Month: August 2012

Magnolia’s Roadshow

The Magnolia Historical Society has signed a Purchase and Sale agreement for the Blynman School a.k.a. “The Little Red Schoolhouse” on Magnolia Avenue . Our new facility, one of only six (2) room schoolhouses remaining in the United States will function as a local historical museum and local cultural center. However, before we can begin the journey of moving into the building we’ll need to install a new heating system and roof.

This summer we have reached out and asked for community support our efforts by donating new and used items to our fundraising event known as the Magnolia Roadshow. This year it will be on August 25, 2012 starting at 9 AM at the corner of Lexington and Norman Avenue in Magnolia and inside the Magnolia Library Center .

The MHS board is very appreciative of the response we received. It is overwhelming. Now we have hundreds, well probably thousands of items that we are sorting. Next Saturday, they will be sold at a Silent Auction, yard sale and an old-fashion public auction where an auctioneer will lead the bidding.

The day promises to be a fun event. The yard sale will open the event at 9 AM and feature something for everyone from vintage goods to household items, furniture, china baking yard and exercise equipment, toys, lamps, electronics, holiday decorations, typewriters and the list goes on and on.

There will also be a silent auction during the day and then at 6 PM a real old-fashion auction at the Blynman School . The auction items include everything from a new children’s ATV to a wooden riding horse. There are many gift certificates from local merchants and beautiful artwork by Shelia Lavelle, Jean Byrd, Sandy Herdman and Carol Liocano. In addition, Sandy Peek has restored a rowboat and James Fiahlo is building a copper boat. We’ll be posting more information on what you’ll find during the week

For a small donation to the MHS between 10 AM and noon, you can have your vintage items appraised by David Cox and Norman Larsen, two renowned antique professionals Call 978-281-0309 for an appointment or you can just walk- in.

Food always an important part of any event will include Dolly’s famous fish chowder and a bake sale.

There will be a family- friendly walk along the shore that will bring to life the rich heritage of the area and craft vendors will be lining Lexington Avenue .

For more information “like” the Magnolia Historical Society on Facebook or check our website MagnoliaHistoricalSociety. Com.

With your generosity, we will be able to nurture one of Gloucester ’s iconic landmarks back to its original luster as a revitalized community asset for all to enjoy.

Artist Talk by Ken Hruby Wednesday Aug. 22, 7-9 pm at The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck.
In his Artist Talk at The Center, acclaimed sculptor and installation artist Ken Hruby will present slides of his powerful work – work that views our military culture critically, from direct experience, yet with humor and poignancy.
Ken Hruby says, "Save my earliest work in abstract welded steel, my entire body of work has been essentially autobiographical, dealing with my experience being part of the military sub-culture.  Except for a few brief periods in our nation’s growth, the military has been outside the general frame of reference to the majority  of the civilian population, even more so today with the absence of a draft and two wars being fought simultaneously.  I have tried to create work that bridges the gap between the society being served and the soldier; to start the dialog; to open the conversation.  While words cannot adequately tell where I have been and what I have experienced, the sculpture can charge the viewers imagination to ponder the inexpressible.  Humor and hyperbole are in the top drawer of my toolbox."
Ken Hruby was born at a cavalry post in the Black Hills of South Dakota and spent a happy, adventure-filled childhood as
an Army brat at a number of posts and camps in the mid-west and on the west coast. Family travel included tours in Japan
and Germany where he was exposed to cultural diversity at an early and impressionable age. After completing his secondary education in Tacoma, Washington, he graduated from West Point with an infantry commission in l961. For the following twenty-one years, he served in a wide variety of command and staff positions, including advisor to infantry and ranger battalions in Vietnam and two combat tours on the DMZ in Korea.
Upon completion of military service, he attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts where he
focused in sculpture and received a prestigious Traveling Scholars Award. His work has been shown in numerous group and solo shows around the country and is included in several private and public collections, including the National
Vietnam Veterans Art Museum in Chicago. His first solo show, "Mustering Out",  and subsequent shows,"Juggernaut," ,
“Minefields of Memory” and “Free Fall” were selected by the Boston Globe as  "Best Gallery Events" for the years 1989, l995, 1997 and 1999 respectively.
His most recent show, “Trepanation: a face of battle; variations on an ancient theme”, was exhibited in May at the NK Gallery in Boston. Ken teaches at the Museum School of the Boston Museum
of Fine Arts, lives in Gloucester, and maintains a studio in Boston.