Note: In addition to the events described below, the nationally renowned 2008 Bates Dance Festival presents performances, workshops and lectures from July 15 through Aug. 9. Contact 207-786-6381 or dancefest@bates.edu, or visit the Web site: http://www.batesdancefestival.org

Saturday, June 14

8am

Clean Sweep: The annual Bates “garage sale” of electronics, furnishings, kitchenware, bikes, toys and other goods donated by departing students and the community. Clean Sweep saves perfectly good items from the landfill, and the proceeds benefit local nonprofit organizations. The public is invited to donate items and/or volunteer to staff the event. Contact 207-786-8367 or jrosenba@bates.edu. Free admission.
Underhill Arena

Thursday, July 10

Hope Hoffman

6pm

Midsummer Lakeside Concert: Hope Hoffman and Kittlish. A fiddler and singer, Hoffman leads a trio that performs her own New England-style tunes, along with stories and vintage music. Sponsored by the Harward Center for Community Partnerships and the Bingham Betterment Fund. Bring a picnic, lawn chairs or blankets, family and friends. Contact 207-786-6400. Free.
Florence Keigwin Amphitheater at Lake Andrews (rain site: Olin Arts Center Concert Hall)

Thursday, July 17

6pm

Midsummer Lakeside Concert: As Okbari, Amos Libby and Eric LaPerna perform Armenian and Anatolian folk music, classical Middle Eastern music and songs from the Greek, Arabic and Balkan traditions. Carl Dimow, playing flute and guitar, joins them as special guest. Sponsored by the Harward Center for Community Partnerships and the Bingham Betterment Fund. Bring a picnic, lawn chairs or blankets, family and friends. Contact 207-786-6400. Free.
Florence Keigwin Amphitheater at Lake Andrews (rain site: Olin Arts Center Concert Hall)

Thursday, July 24

6pm

Midsummer Lakeside Concert: Mary Kaye with Professor Von Wienerschnitzel. Singer-songwriter Kaye and her comic cohort Von Wienerschnitzel (David Kaye) create family fun with music, juggling, magic and other antics. Sponsored by the Harward Center for Community Partnerships and the Bingham Betterment Fund. Bring a picnic, lawn chairs or blankets, family and friends. Contact 207-786-6400. Free.
Florence Keigwin Amphitheater at Lake Andrews (rain site: Olin Arts Center Concert Hall)

Thursday, July 31

6pm

Midsummer Lakeside Concert: Fiddler Andy Stewart and Mary Jo Slattery, a singer and multi-instrumentalist, represent roots traditions including the exuberant dance tunes of Cajun Louisiana and the upbeat fiddle music of French Canada. Sponsored by the Harward Center for Community Partnerships and the Bingham Betterment Fund. Bring a picnic, lawn chairs or blankets, family and friends. Contact 207-786-6400. Free.
Florence Keigwin Amphitheater at Lake Andrews (rain site: Olin Arts Center Concert Hall)

From Flourishing Folk: Burnham-Smith Family Record, Bridgton, Maine, c. 1830. Watercolor and ink on paper.

Thursday, Aug. 7

6pm

Midsummer Lakeside Concert: With a repertoire covering five centuries, the Blue Hill Brass Quintet is known across New England for musical excellence and family-pleasing entertainment. Sponsored by the Harward Center for Community Partnerships and the Bingham Betterment Fund. Bring a picnic, lawn chairs or blankets, family and friends. Contact 207-786-6400. Free.
Florence Keigin Amphitheater at Lake Andrews (rain site: Olin Arts Center Concert Hall)

Bates College Museum of Art

Located in the Olin Arts Center, 75 Russell St., the museum is open free of charge from 10am until 5pm Tuesday through Saturday.

June 7–Dec. 14

From Stairway to Heaven: “Shanghai Series,” No. 7, by Gu Zheng, 2004. Silver gelatin print.

Stairway to Heaven: From Chinese Streets to Monuments and Skyscrapers: As the Beijing Olympics put China in the spotlight this summer, this exhibition offers alternative perspectives on that intriguing, dynamic nation. Seventeen Chinese artists use photographs and other media to examine how rapid economic reform, new personal wealth and rapid industrialization have changed China’s urban environment, from street scenes to skyscrapers and iconic national monuments.

Flourishing Folk: New England Decorated Works on Paper and Document Boxes from the Deborah N. Isaacson Trust: This exhibit represents Bates in the Maine Folk Art Trail, a collaborative effort among 11 museums and historical societies statewide to guide visitors to the best of Maine folk art — work produced by ordinary people without professional training. On display are beautifully decorated family records and presentation pieces, as well as ornate document boxes and rare woodblock “ream sheet prints” that early paper companies used to label their products.

Through July 19

The Kimono and Traditional Japanese Culture: Investigating Kimono through Ukiyo-e in the Bates College Art Museum Collection: For this entry in the museum’s Students in the Vault series, Hisa Abe ’08 has assembled woodblock prints in the “Ukiyo-e” genre that highlight the roles, variety and importance of kimono patterns in these widely distributed scenes of popular culture.

From The Kimono: "Oiran with Pipe," by Gakutei. Woodblock Print. Gift of D.J. Macko.