Author: James Eves

The Rockport Art Association & Museum (RAA&M) in Rockport, MA is currently accepting consignment submissions of works by Historic American Artists, Highlighting the Cape Ann School, for its Annual Art Auction. The consignment deadline is Saturday, March 7th and the Auction will be held on Saturday, May 2nd, 2020 in the RAA&M’s Hibbard Gallery.

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Each year, this prestigious fundraising event attracts serious collectors from across the country, as well as those just starting an art collection. The auction features works by master Cape Ann artists of the past such as: Aldro T. Hibbard, Anthony Thieme, Emile Gruppé, Harry A. Vincent, W. Lester Stevens, Max Kuehne, Marguerite Pearson, Antonio Cirino, Carl Peters, Frederick Mulhaupt, Jane Peterson, Emma Fordyce MacRae and many more. The RAA&M auction specializes in Cape Ann art, but is not limited to this region and also includes works by numerous other prominent historic American artists.

The auction, now in its 35th year, began with a bequest by founding member Antonio Cirino (1888-1983). Cirino left his artwork to the Association with the stipulation that the art be auctioned to help support the organization. The auction quickly evolved to include other historic Cape Ann artists, and has been the RAA&M’s major annual fundraising event ever since.

For more information about the Rockport Art Association & Museum and its Annual Art Auction, please visit www.rockportartassn.org/auction.

To make an appointment or to inquire about consigning, please contact Margaret Redington at
978-546-6604 or auction@rockportartassn.org.

Rockport Art Association & Museum’s mission is to foster the creation and appreciation of the fine arts through a rich and diverse program of exhibitions and educational offerings. RAA&M provides opportunities for a wide range of people to engage with art, maintains an impressive permanent collection and carries forth the legacy of its founders by inspiring and cultivating artistic excellence and creative community on Cape Ann and beyond.

ROCKY NECK NOW, 2020: Finding Structure

The Annual Spring Members’ Show

Exhibition Dates: February 13 –March 29, 2020

Cultural Center at Rocky Neck

6 Wonson Street, Gloucester, MA

Galleries open: Thursday-Sunday, 12:00-4:00 PM

Opening Reception:  Saturday, February 15, 2:00-4:00 PM

Artists’ Talk: Sunday, March 8, 3:00 PM

Closing Celebration: Sunday, March 29, 2020, Viewer’s Choice Awards at 3:00 PM

Free

Michele Champion, Coffee, Tea, oil painting

Cindy Journey, Solivtur Ambulando – It is solved by walking, Sculpture of silk wrapped paper with metal paints

Judy Robinson-Cox, Abandoned, Photograph

Matt Cegelis, Untitled 3696B, digital photograph

ROCKY NECK NOW 2020: Finding Structure, the highly anticipated annual members show is the opening exhibition of 2020 at the Rocky Neck Art Colony (RNAC). This year’s theme, finding structure provided the opportunity to display work inspired by or including the use of structure, as a literal or abstract device in any medium. Homes, factories and stairs, lobster pots, ropes and ladders are just a few of the many elements that have inspired generations of artists in the creation of masterful works of art on Cape Ann. The Cape Ann Museum has displayed works by Edward Hopper, Stuart Davis and Jeffrey Marshall that makes use of these devices and other Gloucester inspired iconography. RNAC members now display their exciting new work inspired by many of these same elements.

The exhibition runs for seven weeks beginning Thursday, February 13 and continues through Sunday, March 29, 2020 at the Cultural Center on Rocky Neck, 6 Wonson Street in East Gloucester.  The exhibition features recent work by more than 30 of the Rocky Neck Art Colony’s artists. This show, open each Thursday through Sunday, noon-4:00 PM. in both galleries at the Cultural Center includes a wide range of artistic interpretations with representational, abstract and expressive styles in all media.

The public is invited to celebrate the creativity of RNAC artists at the Opening Reception on Saturday, February 15 from 2:00 to 4:00 PM. View the art, meet the artists and enjoy light refreshments, drink and always lively conversation. Visitors to the galleries are encouraged to participate in the popular Viewers’ Choice Award by voting for their favorite work of art. Three artists receiving the most votes will be recognized at the closing celebration on Sunday, March 29 at 3:00 PM.  These awards provide the artists and the organization with important feedback from the community.  

