Holiday Gala

Artist’s Reception 6-8 p.m. Saturday

Studio 33 Art & Frame Gallery, 140 Bank St., New London

Exhibit features local artists working in various mediums – all with gift-giving in mind. Through Jan. 16; hours 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Wed. and Fri., 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Thurs., 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sat.; studio33gallery.com.

Holiday Exhibit

Opening reception 6-9 p.m. Sat.

Pacific Street Artists Guild, 11 Pacific St., New London

Features paintings, photography, vintage postcards, locally-themed art and more. Through Dec. 23; hours 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Wed., 6-9 p.m. Thurs.-Sat.; (860) 444-7060.

Holiday Gift Show

Opens Saturday, preview party 6-8 p.m. Friday

Mystic Arts Center, 9 Water St., Mystic

Show pre-opens with a party featuring food, drinks and tax-free shopping ($20 members, $30 public). The exhibit features a variety of works from local and regional artists including carved wooden spoons, bowls and cheese boards; candles; jewelry; pottery, soaps, postcards and more. Through Dec. 27. Hours 11 a.m.-5 p.m. daily; (860) 536-7601.

MUSEUMS

The Artists in the Connecticut Landscape — Florence Griswold Museum, 96 Lyme St., Old Lyme; through Jan. 16; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat. and 1-5 p.m. Sun.; (860) 434-5542.

225th Anniversary of the U.S. Customs Service — Custom House Maritime Museum, 150 Bank St., New London; traveling show by the National Retired Customs Officers Foundation augmented by local archival materials; through April 1; 1-5 p.m. Tues.-Sun.; (860) 447-2501.

Come In! — Lyman Allyn Art Museum, 625 Williams St., New London; works by contemporary American artist and New London native Elizabeth Enders; “Launchpad of the American Theater: The O’Neill Since 1964,” both through Jan. 3; and “The Gaze Returned: Portrait Studio,” through Jan. 10; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues. through Sat. and 1-5 Sun.; (860) 443-2545.

Exploration: Wild — Mystic Aquarium, 55 Coogan Blvd. Mystic; interactive depictions of five different ecosystems; open run dates; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily; (860) 572-5955.

Ships, Clocks & Stars: The Quest for Longitude — Mystic Seaport, 17 Greenmanville Ave., Mystic; exhibition on loan from the National Maritime Museum in London explores the race to determine longitude at sea; through March 28; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily; (860) 572-0711.

John Meyer of Norwich: An American Original — Slater Memorial Museum, Converse Gallery, Norwich Free Academy, 108 Crescent St., Norwich; show focuses on iconic garments from clothing designer Meyer’s most productive period; through Jan. 15; 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Tues.-Frid. 1-4 p.m. Sat. and Sun.; (860) 887-2506.

GALLERIES

A Sense of Place – Postcards from the Past — Colchester Historical Society, 24 Linwood Ave., Colchester; vintage postcards depicting buildings on many streets in Colchester; through early Dec.; 1-4 p.m. Sat.; (860) 537-4230.

On the Road Again — Courtyard Gallery, 12 Water St., Mystic; work by many artists, all variations on a common theme — migrations, life journeys, voyages of adventure, joy rides and old fashioned road trips; through Sun.; (860) 536-5059.

The Natural Beauty of Plum Island — Essex Library, 33 West Ave., Essex; works by photographer Bob Lorenz and artist John Sargent; through Nov. 30; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon. and Wed., 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Tues. and Thurs., 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Fri. and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat.; (860) 767-1560.

The F Stops Here — Hygienic Art Gallery, 79 Bank St., New London; annual exhibit juried by photojournalist Tim Martin; through Nov. 19; 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Tues.-Thurs., 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Fri. and Sat. and noon-3 p.m. Sun.; (860) 443-8001.

Scenes of Riverside — Gallery at Firehouse Square, 239 Bank St., New London; work of artists who painted riverside vistas, park landscapes and festival scenes en plein air at Riverside Park; through Sat.; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; (860) 772-8439.

Artist Larry St. Pierre — Green Marble, 8 Steamboat Wharf, Mystic; local nature photos featuring macro photos of insects like butterflies and dragonflies; through Nov. 30; 7 a.m.-8 p.m. daily.

The Tapestries of Mary Merrill — La Grua Center, 32 Water St., Stonington; historic collection, formerly housed at the Fiber Arts Center in Amherst, Mass.; through Dec. 31.; (860) 535-2300.

2015 Alumni Exhibition — Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts, 84 Lyme St., Old Lyme; through Sat.; 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Mon.-Sat.; (860) 434-5232.

2015 New England Landscape Invitational — Lyme Art Association, 90 Lyme St., Old Lyme; member artists Peter Poskas, Stapleton Kearns, David Bareford, Chris Magadini, Sam Morrow, Barbara Adams, Neal Hughes, George Gallo and Jerry Weiss present works; through Nov. 20; noon-5 p.m. Wed.-Sun.; (860) 434-7802.

Fall Exhibit — Maple and Main Gallery, 1 Main St., Chester; also solo show by Pam Carlson; through Nov. 30; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Wed.-Sat and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sun. (860) 526-6065.

Visions of Nature — Marquee Gallery, 74 State St., New London; collections of landscapes by the late Gerard Doudera; through Nov. 30 with closing reception 5-7 p.m. Nov. 28; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Wed.-Sat.; (860) 428-4903.

M.J. Brush — Noah’s Restaurant, 113 Water St., Stonington; landscapes and still-life in oil; through Nov. 30; 7:45 a.m.-9 p.m. daily, closed Mon.

Peter Liebert: Purely Found: The Found Object as Art— Norwich Arts Center, 60 Broadway, Norwich; collection of found objects Liebert has collected over 45 years; through Nov. 30; noon-4 p.m. Thurs.-Sat.; (860) 827-2789.

Images of the Essex Steam Train and Riverboat — Oliver O. Jensen Gallery, River Valley Junction Building, 1 Railroad Ave., Essex; annual exhibit; through Dec. 29; call for hours; (860) 767-0103.

Approaching Fall — Six Summit Gallery, 6 Summit St., Ivoryton; Ted Jeremendo, Frances Maravelea and Ann Hodgdon Cyr; through Sun.; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Wed., 11 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Thurs., 10 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Fri. and noon-4 p.m. Sat. and Sun.; (860) 581-8332.

Model of Coast Guard Cutter Courier — U.S. Coast Guard Academy, 15 Mohegan Ave., New London; display of a model of the Cold War-era Coast Guard cutter Courier, which served as a radio-relay station for the government’s “Voice of America” broadcast program; 9 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. the first and third Saturday of each month.