Change is coming to the streetscape beneath the stunning oriels.
There’s work in progress underway at 11 Pleasant Street downtown Gloucester: 1623 Studios (Cape Ann TV) is building out in the former Cape Ann Art Haven Hive space. I interviewed the station director, Erich Archer, back in 2016 (here) and recall him expressing some street presence downtown as one goal among many. The space on the right of the entrance at 11 Pleasant Street (7 Pleasant Street ,formerly Ruby Wolf) is available to rent.
1623 Studios (Cape Ann TV) taking it to the streets
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DPW year round endeavors, Backyard Growers beds, and EGS PTO grounds help East Gloucester elementary be back to school ready. Neighbors, too! In August, three generations tackled the turnabout center island.
Before / After
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Last Chance! These must see 2019 shows are closing soon: Don’t miss ICA Watershed Purple (installation view above) closing September 2; DeCordova New England Biennial and the Provincetown Art Association & Museum’s 1945 Chaim Gross exhibition close September 15; and catch Renoir at the Clark before it’s gone September 22nd.
A few of the listed upcoming exhibitions to note: the NEW building and exhibits at PEM are opening September 2019; Homer at the Beach is on display at Cape Ann Museum thru December 1 (and catch a Richard Ormond lecture on John Singer Sargent’s Charcoals Sept.28 at Cape Ann Museum (ahead of the Morgan exhibition opening October); three new shows opening at MFA; Gordon Parks at Addison; and Alma Thomas at Smith. A Seuss-focused experience was pronounced destined for Boston, ahead of its TBD venue, by the LA entertainment company co-founders. Some shows I’ve already visited and may write about, mostly from a dealer’s perspective as that is my background. Exhibition trends continue to evolve and reveal new directions. A few patterns I see in the exhibition titles: what’s annointed for display and how it’s contextualized (corrective labels); immersive exhibits; revisiting colonial methodologies and themes; major solo surveys; women artists (and this upcoming season boost underscoring womens’ suffrage and 100th anniversary of the ratification of women’s right to vote); illustration; environment; and issues of humanity and migration. The list is illustrated with images of the sites. All photographs mine unless otherwise noted. Right click or hover to see info; click to enlarge. – Catherine Ryan
The guide – Massachusetts Museum Guide, Fall 2019
Note from author: The list below is alphabetized by town, and details upcoming exhibitions at each venue as well as some that are closing soon. Click the word “website” (color gray on most monitors) for hyperlinks that redirect to venues. For a list alphabetically sorted by venue, see my Google Map (with a Candy Trail overlay) “Art Museums in Massachusetts” hereand embedded at the end of this post. I pulled the map together several years ago. No apps to download or website jumping. Easy scroll down so you don’t miss an exhibit that’s closer than you think to one that you may already be exploring.A few are open seasonally (summer) or weekends only–call first to check before visiting. Major new architectural building projects are underway at BU (closed) and MIT. The 54th Regiment Memorial on Boston Common will undergo restoration. Get ready for close observation of conservation in process. – Catherine
AMESBURY
1. John Greenleaf Whittier historic Home and Museumwebsite
18. Boston Harbor Islands National and State Parkwebsite
(photos show info gateway on the Greenway near the ferry access to Boston Harbor Islands)
Summer 2019 public art: Boston Harbor [Re]creation The Project: Artists Marsha Parrilla; Robin MacDonald-Foley; Brian Sonia-Wallace more(Jury: Luis Cotto MCC; Lucas Cowan, The Greenway; Celena illuzzi, National Parks; Caroly Lewenberg; Denise Sarno-Bucca DCR; Courtney Shape, City of Boston; Rebecca Smerling Boston Harbor Now; Kera Washingon; Cynthia Woo, Pao Arts Center)
Unveiled 2019 – Super A (Stefan Thelen) Resonance, 2019, latex and spray paint
Note to Greenway (see photo notes below): food trucks by the stop should be relocated to other food truck areas (and maybe one tree) to optimize and welcome sight line to the Greenway and public spaces from streets, sidewalk, and South Station. There are pauses elsewhere along the lattice park links, and a generous approach past the wine bar. The temporary commissioned mural could extend verso (or invite a second artist) so that the approach from Zakim Bridge/RT1/93North is as exciting as the approach from Cape Cod.