The Artists

Some of the more than 30 well-known, RNAC participating artists include John Abisamra, John Bassett, Joan Benotti, Matthew Cegelis, Michele Champion, Yhanna Coffin, Pamela Courtleigh, Cheryl Curran, Jillian Demeri, Loren Doucette, Nancy Dudley, Liz Sibley Fletcher, Dina Gomery, Maureen Holub, Cindy Journey, Jane Keddy, Randolph Kelts, Bobbi Iervolino Kovner, Ira Levine, Brenda Malloy, Carmela Martin, Jay McLauchlan, Ronald Pruett, Jenny Rangan, Judy Robinson-Cox, Kate Somers, Karen Watson, and Suellen Wedmore among others. The majority of members in the exhibit are from Gloucester and Rockport with others from Beverly, Brookline, Essex, Ipswich, Manchester MA, Mason, NH, Swampscott and Worcester, MA.

Artists’ Talk

On Sunday, March 8, 2020, at 3:00 PM, the public is invited to a panel discussion featuring selected ROCKY NECK NOW artists. Audience participation is encouraged and the discussion will cover a wide range of topics, many based on questions asked by audience members.

With an exciting roster of planned exhibitions and events in 2020, the public is invited to receptions and events throughout the year with refreshments, admission and nearby parking free of charge. More information for all Cultural Center events is available by visiting the website at www.rockyneckartcolony.org, by email at director@rockyneckartcolony.org or telephone 978 515-7004.

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The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck, 6 Wonson Street, Gloucester, MA 01930, the official Welcome Center for Rocky Neck and home of the Art Colony, hosts exhibitions, workshops, meetings, lectures and cultural events of all kinds. The Center accommodates up to 100 people. For information about renting the facility for a meeting, theatrical or musical performance, a small wedding or anniversary, both private or for the community, please contact: director@rockyneckartcolony.org

The Cape Ann Artisans open studio, self-guided tour of 16 studios
Gloucester and Rockport, MA.
June 6-7 and October 10-12.   All Days: 10-5
Special Events: Check website for updates or join email list at:
www.capeannartisans.com

The Cape Ann Artisans have set the schedule for the 2020 Annual Tour weekends.  The Spring Tour will be held Saturday and Sunday, June 6-7.   The Fall Tour will encompass the entire three day Columbus Day Weekend, Oct 10-12.  The studios are open to the public is 10AM-5PM.   There will be 16 diverse studios and 17 artists sharing works from across the media spectrum.  2020 Artisans are listed below.  The Artisans are welcoming three new members indicated by the (*) symbol next to their name. The tour takes place in Gloucester and Rockport and all studio locations and details are found on the printed brochures available in April and online throughout the year at www.capeannartisans.com .

The Artisans thank the community for its continued support of the Tour and in particular the Partner Program that includes a sponsored presence in the brochure and online.  Annually, the Artisans print and distribute over 14,000 brochures which are distributed throughout the Northeast.   The Artisans connect with thousands of visitors and act as ambassadors to all things local – especially lodging, restaurants, and services.  Now is the time to engage as a 2020 Partner.  Interested businesses should contact Sinikka Nogelo snogelo@yahoo.com  by February 1 to secure one of the limited spaces.  Online-only Partners are accepted on a rolling basis.

The Artisans also welcome the opportunity to do a “show and tell” at local gatherings.  If you have a group that would like to have a display of work and hear from some of the artists about their work and learn about the tour at one of your organization’s gatherings. Meet the artists, hear about the CAA history and help share the story with your community.   To request a visit by the artisans, please send a note to Jackie via info@CapeAnnArtisans.com. Please reference our program “Cape Ann Artisans in the Community.”

1. David Archibald
2. Cynthia Curtis
3. Jillian Demeri*
4. Rob Diebboll
5. Jacqueline Ganim-DeFalco
6. Deb Gonet
7. Elizabeth Harty
8. Linda Hogan*
9. Chloe Leigh*
10. Sinikka Nogelo
11. Scott Place and Erin O’Sullivan, Twin Lights Studio
12. Marcie Rae
13. Deb Schradieck
14. Pam Stratton
15. Bart Stuyf
16. Ruth Worrall
17. Sara Wright

Library Board and City of Gloucester to launch a national search for a replacement

At the January 8th meeting of the Library Board of Trustees Executive Committee, Deborah Kelsey, Library Director of the Gloucester Lyceum and Sawyer Free LibrarY, announced her upcoming retirement. Ms. Kelsey expects to retire in late June to spend more time with family and explore personal pursuits.

