Year: 2012

For The Love Of God People

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

PLEASE I BEG OF YOU-

I’m not trying to be cute.  I’m not trying to be funny.

I am begging for your mercy.

There is a search box.

I swear to god on everything I’ve ever held true to me THERE IS A SEARCH BOX ON THIS SITE.

PLEASE

PLEASE

PLEASE

Before you email me to ask if I posted your announcement because you didn’t see it or if there was something that you heard about that might have been on GMG last week, last month or last year.

I SWEAR IF YOU TYPE THE QUERY INTO THE SEARCH BOX THERE IS A FANTASTIC CHANCE YOU’LL FIND EXACTLY WHAT YOU”RE LOOKING FOR!

If you are looking at the nightly feed in your email box because you subscribe just click on any of the titles of the posts  in your email and it will bring you to the blog (GMG), once there or if you are viewing this post on the blog right now, guide your eyes to the right hand column and scroll down from the top until you see the words “SEARCH”

In the box directly to the right of the word “SEARCH” type in your query.  I bet you find what you’re looking for.

I swear it will take you less time to do this search than to type out an entire email to me asking where that particular post is.

For example, say you were interested in finding out about the Awesome art exhibit by Kathy Roberts at Alchemy.

You would go to the search box in the right hand column and type in Kathy Roberts.

and my guess is that any of the posts having to do with Kathy Roberts would come up in chronological order as they have been posted with the newest posts on top, just like the way the blog works.

Thank you for your consideration for my sanity.

The “This is why I don’t do searches on the internet” poll.

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

This poll is only for people who for one reason or another do not like to use search engines, search boxes or any other type of technology to find the answers to their questions.

Again, this is not a joke, this is just to try to help me understand teh psyche behind this phenomenon.

Please only take this poll if you are the type of person who is unlikely to do a search on the internet for the web results you seek.

Thank you for helping me understand.

New Yahoo Group for Brazilians and Friends of Brazil on Cape Ann

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey!

We now have more than 1500 Brazilians in Gloucester!   I have lived and worked in Brazil, going back and forth for the last 20 years and my kids have dual US and Brazilian nationality. I am also fluent in Portuguese. So I decided to form a Yahoo Group GloucesterBrasil to help this community get better connected and integrated with the rest of Gloucester and Cape Ann.  This group will use Portuguese and we will keep members informed as to what is happening, important links like the GoodMorningGloucester Blog, where to get help, etc. etc. etc.  Please let your readers know that if they are Brazilian, have Brazilian friends or just love Brazil they can join by sending me an email to kirstin@sparx3.com, calling me at 917-523-9163 or going to Yahoo Groups and applying to the GloucesterBrasil group.  Thanks!!!!!!

Kirstin Elaine Myers

Local Colors Artists’ Cooperative is running ‘Local Hearts for Charity’

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,
Once again Local Colors Artists’ Cooperative is running ‘Local Hearts for Charity’ from now through Feb. 16th. Attached please find the Press Release and a few photos. Don’t know if you could run all this for us – but if so we would greatly appreciate it.
Photos: Kate Webster making Valentine Cards and ‘Two Lips’ by Lois Hertzler.
Thanks. You’re a peach!
Tin Can Sally
P.S. Good Morning Gloucester is the best – nationwide!

image

For the third year, Local Colors Artists’ Cooperative members will be celebrating the Valentine season making original Valentine’s Day cards and offering them for sale at the gallery at 121 Main Street in Gloucester.  100% of the proceeds from the cards will go to a local non-profit charity in the Gloucester/Cape Ann area.  The members are donating their own materials, talent and time to offer these original and unique items for a deserving organization that is solely determined by those who purchase a card. 

Since there are so many worthy organizations in the area, members decided to invite the community to help in the process of voting for an organization when they purchase a card. Since it wasn’t practical to list the hundreds of  non-profit organizations on the ballot, the members listed 5 specific organizations (Action, Inc., The Gloucester Fisherman’s Wives Association, Pathway for Children, Cape Ann Animal Aid Association, Wellspring House, Inc) with a 6th option for the customer to “write-in” a non-profit charitable organization of their choice that benefits the Gloucester/Cape Ann area. The one organization that receives the most votes will receive all the proceeds from the sale of the cards.  The customer has the opportunity to cast a vote for each card purchased. Cards are available January 17th with new ones arriving throughout the event.

