When most people think of the Yard in Chilmark, an arts colony full of modern dancers comes to mind. Perhaps a touch of bohemia, too, with artists living and working on the grounds off Middle Road, running around barefoot with grace and poise. The Yard is all of those things, but at the fifth anniversary gala tonight, artists are out to prove it’s much more.

Opera singers, musicians, actors, performance artists and, yes, dancers will fill the barn theatre to showcase their talents in the fifth celebration of the opening of the Yard Arts Festival.

Mr. Brigish’s Journey to the East

In 2008, South African-born documentary photographer and West Tisbury resident Alan Brigish set out on a journey that would become Breathing in the Buddha, a recently-published book that serves as an image-driven chronicle of everyday Buddhist life across Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar (formerly Burma) and Laos. This Saturday, May 29, Mr. Brigish will share some of the experiences he had along the way, illustrated with photographs and video clips, at the West Tisbury library at 4 p.m. The talk is free.

Textiles Trunk Show

Renowned textile designer John Robshaw will be at Midnight Farm in Vineyard Haven from 4 to 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 10. The store on Walter Cromwell Lane, behind Stop and Shop, hosts a trunk show of his natural fabrics all day, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and all are welcome to meet the designer or just stop by to see his latest work.

Featherstone Center for the Arts was a flurry of activity Sunday afternoon as Islanders came out to see the opening of New Art Now, a collection of paintings and ceramics by a motley trio of artists.

Chioke R. Morais, Darcie Lee Hanaway and John Robert Hill met while working at the Oak Bluffs restaurant the Oyster Bar, and forged fast, lasting friendships that they said helped them land the show together at Featherstone.

The product of a global collaboration will be on display at the Virginia Weston Besse Gallery at Featherstone this Sunday, March 28. One Day in the Life is a documentary photography and writing exhibit that involves students from more than thirty countries around the world, including several at the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School.

Every Friday afternoon, for the last half-dozen years, Island watercolorists have been meeting and painting at the Up-Island Council on Aging. Though there have been retired art teachers among them, there has been no organized instruction. The group has simply gathered from 1 until 3:30 or so to do what it enjoys doing — to paint. And last weekend it had its annual art show on Friday and Saturday at Howes House.

Discover what Louisa Gould Gallery artists have been making when a group show of new works opens on Sunday, May 30 from 5 to 7 p.m. with live music and refreshments.

Landscape painter Curtis Hanson will be in the Christina Gallery in Edgartown on Thursday, July 15, for a reception from 6 until 8 p.m. alongside an exhibition of his recent oil paintings of New England and Thailand.

Student Art Show

Every year the Martha’s Vineyard Art Association gives three scholarships as well as a week-long show at our Old Sculpin Gallery to student graduates from an Island high school who plan to continue their studies in the fine arts.

This year’s recipients are Lonnie Phillips, Maggie Howard and Naomi Scott. This show runs from June 19 to 26.

The opening reception is Sunday, June 20, from 6 to 8 p.m.

Less than 10 years ago, a high school photography class involved loading cameras, fussing with myriad settings and working with chemicals in the darkroom. Today photography has been democratized by technology, and most students already carry a camera around with them all day, whether it’s on their cellphone or iPod. And without having to be concerned with the cost of film, taking pictures has never been easier, cheaper or more accessible.