“giove e saturno” by Courtney Chelo, one of the many artists to be featured at this year’s Somerville Open Studios event.

By Fernando Cervantes Jr.

Somerville Open Studio (SOS) is a local annual event where artists from the local area open their studios and workplaces to the public. Considered the largest open studio event in all of New England this year’s edition is just around the corner.

But, before the studios open between May 6 and 7, the Somerville Museum in conjunction with Somerville Open Studios is hosting a First Look Exhibit. The exhibit, which runs from April 21 to May 13 is a way for people to get a first look at the various artist’s works.

Alison Drasner, Assistant Director of the Somerville Museum has been a part of the museum for the last five years. For her, working with Somerville Open Studios has been a productive partnership.

“It’s a long-standing arrangement, it’s a long-standing show, so people sort of know about it at this point,” Drasner said. “[Somerville] Open Studios, they do a really good job with promoting the open studios.”

So far, there have been a few hundred artists who have signed up for this year’s edition of Somerville Open Studios, this includes Drasner herself who creates pieces with alcohol inks, acrylics, and other mediums.

When asked how they manage to accommodate so many artists’ pieces at one place, Drasner gave an insight into the process.

“We curate the show, there’s a bunch of volunteers from Somerville Open Studios and they curate the show based on what looks good, just like any art show would be curated,” Drasner said.

Admissions into the exhibit will be free. The Somerville Museum will be open Pre- and post-SOS hours: Thursdays 2:00 – 7:00 p.m., Fridays 2:00 – 5:00 p.m., Saturdays noon-5:00 p.m. SOS weekend hours: Saturday and Sunday, May 6-7, noon-5:00 p.m. More information on the exhibit and the upcoming SOS: https://www.somervilleopenstudios.org.