"The Valentine season has taken on an all new meaning to me," says Kathy Bucholska, a jewelry designer and mixed media artist.  "Since we have been doing this event, I see Valentine’s Day in a whole new light. What was once a frivolous card "holiday" to me has become an opportunity to help the community. It’s also a chance to give gratitude to not just that significant other as is traditional, but also a chance to show appreciation to a special friend, parent, mentor or even a new acquaintance who has shown kindness.  I kept this in mind in designing my cards."

Kate Webster, a fiber and mixed media artist, is shown creating her Valentine cards for the event.  She says, "What I like best about our event is that our customers get to choose the non-profit organization of their choice."

Bonnie Gray, a painter, took photographs for some of her cards.  One is a photo of two friends walking across the beach with the Twin Lights in the background. It reminded her of the importance of friendship. Lois Hertzler, a photographer, created a card called "The Dance" which are two tulips intertwined.  She says it symbolizes to her the meaningful interaction between friends during this season as well as the interaction between Local Colors and the Community. The original photograph is on display in the gallery.

Virginia Townsend, a potter, created a mixed media card showing red wool sheep which was inspired by her love of Ireland and her desire to celebrate this Cape Ann event.

The cards will reflect a variety of media from photographs, collages, mixed media and printed cards of original paintings and other work celebrating the Valentine season.

The Local Colors Artists’ Cooperative celebrates 23 years on Main Street and has 16 artists who do a variety of work.  The current members offer the following work:

Donna Amero: Stained Glass
Stephanie Bowens: Fiber Art
Kathy Bucholska: Jewelry, amulets and mixed media
Pat Doherty: Painting
Bonnie Gray: Painting
Lois Hertzler:  Photography
David Katz:  Photography
Rusty Kinnunen: Painting
Bob Kulchuk:  Wheel-thrown pottery, wood turning and fused glass
Joe Higgins: Fish prints
Ann Schlecht: Various jewelry including beach pebbles and beach glass
Sally Seamans:  Tin Art, Jewelry & Mobiles
Jim Sousa: Photography
Darren Taylor: Woodworking, Functional Art Furniture
Virginia Townsend: Pottery, Basket Weaving
Kate Webster:  Fiber, Paper & Mixed media Art & Jewelry

Local Colors Cooperative Gallery offers unique work at studio prices since the members contribute their time and efforts to the gallery without the additional cost of employee and management overhead.  You can also find us at http://www.local-colors.org and friend us on Facebook: Local Colors Artists’ Cooperative

Local Colors Artists’ Cooperative, 121 Main Street, Gloucester, MA is currently open daily 10 am to 5 pm.  978-283-3996  

The American Style Magazine Top Arts Destination In the Country Get Out The Vote

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

POSTCARD FRONT JAN 6 1230 PM

Last year we helped make Gloucester the number 3 Arts Destination In the Country in American Style Magazine.  This is something we already know obviously but really don’t we deserve to be number one?

With your help and vote it helps the entire community by supporting our local artisans and allowing them another feather in their marketing cap to come visit, check out our vibrant art community and leave some cheddar behind Smile

Like the picture they used in the postcard announcing the contest?  You may recognize it as one of mine. Claire Higgins at seARTS did a bang up job with the design.

Anyway lets support our local artists by voting!

Click on the button below to go vote, and thank you for supporting Gloucester and the arts!

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I just checked out the contest and it’s easy peasy lemon squeezy. Not to mention you could win five hundred dolla yo!

Let’s Do This!

Here’s the presser from seARTS who with Kristine Fisher and Jackie Ganim DeFalco have been responsible for putting this initiative into play from the beginning.

