This month’s free arts and cultural event kicks off the holiday shopping season with makers’ markets at the Star Store, Fishing Heritage Center, and Gallery X.
This November, AHA! New Bedford celebrates things Made in New Bedford, from handmade gifts by local artists and makers to three decades of the city’s national park. It’s all happening on Thursday, November 12th for AHA! Night: Made in NB.
30 Years of People, Places, & Possibilities
Congress established the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park on November 12, 1996, to tell the stories of New Bedford’s whaling history, its working waterfront, and its role in the Underground Railroad. This AHA! Night falls on the park’s official 30th anniversary!
Start your adventure at the park’s Visitor Center to pick up a 30th Anniversary Collector Card (9:00 AM-8:00 PM). Decorate one side as a watercolor keepsake, then keep celebrating by collecting anniversary stamps at participating sites through October 2027.
You can also create your own Victorian-inspired bonnet with the park’s 1850s Ladies at the Junior Ranger Station, and wear it during the festivities. (4-5:30 PM)
Then join the park for a 30th Anniversary Cake Cutting (5:30-6:00 PM), followed by traditional Iñupiat dancing, a presentation, and Q&A with partners from the Iñupiat Heritage Center. Learn how the Iñupiat hunted whales historically and today, how they shared their knowledge with whalers and newcomers, and what life is like in Utqiaġvik, then and now. (6-7:30 PM)
As part of the anniversary celebration, the Nathan and Polly Johnson House will be open to guests, courtesy of the New Bedford Historical Society. The house at 21 Seventh Street is a designated National Historic Landmark and an official site on the National Park Service Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, working in partnership with the park.
Nathan and Polly Johnson, prominent African American abolitionists in New Bedford, sheltered many people escaping slavery. It was here, in September 1838, that Frederick Douglass found freedom, a new name, and, with his wife Anna, his first home in freedom.
Visitors can get a commemorative 30th anniversary passport stamp. Don’t miss this opportunity to visit: after AHA! Night, the house will be closed until spring except by appointment. (5-6:30 PM)
AHA! Artisan Market at the Star Store
Nearly 50 local artists and makers will fill the Star Store for the AHA! Night Artisan Market, one of a series of pop-up markets kicking off the holiday shopping season. Browse handmade jewelry, glass, clothing, prints, cards, herbal goods, and more, all made by your neighbors across the South Coast, including some teen entrepreneurs! (5-8:00 PM)
While you shop, listen to tunes courtesy of WNB One Radio and catch demonstrations from the Star Store’s ceramics and printmaking studios. Rhonda Fazio will also be creating delectable desserts and hot, soothing drinks for you to sample in this AHA! Moment, along with a take-home recipe.
Find the perfect gift at the Star Store? Get it wrapped on the spot at AHA!’s gift wrapping station, featuring Made in NB graphics by artist Taylor Hickey and sponsored by First Citizens’ Federal Credit Union.
While you’re here, catch the closing reception of American Dream, featuring 10 New England artists exploring our evolving definition of success, and see Salty Stitches, a textile exhibition by Cheryl Deane with a hands-on embroidery activity. (5-8:00 PM)
The art markets continue at Gallery X’s Artist & Vendor Market, and the New Bedford Fishing Heritage Center’s Local Artisan Showcase featuring fishing- and maritime-themed clothing, jewelry, artwork, and other handmade items. (5-8:00 PM)
While you’re downtown, don’t forget to browse the New Bedford treasures at your favorite shops and grab a Made in NB bite to eat or drink at one of the local bars and restaurants.
AHA! NIGHT WALKING TOUR
AHA stands for Art, History, and Architecture, and a free AHA! Night Walking Tour covers all three. Explore downtown New Bedford’s rich culture, public art, and striking historic architecture, with stops along the way to take in some of the evening’s live experiences. The tour is led by our friends at New Bedford Food Tours and begins at 6:00 PM by the AHA! welcome table in the Star Store. The tour lasts approximately 45-60 minutes, and you’re welcome to “hop off” at any point to explore other AHA! Night activities on your own. No registration required.
