Creative County

08/26/2026

Save the date for these CCI Grantees! 📅 Visit the tagged grantees to learn more about attending their events!
1️⃣ thru 9/6 at
2️⃣️ 8/26 by
3️⃣ 9/26 Little Ant Word by
4️⃣ 9/26 at
5️⃣ 9/26

🎨 And learn more about what we do at Creative County Initiative by visiting creativecounty.org

08/24/2026

There's been so much to celebrate this year at the Creative County Initiative (CCI) of the Essex County Community Foundation (ECCF), including the MVCulture project! This was a collaboration between CCI/ECCF. Merrimack Valley Transit and Merrimack Valley Planning Commission (MVPC).

📅 In June, we celebrated the culmination of MVCulture up to this point, which has included:
- Jenn Houle Studio's mural installations across MeVa's bus shelters in the Merrimack Valley ()
- Kate Delaney's Art + Culture Transit Map design ()
- Pilot program for Arts + Culture print and digital ads across MeVa's bus fleet

🐦🗺️🦋 and coming soon...
- Birds + Bugs by Bus environmental bus tours
- Ecosystem directional signage on MeVa's "lollipop" signs
- Printed brochure versions of the Art + Culture Transit Map for you to take along your travels!

📲 Visit our L i n k T r e e for more coverage and details on MVCulture and the celebration!

08/19/2026

08/11/2026

This Wednesday morning, we're in Haverhill. ☕✨

That's Jenny Arndt's Swasey Field splash pad painting up there — and she's at the table tomorrow, too. Pour a cup and spend an hour with Essex County's creative sector as Jenny, Michelle Finamore of , and Alemir Beltre of spotlight the people and projects reshaping Haverhill.

Wednesday, August 12 · 9–10 AM · Zoom. Free, welcoming, and always worth the hour.

Last call to register: bit.ly/CCIMeetup — see you there!

08/04/2026

This month, Around Essex County heads to Haverhill. ☕

Our August Creative County Meetup is one hour with the people building the city's creative infrastructure:

▪️ Jenny Arndt, Merrimack Valley Arts & Culture Specialist (MVPC/ECCF) — on Haverhill's creative rise, from its 2014 Cultural District designation to the momentum today.

▪️ Michelle Finamore, Fashion & Design Historian and Curator at — co-curator of "Shoe Stories," the exhibit that just opened their new Haverhill Center.

▪️ Alemir Beltre, the new Exhibitions & Public Art Manager at — on the shows, public art, and workshops taking shape downtown.

Grab a coffee and join us Wednesday, August 12 · 9–10 AM · on Zoom. Free, welcoming, and the easiest way to plug into Essex County's creative sector.

Register at bit.ly/CCIMeetup — and tag a Haverhill maker/leader who should be in the room. (Link also in bio)

Mural: "In Their Essence" by Dovente at the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Haverhill, presented by Beyond Walls.

Hashtags:

07/30/2026

07/28/2026

Just SOME of what's going on this week! 📅 Visit the tagged grantees to learn more about attending their events!

1️⃣ The Bower by Montserrat College of Art
2️⃣+3️⃣ Liquid Spine at M.A.R.S.

🎨 And learn more about what we do at Creative County Initiative (CCI) by visiting creativecounty.org (or link in bio)

07/18/2026

🎨 Internationally renowned artist Ruben Toledo is transforming a blank wall in downtown Haverhill into a living community mural — and you're invited to help paint it.

This July, Historic New England launches its first-ever Artist in Residence program at the new Historic New England Center, and for three days the space becomes a working studio. Toledo is reimagining New England's history — more than a million objects from the region's largest collection — through the language of illustration and fashion, and every brushstroke the community adds becomes part of the story.

Your Mark. Our Story. Here are three ways to take part:

AN ARTIST SKETCHBOOK FOR COMMUNITY
Thursday, July 23 – Saturday, July 25 · 12–5 PM
Watch Ruben Toledo bring a blank canvas to life — and add your own contribution along the way. All ages welcome.

A MASTERCLASS WITH RUBEN TOLEDO
Thursday, July 23 · 6–9 PM
An evening of creativity through conversation, shared work, and thoughtful feedback. Artists across every discipline are invited to apply.

UNVEILING CELEBRATION
Saturday, July 25 · 2–5 PM
Celebrate the finished mural, hear the inspiration behind it, and explore Shoe Stories: Past, Present, Future.
Whether you're an artist, a history lover, or simply curious — there's a place for you here.

📍 Historic New England Center, downtown Haverhill

Presented by featuring .

07/08/2026

This morning, we’re (virtually) heading to Andover, where a brand-new public art program is taking shape. We’re sitting down with three people building Andover’s creative infrastructure from the ground up:

🎨 Ann Ormond, Director of Business, Arts & Cultural Development for the Town of Andover (), and Molly Foley ( .collab), chair of Andover’s brand-new Public Art Commission and a fiber artist herself — on what it takes to launch a public art commission, and what it opens up for artists across the region.

📐 Deanna Junge, co-owner of and , on building intentional space where fellow artists have the room and support to flourish.

🗓️ Link in bio for Zoom info

05/13/2026

🗓️ Our next Movies as Medicine *FREE* matinee screening is coming up next Monday, May 18!

Join us for an afternoon of cinema and connection featuring iconic classic films, one Monday a month. This month, we're screening the original Thomas Crown Affair, starring Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway!

Please register to attend: https://thecabot.org/event/free-matinee-series-2026-the-thomas-crown-affair/

Thanks to our supporters Beantrustcoffeebar Creative County & SeniorCare Inc.