Smith Arts Day 2025

NORTHAMPTON, MA — The Smith Office for the Arts (SOFA) invites the public to the second annual Smith Arts Day, an exciting celebration of creativity across disciplines and across campus, on Saturday, April 19, 2025, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. This year’s festival features over 40 free events throughout the day and evening from hands-on workshops to performances and exhibitions. In addition to highlighting the college’s thriving arts community, the event builds on the legacy of 150 years of the arts as a key pillar of a Smith education. Full details can be found at smith.edu/SmithArtsDay.

“Across the college, in formal or casual settings, the arts challenge students while helping to build a curious and compassionate campus community,” says President Sarah Willie-LeBreton. “They’re central to Smith’s mission.” SOFA Director Leigh Fagin adds, “Smith Arts Day isn’t about perfection—it’s about connection. Last year, we saw community members exploring their creativity next to professors and first-years. We hope this day sparks joy through making, sharing, and discovering what’s possible when we create together.” After the successful launch last year, Lily Foster, the former deputy director of SCMA summed it up, “Smith Arts Day provides a wonderful platform for students, staff, and faculty to share their work, to celebrate artistic activity on campus, and to bring local and campus audiences together.”

Join the Celebration

All events this year are free and open to everyone; all ages are welcome. No registration is required. Look for Arts Day flags on campus; schedules and maps will be available at each event. For a full schedule, visit smith.edu/SmithArtsDay.

A Few Highlights

Hands-On Workshops

• Botanical Cyanotypes with the Photography Club, 12:30–1:30 p.m.
• Relief Printing and Pinhole Camera Workshop at the Imaging Center, 1–4 p.m.
• Erased Land: Create seed-embedded blackout poetry from T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land and launch origami boats on Paradise Pond, 1–3 p.m.

Performances & Showcases

• Orchestra Spring Concert with Copland’s Lincoln Portrait, narrated by President Sarah Willie-LeBreton, 3–5 p.m., as well as an open rehearsal at 1 p.m. in Sweeney Concert Hall.
• Work-in-Progress showings with dance, music, film, and theatre students throughout the day.
• Smith Student Performance Showcase: Music, dance, and poetry by groups like Spitfire, Smiffenpoofs, and Moonlight Classical Chinese Dance, 8 p.m. in Sweeney Concert Hall.

Community Collaborations

• Plant Walk & Craft: Weave invasive bittersweet into livestock toys with artists Mary Kate Cleary and Laura Torraco, 10 a.m.–noon.
• Campus School Collaborations: Sixth-graders curate a pop-up exhibition at SCMA; second-graders display Georgia O’Keeffe-inspired chalk pastels.
• Smith Arts Day Community Mural: Contribute to a lasting artwork in the museum atrium/Hillyer Hall, noon–5 p.m.

New in 2025

• Neilson Library Projections: A first-time public art display featuring Student-designed images illuminating the façade at sundown, April 18–20
• Lighting Arts in Mendenhall: Student light-art installations inspired by theater design, 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
• Younes Rahmoun Exhibition Tour: A curator-led exploration of one of Morocco’s leading contemporary artists, 2:30–3:30 p.m.
• Materials in Motion: Sustainable puppet-making and Drop-in Cardboard Wearable Workshop at the Design Thinking Initiative, 3:30–5:30 p.m.

But First! Friday Kickoff Event: Spring Student Art Sale

The festivities begin Friday, April 18, with the Spring Student Art Sale from 2 to 5 p.m. in Hillyer Hall/Museum Atrium, where Smith student artists showcase and sell ceramics, prints, jewelry, photography, fashion, and more. As part of the evening’s activities, the Smith College Museum of Art will remain open until 5 p.m., so guests are welcome to explore the museum for free all afternoon as well.

Special Thanks

SOFA acknowledges the Jean and David W. Wallace Foundation, Richard & Sharonjean Leeds, and the Jeanann Gray Dunlap Foundation for their support.