DOLPHIN STUDIO’S hand-screen calendars are legendary. They have been in production for three generations, racking up 3,000 customers (85 percent repeat) worldwide. The purpose of this 51-year-old artistic endeavor is twofold: to keep a family connected and to spread the magic to everyone else. It all began in 1970, when local high school art teachers John and Primm ffrench made a calendar for family and friends from their Stockbridge home, causing an overnight sensation. They continued to spread the art love every year until their deaths (John in 2010; Primm in 2013). Not missing a beat (or a calendar), Sofia Hughes and Crispina ffrench mastered the art of hand printing to carry on their parents’ legacy. Today, a third generation is firmly entrenched in creating the mostly whimsical, always intriguing, calendars from their Becket studio, following a winning formula. Four of the 12 images are vintage—originals from John and Primm. Sofia and daughters Lily and Jamie, and Crispina and her daughters Lucy and Violet, design one month each. (Lily started “designing” at age four and is now head print maker.) The year is completed with a design based on the portfolio of John and Primm’s eldest daughter, Felicitas, who has been living in a nursing home for more than 15 years with exacerbated symptoms of MS, and one in memoriam for Crispina’s 26-year-old son, Ben, who died in 2019 from complications from his lifelong cardiomyopathy. Devoted customers have their own rules like no discarding old calendars—these works of art live on as wrapping paper, gift cards, and wall paper! The calendars will be available on December 11 at The Holiday Shindy at the Zion Church on 1st Street in Pittsfield, as well as on the studio’s website. Learn more about this women-owned family art business at thedolphinstudio.com.
—Laura Mars November 30th, 2021
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