Additional AHA! Night activities include:
- Visit the New Bedford Main Library’s Youth Services to decorate your own apron while supplies last. You can also shop the Friends of the Library’s Book Sale and browse the art throughout the library. (3-5:00 PM)
- Share your story and help preserve New Bedford history at Bristol Community College. All are invited to record oral histories about their traditions and connections to New Bedford, which will become part of a mini-documentary shown later this year. Bring family photos, keepsakes, or other items that help tell your story. (4-8:00 PM)
- See what’s made in NB at New Bedford Research and Robotics. Tour the lab and watch industrial robots create, design, and innovate using cutting-edge technologies. (4:30-6:30 PM)
- Drop by 3rd EyE’s community incubator for an evening of creativity, connections, and community conversations, with hands-on activities and resources from Livity Tree Art, South East Recovery Learning Community, and Clear the Lens. The Window Gallery presents Inspired Looks, a live modeling experience with the Circular Threads youth cohort. (4:30-6:30 PM)
- Catch Kim’s Myth, the musical project of singer-songwriter and multimedia artist Kim Smith, performing original music at Interwoven Artist Gallery alongside demonstrations by the Sustainabubble Project and its signature massage chairs on the storefront stages. (5-8:00 PM)
- Discover Downtown at House of Gamboa and Luisa Edits, with children’s books and community activities featuring author and community leader Eldric R. Abreu, New Bedford Public Health, and the Foster Parents Program. Participants will be entered for a chance to win $75 and $250 gift certificates. (5-8:00 PM)
- Whales! Whales! Whales! The Waterfront Card Shop hosts Save the Whales, an interactive art station where kids and adults can fold origami whales, color whale-themed artwork, and sculpt whales from clay while learning about whale conservation. (5-8:00 PM)
- Make your own leaf lantern and enjoy guitar music and singing with Dan and friends at Pilgrim United Church of Christ and Mercy Meals & More. While you’re there, learn about the speech Booker T. Washington gave in the building in 1895 and visit the mural installed just outside. (5-7:00 PM)
- On view in Gallery X’s Douglass Gallery: Radiance, a solo exhibition by Tammi J. Meehan dedicated to the memory of Lorin Roche, author of The Radiance Sutras. (5-8:00 PM)
- Find a peaceful refuge at Serlingpa Meditation Center’s open house. Take a shrine tour, enjoy autumn-themed refreshments, browse the bookstore, and join a brief talk and guided meditation on gratitude and connection at 6:00 PM. (5:30-7:00 PM)
- The Zeiterion’s Jazz Jam returns with Emmanuel “Manny” Escobar and Mwalim DaPhunkee Professor. Musicians, vocalists, visual artists, and audience members are welcome, and no jam experience is necessary. Note: The first 30 minutes will be dedicated to young people/students offering their talents in the jam. (5:30-8:00 PM)
- Listen to the Buttonwood Brass Band from 6-8:00 PM during their AHA! Night residency at the Harbor Hotel.
- Anomaly Poetry’s open mic night returns to 3rd EyE. Begins at 7:00 PM and continues until 9:00 PM or until the poems run out, whichever comes first!
- Shake, dance, and settle into stillness with The Art of Ecstatic Meditation at Sangha Yoga NB, an introduction to the four stages of OSHO Active Ecstatic Meditation followed by deep relaxation. Doors open at 7:00 PM, and the opening circle begins at 7:30 PM. This is a barefoot, alcohol-free, and fragrance-free event. (7-9:00 PM)
- AHA! After Dark experiences include Karaoke Night at Bento’s with DJ Big Chan (8-10:00 PM), the Neal McCarthy Trio at Pour Farm Tavern (8-11:30 PM), AHHHhhh! with Wamptronica in the Zeiterion Speakeasy (8-10:00 PM), and Karaoke at PLAY Arcade (8-midnight).
AHA! NIGHT FAST FACTS
- AHA! Nights are always free and open to the public.
- Look for the yellow flags! Most participating locations will prominently display a yellow AHA! flag to help you find AHA! Night activities.
- Park for free on AHA! Nights at the Elm Street and Zeiterion Garages.
- Museums, galleries, and shops will be open late.
- Find the most up-to-date schedule on the AHA! website. (Events are added every day!)
- On AHA! Night, a printed program can be found at the AHA! Welcome Table in the Star Store, the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park Visitor Center, the New Bedford Art Museum, the New Bedford Free Public Library, and the Zeiterion.
ABOUT AHA! NEW BEDFORD
AHA! New Bedford provides and promotes free arts and cultural experiences for all across downtown New Bedford. For over 25 years, AHA! has helped build and promote a creative economy that, alongside other arts organizations and supporters, transformed downtown New Bedford into a cultural epicenter of Massachusetts’ South Coast. Programming has expanded to include music, film, storytelling, block parties, art markets, and more. AHA! is now an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Learn more and support AHA! at ahanewbedford.org/donate.
AHA! Moments is supported in part by the Art is Everywhere grant funded by the City of New Bedford, through its Arts, Culture & Tourism Fund and is facilitated by New Bedford Creative at the NBEDC. The New Bedford Cultural Council, a local agency supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency, also supports AHA! Moments, as well as Seaport Sessions and the Docent Program.