Skip the app AI download– swamped my phone battery despite free WiFi on the Greenway.
See complete list of 2019 public art currently on view at The Greenway here
The Greenway packs a lot of punch in a compressed area; its lattice of dynamic public spaces and quiet passages are an easy stroll into the North End or along the HarborWalk to the ICA, roughly similar in size and feel as walking Battery Park and Hudson River Park in New York City.
Through September 15, 2019 BIG PLANS: Picturing Social Reformmore
Through October 20, 2019 Contemporary Art Joan Jonas: i know why they left more
Through January 14, 2020 Anne H. Fitzpatrick Facade Laura Owens: Untitled
October 17, 2019 – January 20, 2020 In the Company of Artists featuring Sophie Calle, Bharti Kher, Luisa Lambri, Laura Owens, Rachel Perry, Dayanita Singh, and Su-Mei Tse
Through September 28, 2019 Annual Regional Juried Exhibition 2019 Winners announced September 21, 2019. The 2018 gold winner, Leon Doucette of Gloucester, exhibiting again, and Melissa Cooper. more
Through September 2, 2019 at The Water Shed, ICA Boston John Akomfrah: Purplemore
What’s coming in 2020 to The Water Shed? Still TBA
Through September 22, 2019 ICA Less Is a Bore: Maximilist Art & Designmore
Nice installation with a few surprises and thoughtful connection to other exhibtions on view. (The LeWit and Johns selections triggered what about that work or artist? I wish May Stevens and Harmony Hammond were included and my list grew from there. That’s part of the fun of the exhibit.)
September 24 – February 7, 2021 ICA Yayoi Kusama: Love is Callingmore
September 24 – February 7, 2021 ICA Beyond Infinity: Contemporary Art after Kusamamore
October 23, 2019 – January 26, 2020 ICA When Home Won’t Let You Stay: Migration through Contemporary Artmore
Through December 31, 2019 ICA 2019 James and Audrey Foster Prize Boston area artists: Rashin Fahandej; Josephine Halvorson; Lavaughan Jenkins; Helga Roht Poznanskimore
41. Museum of American Bird Art at Mass Audubon website
Through September 15, 2019 Under Pressure– Birds in the Printed Landscape: Linocuts by Sherrie Yorkmore
Through September 29, 2019 The Shorebird Decoys of Gardner & Dextermore
CAMBRIDGE
Harvard –
42. Harvard Art Museums (Fogg; Busch-Reisinger; and Arthur M. Sackler) website
Why do any of the Harvard museums charge an entrance fee?
Through January 5, 2020 Winslow Homer: Eyewitness (in conjunction with Cape Ann Museum Homer exhibition) University Research Gallery
Through January 5, 2020 Early Christian Africa: Arts of Transformation
Through January 5, 2020 Critical Printing
Through January 5, 2020 Crossing Lines, Constructing Home: Displacement and Belonging in Contemporary Art
Through November 14, 2021 On Site Clay — Modeling African Design
43. Harvard – Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts website
Through September 29, 2019 Anna Oppermann: Drawings
The Carpenter Center was closed for an event on the day I scheduled to see the Oppermann exhibition – good reminder to call first for the must see shows on your list.
