over a period of years. Pretty heady stuff after all that wine and cheese. I was wishing that one of Julia Murray’s armchairs was at Fogels show in Callicoon, since my head was swimming with all the sensory overload, although this was most likely a personal issue.

All in all, a busy week for me and I was by no means alone. All events were heavily attended, as they should be, and I will keep you all posted on what’s coming next, for the end of summer does not herald the end of creativity, of that one can be sure. On a more personal note, it wouldn’t hurt for a cheesecake or a rum ball to present itself at one of these receptions... I’m just sayin’.

Visit workingwithoutanet.blogspot.com for Jonathan Fox’s blog.