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“In addition to people who already participate in BAC, we want this space to introduce us to those who are not familiar with us,” said Castaldo. “We invite everyone to stop in whenever we’re open and get to know us.”

The new space features a free guided art project which people can undertake on a self-directed basis. “People can come in and have the experience of making something creative at any time we’re open,” she said.

The Pittsfield location also offers a Free Family Drop-In series on the first Friday and third Saturday of each month featuring creative projects for families to make with the guidance of a faculty artist. Another regular event is Arts Nights Out, which takes place on the second and fourth Fridays of the month. This is a social gathering for couples and singles with a focus on a creative activity.

The school’s purpose is to provide a place where “people who love art, regardless of age or ability, can gather to experience creative expression,” according to its mission statement. It emphasizes handson participation, through art classes and workshops. BAC also sponsors exhibits, artist talks, community creative gatherings, youth programs, and other activities and services.

BAC already operates a gallery shop in Stockbridge, but in Pittsfield the school has opened a new shop to expand its support of local artists and makers by showcasing and selling their work. The new space features exhibits of area artists.

It also carries a variety of locally made items, such as mugs and notecards. Used and discounted art supplies and creative material for local artists and other creators to use in their work are also available.

The space is seen as a vehicle to strengthen existing and new collaborations with other local organizations, including those serving underrepresented communities. “It’s also a resource for other groups,” said Castaldo.

On the second Monday of the month, the Pittsfield space hosts meetings of Katunemo, a group that was formed by area Hispanic and Portuguese-speaking artists with the purpose of creating community and healing through mutual support and sharing of art.

BAC is also encouraging mutually beneficial partnerships with downtown businesses, such as an arrangement it has with Methuselah Bar & Lounge on North Street. People who attend an Arts Night

Out event can receive a 15 percent discount on food at Methuselah afterward. The move to Pittsfield came through an ongoing relationship the art school has had with Giora Witkowski and Linda Mitchell, a couple who are the long-time owners of the Brothership Building.

“They have been great supporters of us, and for a number of years they let us use the building’s window for exhibits,” Castaldo said. “When a space opened up in the building for rent, they let us know it was available. We had already spon- sored activities at other locations in Pittsfield and knew there was an audience for us. So it made sense.”

Citizens Hall, which was built in 1870, fell into disrepair after its original use as a public schoolhouse and meeting hall ended. In 1975 the building was acquired by Old Curtisville Inc,. a nonprofit formed by local residents, which made critical repairs funded by a grant from the Massachusetts Historical Commission. The Interlaken School of Art leased the building from Old Curtisville before becoming the owner when the two organizations merged in 2005. Further repairs and improvement to the building, funded by a capital campaign, were completed in 2009.

BAC operates its two locations with an annual budget of $600,000, which it raises through grants, individual gifts, fees, and fund-raising benefits, like its upcoming costume dance party April 1 at the Colonial Theatre. The school has four fulltime staffers and two part-time employees. It also pays about 45 area artists as occasional or regular instructors.

Castaldo, who became executive director in 2018, started with BAC as an intern in 2009 before joining the staff three years later. She said the school currently serves about 2,500 people annually, including adults and young people who participate in its programs and activities. These encompass a wide variety of media, including painting, drawing, photography, printmaking, fiber arts, and ceramics, among others.

Most of BAC’s one session classes and workshops, and multi-session courses are offered in either or both Pittsfield and Stockbridge, at other county locations, or online. The lone exception is ceramics, which all take place in Stockbridge, where a ceramics studio with kilns and other equipment is located. The studio can also be used by ceramics artists for their own projects (BAC sponsors a Berkshire Potters Collective).

After-school and off-school programs are offered in collaboration with area school districts. One of those initiatives, ARTcentric: Berkshires, brings the studio art experience to students in the schools. Another program, Learning Through Arts, integrates multiple disciplines using art-making as a tool to teach conflict resolution and social emotional skills. Youth programs also include vacation camps.

Artist residencies pair local visual artists with cultural institutions and historic landmarks. BAC also has a service that organizes art-related events for area business and organizations.

BAC has activities that are both free and involve a fee. Because classes have varying lengths and numbers of sessions, overall tuition ranges from approximately $50 up to about $350.The school works hard to balance its goal of open access with financial necessity.

“Our mission is based on accessibility, and we don’t want price to stop anyone from being able to participate,” Castaldo said. “But our mission also includes paying a living wage to the artists who are instructors.”

For those who cannot afford tuition, BAC offers needs-based scholarships and professional-development scholarships. These are supported through individual scholarship funds or local cultural councils. The school also provides opportunities to exchange work for tuition and gives significant discounts to Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT), WIC, and ConnectorCare cardholders.

“We believe that access to art and creative expression is a basic need in a community,” she said. ”Art has been a core of the human experience, ever since the prehistoric era when people painted on the walls of caves.”

She believes the role that art plays is especially vital in the Berkshires. Posted on a wall in her office is a finding from a recent statewide report, Culture + Community in a Time of Transition by the Barr Foundation, that indicates that 90 percent of survey respondents in Berkshire County place a high value on the arts as an important social value. This is the largest percentage in the state by far.

“Berkshire County has many opportunities to see art,” she said. “We provide one of the main opportunities for people to actually make art.”

A new name and two separate locations are making that task more accessible.