This January brings two great concerts to Rockport Music’s Shalin Liu Performance Center. On Sunday, January 19 at 3 pm, pianist Michael Brown and cellist Nicholas Canellakis bring Soul of the Americas, a program featuring seven iconic composers from both North and South America. They are joined by pianist Orion Weiss and percussionist Ian David Rosenbaum for the concert. On January 23 at 7 pm Palaver Strings, Rockport Music’s Education Ensemble-in-Residence for the 2019-20 season, will bring the first of two community concerts this season.  On the January 23 program, Palaver’s program follows the gradual return of light marked by the winter solstice through different musical selections.

Soul of the Americas ~ JAN 19

On Sunday, January 19, at 3 pm, The Soul of the Americas celebrates the rich tapestry of musical influences across North and South America, featuring the works of seven iconic composers. Aaron Copland’s El Salón México and George Gershwin’s Cuban Overture were directly inspired by their travels to those respective countries. Leonard Bernstein was an ardent champion of Latin American music, including the music of Brazilian Heitor Villa-Lobos and Argentinian Alberto Ginastera. Osvaldo Golijov settled in the United States but his music draws on his Argentinian roots. Samuel Barber was enamored with diverse musical styles, as seen through his nostalgic Souvenirs. Curated by Michael Brown and Nicholas Canellakis and joined by Orion Weiss and Ian David Rosenbaum, this program features unique combinations of piano, cello and percussion, and will take the listener on a sizzling journey through both hemispheres.

PROGRAM

COPLAND: El Salón México for Solo Piano (arr. Leonard Bernstein)
BERNSTEIN: Three Meditations from Mass (version for cello, piano, and percussion)
BARBER: Souvenirs for Piano, Four Hands, Op. 28
GOLIJOV: Mariel for Cello and Marimba
VILLA-LOBOS: Divagação for Cello, Piano, and Drum
VILLA-LOBOS
– A Maré Encheu from Guia Pratico for Solo Piano
– O Polichinelo from Prole do Bebê for Solo Piano
GINASTERA: Pampeana No. 2, Rhapsody for Cello and Piano, Op. 21
GERSHWIN: Cuban Overture for Piano, Four Hands and Percussion (Four Hands version)

Pre-concert talk with Michael Brown & Nicholas Canellakis, 2 PM

Palaver Strings ~ JAN 23

On Thursday, January 23 at 7 pm, Rockport Music’s Education Ensemble-in-Residence Palaver Strings brings a program entitled “On the Nature of Daylight.”  This concert explores the gradual return of light marked by the winter solstice. Through thin sunbeams, quiet snowfall and frosted windows, there is warmth and comfort in the measured lengthening of daylight. Our program opens with Winter, from Vivaldi’s beloved Four Seasons, followed by Max Richter’s On the Nature of Delight–a meditation that juxtaposes desolation with pure beauty and gentleness. The program culminates with Mendelssohn’s radiant Octet. With soaring melodies and warm, youthful brilliance, the octet encapsulates the promise of spring.  PALAVER STRINGS is a Maine-based musician-led string ensemble and nonprofit organization founded in 2014. Now in its sixth season, Palaver has established itself as a forward-thinking ensemble whose mission is rooted in community and creative programming. This season, Palaver is a resident education ensemble at Rockport Music and the Shalin Liu Performance Center in Rockport, MA.

PROGRAM

Vivaldi: Winter from Four Seasons (Nicholas Kitchen/first violin of Borromeo Quartet)
Max Richter: On the Nature of Daylight
Mendelssohn: Octet in E-flat Major
Widor: Toccata for Organ (arr. by Palaver member Jesse MacDonald)

As the winter solstice approaches, some of us dream of summer and all of the many special activities that can be enjoyed outdoors immersed in the natural world.

