Bellforge Arts Center

08/21/2026

Progress from above. Work continues on the Infirmary roof, while crews prepare the ground for the new connector linking the Infirmary and Chapel. Each step brings us closer to a new home for creativity, connection, and community.

Follow the transformation at bellforge.org/future.

08/21/2026

A Closer Look. A series exploring the discovered objects, overlooked details, hidden spaces, and unexpected views that emerge during the redevelopment of the historic Medfield State Hospital.

As Bellforge continues its transformation, the campus offers us glimpses into the different chapters it has lived.

Fire Pull Station
c. 1950s–1960s
Painted metal, brass, glass, electrical components.

Before emergency reporting became something we did by phone, fire alarms often traveled by wire. This antique cast-metal fire alarm box — discovered in the Lee Chapel in the early days of redevelopment work — appears to be an Autocall Co. pull station manufactured in the 1950s to early 1960s. Behind its locked door was a spring-wound mechanism that transmitted a coded electrical signal over a wired alarm circuit, alerting responders that help was needed and where the call was coming from.

Every generation finds their way to communicate and to ask for help in moments of urgency, uncertainty, and care. The technology has since changed. The instinct to look after one another hasn’t.

07/29/2026

A first look inside the historic Chapel as work begins to transform it into the future heart of Bellforge Arts Center. Thank you to Delphi Construction for the incredible care and progress so far.

Learn more and follow along at bellforge.org/future

07/20/2026

Weather update ⛈️

07/17/2026

A Walpole tradition returns.

For years, Main Street Live brought neighbors together through music, local businesses, great food, and unforgettable summer evenings.

This September, we're proud to help write its next chapter.

Join us on Friday, September 18 as Main Street Live presented by Bellforge Arts Center returns to the Walpole Town Common with live music, local vendors, food trucks, cocktails, lawn games, and plenty more.

Bring a chair. Bring your friends. Stay for the music. Leave with a few new memories.

Free • All Ages
Walpole Town Common
Friday, September 18 | 4-10 PM

Reserve your free spot: bellforge.org/events

07/16/2026

Three rising Massachusetts bands. One last show before the fall semester begins.

August 12, 2026 - 5-8:30pm
Summer Sounds: Off Campus at Bellforge Arts Center

Some music is meant to be experienced live. This is it. Will Guthro, drummer of Key Found, put it best: “Don’t listen on Spotify. Come to a show.”

RSVP for free, link in bio or visit: bellforge.org/events

06/25/2026

Nights like this make us excited for everything Bellforge is becoming.

Thank you to Brooke Annibale, The Benji's, Adeline Hotel and Jackie West, our staff, volunteers, and everyone who joined us on the lawn last night.

The weather couldn't have been better, the music was incredible, and the grounds were filled with neighbors, friends, families, and music lovers of all ages. What a beautiful way to kick off Summer Sounds.

We'll be back with Summer Sounds on July 22nd.

https://bellforge.org/event/summer-sounds-july-with-soft-touch/

06/24/2026

Home of the future Bellforge Arts Center — the historic Medfield State Hospital campus from above.

Red brick, the chapel tower, surrounding trees, and the Charles River beyond: a place being reborn for the region and the generations to come.

06/24/2026

"I like to keep a sense of wonderment in my Benji's camp — it refreshes the soul."

We sat down with Rhode Island grunge pop trio The Benji's ahead of their Summer Sounds set to talk about collaboration as a survival skill, the art of letting go, and the people, mentors, and one tuxedo cat named Mufasa who keep them creating.

Their definition of success isn't an award or a packed room. It's someone in the crowd sketching the band mid-song, proof that the music sparked something in another artist.

Read our In Good Company conversation: https://bellforge.org/in-good-company-with-the-benjis/

Catch them live at Bellforge this Wednesday, June 24 at Summer Sounds. RSVP link in the comments.

Rhode Island-based grunge pop trio The Benji's have spent more than a decade learning how to make music together and, just as importantly, how to navigate the creative ecosystem around them with a sense of resilience and wonder.

06/24/2026

"The goal was to present things as they arrived at the source."

We sat down with Dan Knishkowy, the songwriter behind Adeline Hotel and founder of Ruination Record Co., ahead of the season's first Summer Sounds concert to talk about songwriting as untangling, building community against the loneliness of the industry, and what it means to keep your eyes open to wonder.

He holds space for grief and beauty, loneliness and connection to be true all at once.

Read our In Good Company conversation: https://bellforge.org/in-good-company-with-adeline-hotel/

Catch him live at Bellforge this Wednesday, June 24 at Summer Sounds. RSVP link in the comments.

As the indie singer-songwriter behind Adeline Hotel and the founder of Ruination Record Co., his work often feels more concerned with noticing than providing fixed answers.