With the front entry open again, and the new elevator operating, construction focus has shifted to the back of the building where the old West Wing has been demolished, the site excavated, and work has begun on footings and foundations.

Artists and visitors are able to watch progress from the rear stairwells. The foundations will be poured in five stages. Here is a view of the rear corner with some hefty footings filled with steel rebar.

The gallery hums with the bustling of materials and machinery this season as we prepare to enter the next phase of our renovation project. Although it feels like the dust just settled a few short years ago on construction in the current gallery space, we are thrilled to vision programs for the future. In this exciting time of change, we hope you will enjoy the last events in our current gallery space on the 2nd floor.

Written by Dan Kemp

David Smyth, artist, musician and teacher, is a member of The Umbrella Arts and Environment Program Steering Committee. He is instrumental in creating memorable celebrations for Musketaquid Earth Day and Solstice.

The Umbrella has started renovations to transform the building at 40 Stow Street in Concord, MA into a dynamic, state-of-the-art center for artistic expression and enjoyment. We thank you for your patience during construction.

This spring brings many new changes to our home at 40 Stow Street!

The front entrance of the building is now reopened, with an accessible entry. Visitors will now enter on the first floor. 

The Umbrella has begun renovations and the removal and rebuilding of the main theater wing to transform the building into a dynamic, state-of-the-art center for artistic expression and enjoyment. We thank you for your patience during construction and we hope you follow us on our journey through our blogs and social media updates!

Exhibit Overview

By William Levine

- written by The Umbrella's 2017-2018 Artist-in-Residence, Elizabeth King

On my walks through the neighborhoods of Concord this month, I have developed an obsession with the way people maintain their yards. Gardening, weed whacking, and raking in some combination seem to be almost a way of life for many people. I am interested in the fact that yard work is a solitary, yet communal pass time and no matter how well the task is done, it must be repeated again-usually weekly.

By Himani Parekh

The tables were arranged in a sort of oval and I was standing smack in the middle, peering curiously and a little shyly at their work. Around me the students of Kat O’Connor’s Technical Watercolor I Class were sketching, painting, mixing colors, and socializing, their voices converging and overlapping into a gentle hubbub that floated in the warm, bright space. A happy sound. A happy space.

“We don’t bite,” a woman assured me, “but we might crack some jokes!”

I smiled, relaxed a little. This was a welcoming place.

Written by Molly Cohen

Zoe is a volunteer who has grown up with The Umbrella Community Arts Center. She began frequenting the gallery as a child when she attended the center’s summer arts camp. Her favorite activity quickly became ceramics. Flash forward several years, and now Zoe is an 11th grader. Her time at The Umbrella has come full circle; last February she was a teacher’s assistant at the vacation arts camp.