Jonathan Berger: An Introduction to Nameless Love
Harvard Film Archive weekly film series
44. Harvard – ‘The Cooper Gallery’ / The Ethelbert Cooper Gallery of African and African American Art website
September 16 – December 13, 2019 The Sound of My Soul: Frank Stewart’s Life in Jazz photography, curated by Ruth Fine
the Gordon Park exhibition that recently closed was on my list of top shows for 2019
Through October 20, 2019 Wrestling With Angels Icons from the Prosopon School of Iconology and Iconographymore
November 15, 2019 – March 8, 2020 Emil Hoppe: Photographs from the Ballet Russesmore
CONCORD
64. Louisa May Alcott Orchard House 399 Lexington Road, Concord, Massachusetts 01742, United States (978) 369-4118 guided tours year round plus special events
Through October 20, 2019 Ship of State…Paintings by Robert Henry
Through December 21, 2019 Interpreting Their World: Varujan Boghosian, Carmen Cicero, Elspeth Halvorsen and Pual Resika
DUXBURY
71. The Art Complex Museum (Weyerhaeuser collection) website
August 18 – November 10, 2019 Steve Novick: Approximation
September 15 -January 12, 2020 Draw the Line
September 15 – January 12, 2020 Rotations: Highlights From the Permanent Collection Nocturne including Lowell Birge Harrison (American, 1854–1929), Suzanne Hodes (American, b. 1939), Kawase Hasui (Japanese, 1883–1957), George Inness (American, 1825–1894), Johan Barthold Jongkind (Dutch, 1819–1891) Martin Lewis (American, 1881–1962), and Henri Eugene Le Sidaner (French, 1862-1939)
November 17 – February 16, 2020 George Herman Found Paintings
EAST SANDWICH
72. Thornton W. Burgess Society Green Briar Nature Center & Jam Kitchen website *may join Cape Cod Museum of Natural History in Brewster to combine and become the Cape Cod Museums of Natural History
Through September 1, 2019 84th Regional Exhibition of Art and Craft
Through September 1, 2019 Broad Strokes: American Painting of the Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries from the FAM collection
September 7, 2019 – January 5, 2020 Sage Sohier/David Hilliard: Our Parents, Ourselvesmore
September 21, 2019 – November 10, 2019 Adria Arch: Reframing Eleanormore
September 21, 2019 Daniela Rivera: Labored Landscapes (Where Hand Meets Ground)more
September 21, 2019 – January 12, 2020 David Katz: Earth Waresmore
Ongoing Evoking Eleanor; Discover Ancient Egypt; Thurston sculpture by Douglas Kornfeld
FRAMINGHAM
76. Danforth Museum of Art, Framingham State Univ. website
September 7 – October 13, 2019 Populux Steven Duede | Sean Sullivan on display in the works on paper gallery
September 7 – December 30, 2019 Dressed! Exhibiting artists include Catherine Bertulli, Jodi Colella, Merill Comeau, Mia Cross, Nancy Grace Horton, and Marky Kauffmann
September 7 – May 2020 Highlights from the Permanent Collection
Leveraging complete streets and Chapter 90 funding, Gloucester’s DPW is completing a big project on Cherry Street at O’Maley. Sidewalk and street improvements follow along Cherry towards Reynard, stretching straight through to Washington Street. The work will be completed in a week or so.
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John from DPW described some Gloucester High School curb appeal betterments we happened upon today and kindly shared this photo for Good Morning Gloucester.
John, Nick, Fred (electrician), Tommy, Brian, and Billy from Gloucester DPW have been finishing some corrective cement walkway work and assorted grounds keeping at Gloucester High School. Over in the parking lot, the trees are looking sporty-spruced, and they’re easy to walk under now they’ve been lifted. Overgrown brush has been cleared and hauled off with more to come. Loam is being delivered for the ground around the new entrance sign (class gift) readying for the wonderful gardeners touch still to come.
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Sawyer Free Library Children’s Services shares the flyer for this fun family program with special guest, Mary Rhinelander. A surprise friend may make an appearance 🙂🐾🐶
Mark your calendars for this Wonderful storytime September 11 2019 10AM
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The installation for the Friends 2019 Annual Art Auction will be happening this week. Art fans can preview and leave silent bids throughout September. Save the date for the evening auction, October 3, 2019. from 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM. Contact Gailsarofeen@gmail.com with questions.
The installation for the Friends 2019 Annual Art Auction will be happening this week. Art fans can preview and leave silent bids throughout September. Save the date for the evening auction, October 3, 2019. from 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM. Contact Gailsarofeen@gmail.com with questions.
