Northampton Arts Council selects Ari Banias as new Poet Laureate
Northampton Arts Council has selected poet Ari Banias as the city's new Poet Laureate. The council formally welcomed Clara Barnhart as a new member and secured grant funding for a public mural on King Street, with Northampton Greenfield Coop Bank providing permission for the project. Director of
Arts Council · Meeting of January 13, 2026
Northampton Arts Council has selected poet Ari Banias as the city's new Poet Laureate. The council formally welcomed Clara Barnhart as a new member and secured grant funding for a public mural on King Street, with Northampton Greenfield Coop Bank providing permission for the project. Director of Arts and Culture Brian Foote coordinated the mural grant.
The council also reviewed First Night revenue, which declined significantly from the prior year, and discussed redesigning the event's buttons by eliminating "adult" and "child" designations in favor of "day" and "night" categories.
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Source: the Arts Council meeting of January 13, 2026, compiled from the official minutes.
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