Images, Music & Words

The new exhibition at The Davison Arts Center is the work of contemporary photographer Judith Joy Ross. The American-born Ross is a recipient of numerous honors, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, a Charles Pratt Memorial Award, and an Andrea Frank Foundation Award. Her work can be found in numerous permanent collections, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Museum Ludwig, Cologne; the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; and the Victoria & Albert Museum, London.

The Opening Reception takes place today (3/26) from 5 - 7 p.m. and Ross will deliver the Gallery Talk at 5:30. Andrew Szegedy-Maszak, Professor of Classical Studies at Wesleyan and a huge photography fan, will introduce the photographer. They collaborated on "Protest The War", a photographic essay published in 2007 by Steidl/PaceMacGill. The exhibition officially opens tomorrow and runs through May 24.

The Buttonwood Tree has been busy lately and continues that trend this weekend. Tonight at 7 p.m., "The Armchair Geographer", aka Claude Masse, will discuss "Topographic Connecticut." Masse is passionate about the outdoors and encourages discussion.

Singer-songwriter Brooke Campbell comes to The Buttonwood on Friday with a repertoire steeped in folk, blues and bluegrass traditions with a hint of "pop" music sensibilities. Her voice is soft, sensual, and soulful and her songs look at life and love and how the two don't always fit together. The music starts at 8 p.m. To find out more about Campbell, go to http://brooke-campbell.com.

Saturday at 7 p.m., The Riverwood Poetry Series, hosted by Colin Haskins, comes to The Buttonwood with "An Evening of Irish Storytelling Through Poetry" featuring Kathryn Kelly and Maggie Greene. Providing the Musical Prelude will be Patrick & Joseph Ganci on violin and piano, respectively. For more information, call 347-4957.

Sunday, the Free at Last Players will present live skits, poetry and stories at 4 p.m. in the intimate performance space. The troupe is a not-for-profit theater group dedicated to dispelling some of the myths and misconceptions that surround mental illness. Founded in 1989, the members have performed all over Connecticut and the United States with shows created by the group’s members. To find out more, go to www.freeatlastplayers.org.

Boney's Music Lounge, directly above the Fishbone Cafe, 120 Court Street, welcomes soul-blues-funk-jazz guitarist Melvin Sparks for a Saturday evening filled with danceable grooves and hot solos. Sparks, who's been purveying his r'n'b infused licks since the early 1970s, will be joined by his new trio featuring Bill Carbone (drums) and Matthew O. (organ.) You can bet the room will be rocking. The music should get underway after 9 p.m. and run past midnight. For more information, call 346-6000.