Telling Stories: a conversation with Dani Shapiro and Laura Karetzky

On Saturday, Jan. 18 at 5:30 p.m., the first in a new series of conversations called “Telling Stories” will take place at Spring Hill Vineyards in New Preston, Conn. Moderated by writer and teacher Maggie Levine, this inaugural session will feature bestselling author Dani Shapiro and Brooklyn-based painter Laura Karetzky in a discussion about their creative processes, storytelling techniques, and the connections between their art forms.

Shapiro, author of eleven books, and the host and creator of the hit podcast “Family Secrets.” and Karetzky, known for her narrative-driven paintings, will explore how they weave multiple perspectives and non-linear narratives into their respective works. “The reason I paired Laura with Dani is because Dani’s work, even in her fiction, is not linear. She jumps around in time and weaves different perspectives. Laura’s narrative paintings do something similar—they often tell multiple stories through layers and perspectives,” said Levine, who founded her newsletter and social platform, ArtWrite, to explore the intersections of art and writing. Levine will guide the conversation, highlighting the common threads between these two artists’ practices.

“I was beginning to see the danger in adhering to a single narrative, hewing to a story,” said Shapiro about writing. “The peril wasn’t only in getting it wrong, it was a kind of calcification, a narrowing, a perversion of reality that hardened and stilled the spirit.”

“I believe that we are experiencing concurrent truths that are in constant flux,” said Karetzky. “It’s only when I start putting an image down on canvas that I begin to understand the myriad complexities of a particular story. It’s through this process that I begin to unearth what I actually think and see.”

This conversation will take place at Spring Hill Vineyards, located along the Shepaug River in New Preston. Established in 2006 by Stephanie and Tim Ingrassia, the vineyard is also the site of Spring Hill Arts Gathering, a summer arts festival hosted in the vineyard’s gorgeous barn space. The conversation will be hosted in this same charming barn, offering an intimate setting for this exciting new series.

This free event is open to the public, with reservations encouraged. For more information and to reserve a seat, visit www.springhillvineyards.com/events or email contact@springhillvineyards.com.