What a day to launch! Audience by land and sea. Thanks so much to GMG reader, Michele, for sharing her view of 92.5FM Riverfest 2019 Seaside Music Festival at Stage Fort park in Gloucester, Mass. Free concert from 92.5 The River
Congratulations to Jill Cahill and team, and all those involved!
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Sarah Valencik, a volunteer with the Massachusetts Oyster Project, talks to WBZ’s Chris McKinnon about the oyster’s role in the ecosystem. (WBZ-TV)
“GLOUCESTER (CBS) – It Happens Here in Gloucester – part of Cape Ann, an urban town center surrounded by beaches, boats and beautiful marshland. One of the town’s more famous residents was Clarence Birdseye. He is the man who put frozen foods on the dinner table…” Read transcript and see video here (if it’s not loading below)
Link to video
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Stop & Shop 6 Thatcher Road, Gloucester, MA 01930 is adding a parcel pick up area just inside the threshold. Upon entering the store, pick up customers will turn left. Stop & Shop staff said they’re targeting September 9th for the soft launch of this new option to buy on line and then pick up and the week following as the official opening.
Coming full circle? This addition brought forth some Massachusetts memories. Does anybody else remember the grocery chain with the curbside conveyor belt? Staff packed the groceries into bags and boxes, and customers brought their car around (station wagon for us)
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On August 15, 2019, Sawyer Free Library hosted a beautiful celebration for Once Upon a Contest. A second reception for the artists and writers will be held on September 19th with an opening talk by Claire Wyzenbeek, the invited artist for this leg of the show. Also, look for upcoming special morning programs featuring Kim Smith, Mary Rhinelander and Claire Wyzenbeek.
Special thanks for photos: credit mostly Linda Bosselman and Justine Vitale, SFL
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Winslow Homer: Picturing the Tropics Illustrated talk and extended hours at the Cape Ann Museum
GLOUCESTER, Mass. (August 15, 2019) – The Cape Ann Museum is pleased to present a special evening of programming on Thursday, August 29, 2019 from 5:00 – 9:00 p.m. This is the first in a series of four nights, throughout summer and fall, when the Museum will be open extended hours. In addition to galleries staying open for viewing, there will be illustrated talks, musical performances, artmaking opportunities, cash bar and more! Extended hours are free for CAM members or with Museum admission. There will be additional costs for special lectures or musical performances.
On Thursday, August 29 join Bowdoin College professor Dana Byrd for Winslow Homer: Picturing the Tropics at 7:00 p.m. The artist Winslow Homer (1836-1910) is beloved for his moody representations of crashing surf against the rocky Maine coastline. The artist, however, was no recluse. He enjoyed traveling for pleasure and new painting subjects. During the last decades of his life, with box camera and painting kit in hand, he visited a number of tourist locales, among them, the Bahamas, Cuba and Florida. This talk will explore Homer’s varied depictions of the tropics, to revisit this important, yet little addressed aspect of his oeuvre. This lecture is $10 for CAM members; $20 nonmembers (includes Museum admission). Reservations are required and can be made at camuseum.eventbrite.com or by calling 978-283-0455 x10.
Highlights of the evening also include watercolor painting; a cash bar featuring Cuba Libres & rum punch; and a chance to see Homer at the Beach: A Marine Painter’s Journey, 1869 – 1880.
Dana E. Byrd is a scholar of American art and material culture at Bowdoin College. She received her PhD from Yale University in 2012. Her research engages with questions of place and the role of objects in everyday life. Her book manuscript, “Reconstructions: The Material Culture of the Plantation, 1861-1877,” examines the experience of the plantation during the Civil War through the end of Reconstruction.
This program is offered in conjunction with the special exhibition, Homer at the Beach: A Marine Painter’s Journey, 1869-1880, which is the first close examination of the formation of Winslow Homer as a marine painter. The exhibition will be on view until December 1, 2019. The Cape Ann Museum will be its sole venue.