2012 American Style “Top Arts Destination” Campaign Kicks Off
In 2011 seARTS, working with the arts community, secured the nomination for Cape Ann/Gloucester as a Top 25 Arts Destination by American Style Magazine. Thanks to your votes, we won the #3 spot on the list for small U.S. cities. Voting time is here again, and this year, we want to aim for the #1 spot and increase our visibility as an arts destination.
Securing Gloucester/Cape Ann on this list again this year as one of America’s Top 25 Arts Destinations will elevate Cape Ann on the national stage. We have over 2,000 working artists on Cape Ann and a thriving community that celebrates the arts of all disciplines. After all, our Rocky Neck is the country’s oldest continuous working art colony in the U.S. while Rockport draws visitors all year long!

To achieve this distinction, seARTS is requesting the entire community’s help in spreading the word. This is a city-based ranking, but all of Cape Ann was included in the destination information submitted and the article in the magazine.

There are many ways to help before March 3. Here are some suggestions!
1. Go in right now and vote from your computer, your phone, and your laptop! http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/3YYDSTL
2. Put the link and/or icon at the bottom of all your emails in the signature line!
3. Use the promotional postcard jpeg in your literature and emails: http://bit.ly/ypN3y0
4. Link to the voting icon http://bit.ly/A3MD3D
5. Blog & Tweet the Survey Link
6. Share with your employees
Having this designation gives all of the cultural organizations and artists and businesses a chance to embed the Award in all their literature and promotion around Cape Ann as a branded arts destination. Please contact seARTS to find out more about how you can do this. info@searts.org 978-281-1222.

Icy Magic From Skip Montello

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

Nature is ever changing the landscape view and especially in winter. This quarry wall comes alive with icy magic and mineral color; it has never looked like this during the summer.

Skip

North Coast Angler www.northcoastangler.com

Skip Montello Photos www.skipmontellophotos.com

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Jim Garron European Homie Represents

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Joe, I forgot my GMG sticker so I could not represent, so I decided to do the next best thing and get a photo of a European Homie.  This was taken on the Charles Bridge in Prague, quality is not the best as I forgot to take a camera as well (taken with my iPhone)…
Jim Garron

photo

Kwan Yin

Posted on by Marty Luster

Known as The Goddess of Mercy, Gentle Protectoress, Bodhisattva of Compassion, even the 
savior of seamen and fishermen, she holds many titles. The spelling of her name varies, but it is 
not so much the arrangement of letters as it is the effect that her spoken name produces on those 
with a Buddhist background, similar to a reaction in the West when one is speaking of the Virgin
 Mary.

Did You Know? (Bay View Cemetery)

Posted on by God's Morning

That the Bay View Cemetery was established in 1728 and is the third oldest cemetery in Gloucester?  The Ancient Burial Ground, also known as First Parish Burial Ground and Old Bridge Street Burial Ground, was established in 1633 and is the oldest cemetery in Gloucester.  The Second Parish Burial Ground, also known as the Thompson Street Burial Ground, located in West Gloucester, is the second oldest burial place in the community, having been established in 1716.

I always feel a little sad when I pass this cemetery; it is so forlorn looking.  It has a nice fresh sign though.

E.J. Lefavour

Antennae for Design

Posted on by Kimsmithdesigns

Depression Era Quilts

For the first installment of Antennae for Design I wanted to share with you a very special gift that my mother- and father-in-law gave me this Christmas past. My husband’s family lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, a beautiful city sited along the Ohio River. The landscape so reminded early German settlers of the Rhine River and valley, that to this day there is an area of the city still referred to as ‘Over the Rhine.’ The above butterfly buttonhole appliqué quilt was made in Fostoria, Ohio. Ohio’s long quilt-making heritage is similar to that of many states throughout America.

Quilts and quilt-making techniques are a reflection of the life and times of the women who made the quilts. The technique of quilting (encasing an insulating fabric between two layers of an outer fabric and stitching firmly in place) has existed throughout history. Quilted garments have been discovered in ancient Egyptian tombs and quilted garments and bedding began to appear in Europe after the return of the Crusaders from the Middle East. The medieval quilted gambeson and aketon were garments worn under, or instead of, armor of maille or plate armor. The oldest American quilts in the Smithsonian date from approximately 1780.

