Artist Reception & Poetry Reading: Desirée Alvarez
November Artist: Desirée Alvarez
November 3 – 28 during library hours
Reception & Poetry Reading: Saturday, November 14, 4:00 – 6:00 pm. Open to all.
Burnham Library will host an exhibition of paintings by poet and painter Desirée Alvarez from November 3 through November 28, 2026, during library hours. A reception and poetry reading will take place Saturday, November 14, from 4 to 6 p.m. where Alvarez will read selections from her new poetry collection, Oyster Saloon.
A fourth-generation Bridgewater resident who spent her childhood in town, Alvarez draws inspiration from the landscape she knows so well. Her paintings are inspired by living with nature and gardening in Bridgewater, exploring an ecstatic relationship with the outdoors and the secret connections between humans, animals, and plants. Her new collection, Oyster Saloon, is also deeply rooted in the landscape of her childhood.
Alvarez is the author of three poetry collections: Devil’s Paintbrush, winner of the May Sarton New Hampshire Poetry Award; Raft of Flame, winner of Omnidawn’s Lake Merritt Poetry Award; and Oyster Saloon. Her poetry and visual art have received support from the New York Foundation for the Arts, Foundation for Contemporary Arts, American Academy of Arts and Letters, and Poets House. Her work has appeared in numerous publications, including Poetry Magazine, The Massachusetts Review, Ecotone, and LitHub. She exhibits her paintings nationally and internationally, teaches at The Juilliard School and the City University of New York, and currently has poetry, paintings, and drawings featured at Kentler International Drawing Space in New York City.
The exhibition offers the community an opportunity to experience Alvarez’s visual art and celebrate the landscape and local connections that continue to inform her creative work. The November 14 reception and reading will provide a chance to meet the artist and hear poetry from her latest collection.
The reception & poetry reading are free and open to the public. Learn more about the artist at desireealvarez.com
