BBG was pleased to partner with Community Access to the Arts (CATA) ​for an exhibition on March 3 through 27, 2022, in the Leonhardt Galleries. The exhibition, "Close Up and Far Away​," featured nature-inspired paintings and drawings created at the Garden by artists with disabilities.

See a gallery album.

Each work in the exhibit was created through Community Access to the Arts’ year-round workshops serving teens, adults, and elders with disabilities. Many of the works were created on​-​site​ at Berkshire Botanical Garden​ as part of a​n ongoing​ partnership between CATA and BBG — while others were created by CATA artists ​at day programs and residences serving people with disabilities ​across the Berkshires. The exhibit ranges widely in stylistic expression and scale of size, and features botanical studies, landscapes, wildlife portraits, and abstract paintings.

All works in the exhibit are professionally matted, framed, and available for sale, with proceeds supporting commissions for the individual artists. This exhibit is part of CATA’s “Art on Tour” program, where original works of art created by CATA artists travel throughout the year to museums, galleries, community centers, and other venues in Berkshire ​and Columbia counties.

CATA Art on Tour exhibits are sponsored by Frames on Wheels, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and by individual community members who step forward to support creative inclusion.