Tondo photo image credit: Winslow Homer. St. Johns’ River, Florida ca. 1895 pinhole (from an Eastman Kodak #1 camera) photograph Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Brunswick, Maine. Photo portrait courtesy of Dana Byrd. Homer watercolors various collections: Art Inst. Chicago, Harvard FOGG (completed with sections from Yale), National Gallery, Cummer
A sunset adventure aboard the Schooner “Thomas E. Lannon”
GLOUCESTER, Mass. (August 15, 2019) – The Cape Ann Museum is pleased to present an evening sunset harbor cruise on Sunday, August 25 at 6:00 p.m. In celebration of the special exhibition Homer at the Beach: A Marine Painter’s Journey, 1869 – 1880, the Museum has partnered with the Schooner “Thomas E. Lannon” to illuminate Winslow Homer’s time in Gloucester. This program which includes a two-hour sail, light refreshments (wine, beer & snacks), a chance to watercolor paint and tales of Homer’s time in Gloucester is $60 for CAM members; $75 nonmembers. Advanced registration required. For more information visit capeannmuseum.org or call 978-283-0455 x10.
The exhibition, Homer at the Beach: A Marine Painter’s Journey, 1869-1880, is the first close examination of the formation of Winslow Homer as a marine painter. The exhibition will be on view until December 1, 2019. The Cape Ann Museum will be it sole venue.
In 1869, Winslow Homer (1836–1910) exhibited his first picture of the sea. He was an ambitious New York illustrator—not yet recognized as an artist—and freshly back from France. Over the next 11 years, Homer’s journey would take him to a variety of marine destinations, from New Jersey to Maine, but especially—and repeatedly—to Gloucester and other parts of Cape Ann. It was on Cape Ann that Homer made his first watercolors and where he discovered his calling: to be a marine artist. And it was in Gloucester in 1880, at the end of these 11 years, where he enjoyed the most productive season of his life, composing more than 100 watercolors of astonishing beauty. Homer’s journey forever changed his life and the art of his country.
The Schooner “Thomas E. Lannon” was built in 1997 in Essex, MA. Berthed at historic Seven Seas Wharf at the Gloucester House Restaurant, Rogers Street, Gloucester, the Lannon offers two-hour sails and private charters from mid-May through mid-October. The “Thomas E. Lannon” is named for owner Tom Ellis’ maternal grandfather, who fished out of Gloucester from 1901-1943. On August 25 join the Cape Ann Museum and the Ellis family for a sail and imagine what it was like to sail on a fishing schooner out of Gloucester a hundred years ago.
Image credits: Winslow Homer (1836-1910), Sunset Fires, 1880. Watercolor on paper, 93/4 x 13 5/8. The Westmoreland Museum of American Art, Greensburg, Pennsylvania. Gift of the William A. Coulter Fund, 1964.36.
Steve Rosenthal The Schooner “Thomas E. Lannon” in the Harbor #1 2019. Archival pigment print. Cape Ann Museum. Gift of the photographer, 2019.
PRESS RELEASE for Paul Niely at Jane Deering Gallery, Gloucester, MA
Gloucester Blue | the art of Cape Ann inventor, Paul Neily continues thru August 31st at Jane Deering Gallery, 19 Pleasant Street, Gloucester. On view are small painted drawings bathed in the light of blue, evoking memory and flashback, impression and recall. Paul Neily’s charmed drawings document his memory of the streets and lanes, houses and rooftops of Gloucester, a city that is changing. Neily’s reminiscence echos his reflection of a city real and beloved. Also on view will be a selection of unique furniture pieces designed by Neily. Gallery hours: Friday/Saturday/Sunday from 1-5pm and by appointment. Please contact Paul Neily at 978-491-1416 or paunei2004@yahoo.com.
Don’t stop looking! Jeanne Blake photo August 14, 2019, shows whale off of Long Beach, back and forth between Rockport and Gloucester, and Thacher and Milk islands.
Good Morning Gloucester 