The Nurse Project, Portrait Paintings and Writings by Nurses is on Exhibit at the Sargent House Museum throughout July and August

A new exhibition featuring the work of Vanessa Michalak opens July 22^nd at The Sargent House Museum in Gloucester MA. The exhibitions, organized into two parts, features groups of five different portrait paintings and written anecdotes by each subject. Part 2 opens August 12^th and closes Sept 2^nd.

The exhibition entitled “The Nurse Project” is a collaboration between artist and nurses. Painter Vanessa Michalak asked nurses to send her their selfies and written anecdotes describing their experiences during the pandemic. The idea was to give nurses an opportunity to express themselves visually through the act of taking their own photo and through their choice of writing style. The participants described their experiences through poetry, anecdotes and personal essays.

Michalak, who graduated with an MFA in painting from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing wanted to make paintings that honored the nursing profession.  Michalak, who still works as a per diem while building her career as an artist has been a nurse since 2004.   Each portrait is large scale, many measuring 36”x30” and acts as a way to honor each nurse and their experiences. The writings accompanying each portrait are given their own recognition.  Printed posters of nearly equal size, share the written experiences of each nurse in their own words.

Nurses, Michalak writes, are no strangers to feeling unheard. About the body of work, she states: “I wanted to give nurses the opportunity to share their thoughts, feelings and experiences with the hopes of honoring and calling attention to the critical role in healthcare that they play. The exhibition strives to honor not just the role of the nurse, but the voice of the nurse. I hope that by sharing this body of work with not only healthcare workers, but the general public that we as citizens, will work together to make decisions that reflect our care about the wellbeing of others, prioritize safety and value the contributions of our nurses. 

Michalak, who was this year’s Gloucester Artist Invitational Resident at the Geotemann Artist Residency is known for her landscape paintings depicting Cape Ann and the Dogtown Art Show, an outdoor art installation featuring numerous plein air paintings displayed on site. She was a recipient of the Massachusetts Cultural Fellowship Award in Painting in 2014 and was included in New American Paintings, issue 110. 

The Nurse Project is a moving, contemplative exhibition, each painting and written experience serving to honor the profession of nursing while at the same time reminding us that this pandemic is still not over and we must continue to work together.

Voting is almost over! If you haven’t already, now is the time to vote for your favorite companies on the North Shore of Boston for all things hearth and home before the ballot closes on August 1st.

Visit our full list of FAQs for voting timelines, nominee qualifications, and processes. 

“Kirk Hoffman asks

“Joey, Do you know anything about this boat?  I’m trying to find out its Coast Guard number when it was in service.  CG 36XXX? Thanks! Kirk”

Would you say it looks similar to this-

IDENTIFYING A USCG MOTOR LIFE BOAT IN GLOUCESTER

There’s also this- 

1934 USCG Motor Lifeboat

Is there any way to get them featured on your page?

Good evening from Humboldt County California!I recently returned from the most amazing vacation in Gloucester!!!!! Loved EVERY minute of my visit with my old Army Buddy Dr. Don Tgettis. One evening as we were walking the streets I met Manny who took our picture😍 what a super nice guy!!! I would love to get a copy of that picture from Manny. Don and I were buddies back in the 70’s and just got together for the first time since 1976. The picture Many took would mean the world to me if I could get a copy.

Joey:
On the 20th anniversary of its 2001 dedication, the Gloucester Fishermen’s Wives Memorial will be illuminated with a vibrant light art and sound installation that honors the generations of women who have supported the Gloucester fishing industry. Created by local non-profit LuminArtz — whose light art productions transformed Greater Boston with shows like “Illuminus” and “Hatched” — the event reunites video and light artist Pamela Hersch of Hersch Visuals with sound artist and composer Maria Finkelmeier of MF Dynamics to transform the memorial in a dazzling display. 

“Centuries In The Making: Gloucester’s Wives and Fishermen Shine On” pops up at 7:30pm on August 5, 2021 at the memorial statue (107 Western Avenue near Essex Avenue) with a ceremony that includes Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, Gloucester Fishermen’s Wives Association (GFWA) and Fishing Partnership representative Angela Sanfilippo, Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken, and LuminArtz Executive Director Lyn Burke. Following the live celebration, the statue and surrounding area will be illuminated with a light art display and an immersive soundscape that features the stories and recollections of contemporary fishermen’s wives, all from 8:30p through 10p. 
Starting that same night and running from 8:30p – 10p each night through August 12, the exterior of the Cape Ann Museum’s Downtown campus will be the canvas for another projected light and sound art installation that animates pieces of the GFWA’s narrative quilt, housed within the Museum, and created in 1998 by nationally-known quiltmaker Clara Wainwright. The projection will be visible nightly from the Museum’s Pleasant Street side (note that the Museum itself will be closed at that hour). 

Reminder: Fall Cheer tryouts are this week. Athletes must be registered on http://familyid.com prior to trying out. Email astuart@gloucesterschools.com w/any questions.

I love it!

