WCAA Opening Reception for “Low Local Tech” and “The Eyes of Abstraction”

The Wayne County Arts Alliance Gallery at 959 Main Street in Honesdale will open two new exhibits – “Low Local Tech” and “The Eyes of Abstraction” on Thursday, August 27, 2026, running through Saturday, October 3, 2026, with an opening reception for both shows scheduled for Friday, August 28, from 5pm – 8pm. The public is invited to join us at the reception, get a first look, and meet the artists.

“Low Local Tech”, curated by “place maker”, illustrator, designer, builder, and WCAA member artist Lisa Glover, is showing in the first floor gallery. Exhibiting artists include: Nora Boydston, Lisa Glover, Jennifer Gougé, Luke Green, Keenan Gruver, Douglas L. Jones, John Kascht, Lexi Pinto, Gil Riley, Connor Simon, A Smith, Dustin Werner-Fazio, Derek Williams.

Local tech is about reimagining our relationship with here- in this case, the region around Honesdale.

Technology is the application of knowledge to create practical solutions. Hand tools are just as much a technology as computers; so is language; so are maps.

The “technologies“—the practical solutions—we create depend on the knowledge we start with. Knowledge related to abundance or scarcity, peace or destruction, human-centric or environment-centric result in very different solutions.

This exhibit explores the idea, “what do our technologies look like when the knowledge used to make them focuses on what is around us in some way?” This concept was explored by a number of artists and their “local technologies” take the form of maps, photographs, clothing, sculptures, and more. Some invite participation, others invite contemplation.

“The Eyes of Abstraction”, the second floor exhibition highlights WCAA member artist Elizabeth Castellano in a solo painting show.

Legally blind since birth, Elizabeth Castellano is a professional artist and art educator. Her limited vision accentuates her unique simi-abstract style. She graduated with a BFA and a MAT from Manhattanville University in Purchase, New York. Her BFA, received in May 1999, is in studio art with an emphasis on painting and a minor in art history. During her undergraduate studies, Ms. Castellano took a leave of absence to study art abroad at Lancaster University in Lancaster, England. During that time, she studied painting, printmaking and photography. Prior to her study abroad experience, Ms. Castellano had the opportunity to travel to Florence, Italy, to complete intensive coursework towards her art history minor.

Ms. Castellano completed her MAT in art education in January of 2000. Her student teaching was completed at the Mount Pleasant Central School District and the Pocantico Hills School District in New York. For both her undergraduate and graduate studies, Ms. Castellano graduated Summa Cum Laude. She received her BFA with art department honors.

Elizabeth Castellano has been a part of many solo and group shows locally, nationally, and internationally. Her artwork is in both private and public collections. Public collections include Herkimer County Community College, and Manhattanville University Office of Admissions.

Ms. Castellano writes:

“My solo exhibition focuses on the process of abstraction, and the journey that I took as an artist to get to the point of non-representational art. Due to my visual impairment, I naturally abstract my work because there are elements that I cannot see. However, recently I am trying to paint my narrative using shapes, lines, and colors representing how I feel about an experience rather than replicating it.”