Thinking about the fascinating history of quilts and quilt making in this country, one of my very favorite periods of quilt making was after WWI and through the early 1940’s. Quilts made during this period are commonly referred to as Depression Era quilts; although to look at their cheery colors and patterns, you would never know the women who created them were living in the midst of a depression. Magazines needed to be resourceful during this period of extreme economic hardship, and they were, by selling fashion and optimism. Another way to survive was by including quilt patterns and tips in their publications. Quilting was an activity that women could do to fulfill their creativity while still making something practical for their families. The quilts were typically made from sewing scraps, out-grown clothing, and feed sacks. Part of the war reparations with Germany after the First World War included their formulas for aniline dyes, which allowed for an explosion in color depth and hues, as well as stability in dyes; purple finally became reliable, as did black.  Charming and sweet prints along with lovely pastels served in stark contrast to the depressive economy. A particular shade of green, now referred to as “thirties green,” was so popular amongst quilters, that the strips that were used to bind the quilt edges came packaged in a can!

Depression Era Butterfly Quilt

Dating quilts is fascinating. If you have a question about a quilt or would like to share information about a family heirloom, please write.

The above quilt was my interpretation of a 1930’s butterfly quilt, which I made for our daughter when she was five. Following in the depression era method of using what was on hand, you can see the dress scraps from which the quilt was made in her blue gingham dress in the old photo below.

I found a basket full of Scotty dog squares at a yard sale last summer. Scotty dogs were a popular design motif during the first half of the 20th century and this particular Scotty pattern was created in 1940. When I have some spare moments, I’ll look for fabric to back the quilt. Purchasing quilt squares or an unfinished quilt top is a great way to acquire a depression era quilt because, if the squares or top have been properly stored, the fabrics will come back to life with cleaning and pressing, and will not have been used.

Did anyone see Henri Smith at the Tsongas Arena on Monday?

Posted on by Vickie & Peter

mlk2012

He was there for the sixth year straight singing Gospel at the Martin Luther King Day Celebration.  Watch the video and see his answer to the question Peter posed on Wednesday.

If you had any doubts about the winter music scene here in Gloucester and on Cape Ann, tonight’s lineup will put them to rest — for good!  Choose from a dozen artists in a dozen venues.  And our friend Erinn 2N Brown is back in town!

Schedule0112112

Buoy #2 up for bids!

Posted on by dawntheresa
Octopus and Turtle buoy by Janelle Downey
Underwater Scene by Janelle Downey

In case you missed it yesterday, we’re starting the bidding on some of our artist buoys here over the next week so you get a preview of some of the great stuff you can see if you come to Cruiseport next week!

All the buoys from this year’s lobster trap tree will be auctioned off next Friday, the 27th at Cruiseport Gloucester as a fundraiser for Art Haven, including the ones featured here. But you can put your bids in now to get your name in the hat. Again, the details:

-If you like a buoy you see, bidding starts at $20, and you can just bid in the comments section below the post, HOWEVER

-Your bid doesn’t become official until you send Art Haven an email (arthaveninfo@gmail.com) saying you’re serious and letting us know how to get in contact with you.

-Finally, if you’re the highest bidder on the blog, that makes your bid the starting bid at the auction. We’ll be in touch about your max bid if you can’t make it to the auction.

If you’ve got any questions, leave ’em in the comments section. Also, check out the artist buoys on Art Haven’s Facebook page and tell us if there are particular buoys you’d like to see go up here. And remember, your money is helping more kids on Cape Ann have access to crazy fun art activities 🙂  Happy bidding!

Kodak files for bankruptcy

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Still shooting Kodak film for my multiexposure work…

http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/eastman-kodak-files-for-bankruptcy/?hp

Photo © Kathy Chapman 2012

http://www.kathychapman.com

ChapmanBoston©2012

Pensive Ed

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Send in your self portrait pensive nose picker  pic for a chance to win one of Sharon Lowe’s Over-The-Bridge t Shirts or you can opt for a swift kick in the nuts.

Deadline Sunday night.

send pics to goodmorninggloucester@yahoo.com

Bill Hubbard Enters The Fray