“The Outsidah”

You Bug Me
Doug Brendel

The Thursday evening Castle Hill Concerts at the Crane Estate in Ipswich are a very big deal, attended by thousands every summer, and I was hugely honored that The Trustees, who operate the Estate, invited me to emcee this year.
But I’m not really an outdoorsy person. I’m known as the “Outsidah” but that’s about being a newcomer to New England, not about hiking Bradley Palmer or kayaking on Hood Pond or even sitting around a campfire. I grew up in the Chicago area, where people stay in buildings. As far as I can tell, humans are meant to exist indoors, where they can keep an eye on their cats.
Emceeing the Castle Hill Concerts puts me at risk of encountering insects in their natural habitat, where they have the advantage. Mosquitos owned the Crane Estate first, and as far as they’re concerned, they still do. The idea of fabulous concerts on the Grand Allée is offensive to them. But they are an enterprising species. They make the best of a bad situation by feasting on the blood of the concertgoers. When life gives you humans, make humanade.
For many, mosquito bites are simply an annoyance, but in my case, they’re something closer to a crisis. My skin has a wretched allergic reaction to mosquito spit. Other folks get a little pink bump and a few minutes of itching. I get a major red welt, big enough to be seen from New Hampshire, then a week or two of burning itching, during which time my skin — eh, never mind. It’s too gross.
Bottom line, mosquitoes for me are agents of torturous evil. So in preparation for emceeing the first concert of the summer, I sprayed myself with DEET. Many insect repellants proudly advertise that they’re DEET-free. I, on the other hand, search for maximum DEET content. You’re not supposed to be able to buy anything that’s more than 30% DEET, but if I could get it pure and unadulterated, I’d buy it by the gallon.
Even DEET, however, doesn’t deter greenheads. The greenhead is the official Town Insect of Ipswich. Or if it isn’t, it should be. This vicious variety of horsefly is going after the same blood as a mosquito, but forget that tiny needle-nose strategy. The greenhead chomps its way in. I believe a greenhead thrills to the sound of human screaming.
My first night as emcee occurred at the height of greenhead season, between the two full moons of midsummer. So I headed over to Conley’s, the iconic Ipswich drugstore, and stocked up on the only truly effective greenhead repellant, an Avon product called Skin So Soft. The name tells you it wasn’t originally invented as armor, but someone somehow discovered that this smooth, soft oil makes greenheads gag. Conley’s offers you a free spray nozzle so you can turn your bottle of Skin So Soft into a gun. I would have preferred a showerhead, but I took the nozzle and doused myself. By the time the concert began, I was encased in a two-layered oil slick of DEET and Skin So Soft — still nervous about invading the insects’ environs, but determined to do my emcee duty.
Of course, if you miss even one little spot, the bugs will find it. I had stopped short of spraying myself directly in the face with these poisons, and before the concert was halfway over, I had a massive glowing red bug bite in the middle of my forehead. At one point I went up to the roof of the Great House, and a passing jetliner changed course.
At home afterward, I was eager to de-slime myself. But in the shower I discovered, to my dismay, that the combination of DEET and Skin So Soft forms a compound impervious to soap and water. I recommend a paint scraper or, if that doesn’t work, a blowtorch.
See you Thursday night at Castle Hill. I’ll be the guy whose sunglasses keep sliding off because his face is so slippery.

Doug Brendel lives on outer Linebrook Road, about as far from greenhead territory as you can get and still be in Ipswich. Follow him at DougBrendel.com.

This:

Here’s the gear I use to produce the show with links to read about what each one does and their reviews

1. Blackmagic Design ATEM Mini HDMI Live Stream Switcher with HDA-106 HDMI Cable 6’& Fastener Straps (10-Pack) Bundle Allows for multiple camera and mic inputs exporting a single signal for the livestream
2. Movo VXR10-PRO External Video Microphone for Camera with Rycote Lyre Shock Mount – Compact Shotgun Mic and Accessories Compatible with Smartphones and DSLR Cameras – Battery-Free DSLR Microphone Two mics that input directly into the ATEM Mini and are perfect for interviews because they cancel out background noise and pick up what’s right in front of them.
3. Neewer Portable Desktop Mini Tripod – Aluminum Alloy 20 inches/ 50 centimeters with 360 Degree Ball Head, 1/4 inch Quick Shoe Plate for DSLR Camera Video Camcorder, Load up to 11 pounds/5 kilograms These tripods are built like lightweight sturdy tanks, easy to pack in the camera bag, easy to set up and the ball head and rotating action is like butter. great photography investments.
4. Sony Alpha a6400 Mirrorless Camera: Compact APS-C Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera with Real-Time Eye Auto Focus, 4K Video These Sony cameras with HDMI out are small powerhouses. The kit lens that comes with it is adequate but to take it to the the next level see 5
5. Sigma 16mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary Lens for Sony E This 16 mm wide angle 1.4 aperture lens makes the video look so damn sexy. It is the best money you can spend for the output, dare I say I’d rather have this lens on a 5 year old Sony e-mount camera than the latest Sony e mount camera with the kit lens.
6. Neewer 2 Packs Dimmable Bi-Color 480 LED Video Light and Stand Lighting Kit Includes: 3200-5600K CRI 96+ LED Panel with U Bracket, 75 inches Light Stand for YouTube Studio Photography, Video Shooting Light, light, light! The better your lighting the easier it is for your camera to lock on focus and give crisp images. These Neewer lights run off battery or plug in power. They are lightweight and do the job.
7. EVO Gimbals GS-Flex Mini Flexible Leg Tripod for DSLR or Mirrorless Cameras up to 3Kg – Includes Rugged CNC Aluminum 360 Ball Head with EVO Gimbal I couldn’t find the link to the mini flexible tripod heads I use as mic stands but the one listed here would be a great one to stabilize the camera mics.

Producing this:

Check out her and Doug’s page on Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/Meat-and-Sweet-Foods-111974374000361