Events Calendar

Join us at the Desert of Maine’s historic farmhouse for a poetry workshop, reading, and a book signing with poet Sally Bliumis-Dunn, who will share her most recent work, Alive in These Woods.

Author Nin Andrews describes her reading experience of Alive in These Woods: “I was dumbstruck by Sally Bliumis-Dunn’s authenticity, her tenderness, her lyrical brilliance. Each poem is like a painting I want to hang above my desk, or an insight I want to frame. Whether reflecting on midlife, marital struggles, motherhood, encounters with hawks and butterflies, or the ache of loneliness, she is also writing about the fundamental questions of existence: how do we live, find meaning, and transform ourselves in the midst of our troubled lives?”

Sally Bliumis-Dunn’s poems have appeared in From the Fishouse, The New York Times, Nimrod, Paris Review, PBS NewsHour, Plume, Poetry London, Prairie Schooner, RATTLE, the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day, Ted Kooser’s “American Life in Poetry,” Verse Daily and Garrison Keillor’s The Writer’s Almanac. In 2002, she was a finalist for the Nimrod/Hardman Pablo Neruda Prize.

You’re invited to Dine the Dunes with the Center for Arts & Ecology on Sunday, August 9th, 2026 from 6 to 9pm.

Tickets include a five-course fireside dinner by Applecroft, live music and performances, and a silent auction. Questions/RSVP: mela@centerforartsandecology.org, (978) 394-5923.

Celebrating 100 years of the Desert of Maine.

Join us Saturday, August 8th from 9am to 8pm (live music from 12pm) for a day of live music, food vendors, guided tours, and animal encounters. Hosted with the Center for Arts & Ecology.

Farmhouse Folk with Lisa Redfern and Sara Trunzo.

An intimate evening of songwriting and storytelling at the historic Tuttle Farmhouse.

FREE WITH ADMISSION

• Seed Bombs
• Farm Animals
• Craft Maker Space
• History Tour

On May 23rd and 24th, Desert Farm Days returns to the Desert of Maine. Hosted by the Center for Arts and Ecology, this weekend is a curated collision of our best traditions. It’s a place where you can play farm games in the morning, dance the night away, meet the sheep, and be spinning wool by the next afternoon. We’ve brought in the best of our local talent, from musicians to experts in heritage sheep farming and fiber arts.

Natural dyeing in the 21st century uses simple, safe, economical, and environmentally sound methods to create colorful results with natural fibers. In this workshop we’ll each dye or tie-dye a silk or cotton bandana with plant material from Jude’s central Maine dye garden. Along the way we’ll delve into the ancient, worldwide traditions of natural dyeing, peruse Jude’s dye records books, naturally dyed items and ongoing projects. Note-taking is encouraged.

Join us for our second contra dance at the Desert of Maine Farmhouse with caller Maggie Robinson.

FREE WITH ADMISSION

• Historic Games
• Fiber Crafts
• Earth Loom with Cathi Belcher
• Carding and Spinning Wool

On May 23rd and 24th, Desert Farm Days returns to the Desert of Maine. Hosted by the Center for Arts and Ecology, this weekend is a curated collision of our best traditions. It’s a place where you can play farm games in the morning, dance the night away, meet the sheep, and be spinning wool by the next afternoon. We’ve brought in the best of our local talent, from musicians to experts in heritage sheep farming and fiber arts.