Windhover Performing Arts Center in Rockport, Massachusetts will have a full program of arts activities for the public to enjoy in 2020. The month of July alone will have a concentration of dance events, leading the way with the PAUL TAYLOR 2 Dance Company returning to Windhover for their summer artistic residency starting Wednesday, July 8–Sunday, July 12^th, 2020.  Modern dance classes for all ages and levels will be offered that week. Open rehearsals on our outdoor stage will captivate the public by showing how movements are put together and phrases are constructed and perfected by the Taylor 2 Company Director Cathy McCann and the company’s six dancers. Concluding the week will be two full evening performances of Paul Taylor’s works that have not been previously seen at Windhover, taking place on Friday, July 10^th and Saturday, July 11, 2020.

The Teen Dance Intensive takes place at Windhover during the week of July 12–July 18^th concluding with a performance by the students on our outdoor stage (weather permitting) on Saturday, July 18^th at 5:00pm.

Toward the end of July, the QUARRY DANCE lX will take place at an undisclosed location (to be announced in 2020). The Quarry Dances have attracted quite a crowd over the nine years of its existence, performed by the renowned Dušan Týnek Dance Theatre.  Please save these dates of the 2020 quarry dance performances:

Friday, July 24^th at 5:30pm; Saturday, July 25^th at 11:00am and also 5:30pm; and Sunday, July 26^th at 1:00pm. These special dance performances mark the unique topography of Cape Ann, drawing attention to these sacred spaces.

This year for the first time, Windhover has invited guest dance companies for residencies, culminating in performances throughout the summer. Details will be revealed in the next newsletter.

In order to sustain and support these programs, Windhover does rely on your support. We are a 501©3 non-profit organization; therefore all contributions are fully tax deductible. Our website:www.windhover.org has a DONATE button linking to paypal or a credit card, so please contribute whatever you can so help us meet our goals to support these exciting endeavors.

You can also donate through Amazon Smile, by selecting Windhover Foundation as the beneficiary for Amazon’s program. It does not cost any extra to do this. The link is: https://smile.amazon.com/ch/04-2708940​ and then specify Windhover Fdn.

Lastly, Windhover is compiling a list of building supplies it needs, so donations in-kind for building materials are appreciated.

Many thanks for helping sustain the vision of bringing the arts to the Cape Ann Community through education, classes and performances for everyone to enjoy.

Happy Holidays, and thank you for your support.

Lisa Hahn, Executive Director of Windhover

Windhover Performing Arts Center
P.O. Box 2249
(257 rear Granite Street)
Rockport, MA. 01966
Phone: 978-546-3611
Email: windhover@verizon.net
Website: www.windhover.org

Coco Berkman Linocut Demonstration at the Square Circle Gallery, December 14 

In conjunction with the Rockport Makers Festival, printmaker, Coco Berkman will demonstrate the art of Linocut using Old School techniques at the Square Circle Gallery on Saturday, December 14 from 1 to 3pm. The Square Circle Gallery is located at 11 Dock Square at the intersection of Bearskin Neck and Broadway in Rockport, MA.

Using sharp Japanese tools to carve fine lines into soft surfaces, or draw scratchy lines into sheets of copper, zinc and Plexiglas, Berkman will demonstrate how she makes her beautiful linocut prints. After cutting the plate, she rolls thick sticky messy ink onto these etched surfaces with a tool called a brayer and prints those inked images onto clean crisp beautiful sheets of handmade papers with the help of a hand cranked Etching Press. Berkman loves her work and says “This is my passion. I am very very grateful that I am able to indulge in this most serious and important work of PLAY.”

Tom and T.M. Nicholas: A Father and Son’s Journey in Paint

On view: Jan. 11, 2020 – April 12, 2020

Exploring 40 years of the artistic collaboration between Rockport father and son, Tom and T.M. Nicholas, will be the focus of the Cape Ann Museum’s upcoming exhibition, “Tom and T. M. Nicholas: A Father and Son’s Journey in Paint.” The Nicholas works, created in the well-known style of the Cape Ann School of Painting and curated from numerous private collections, will be on view beginning Jan. 11, 2020 through April 12, 2020.

Born and raised in Connecticut, Tom Nicholas studied with Ernst Lohrmann, H. Fisk, and the School of Visual Arts in New York. He has lived and worked in Rockport since the early 1960s, running a gallery on Main Street with his wife, Gloria. His work in oil, watercolor, and gouache has received numerous awards and recognitions from the Allied Artists of America, the Salmagundi Club, the American Watercolor Society, and the National Academy of Design. He was elected an Academician of the National Academy of Design and a Dolphin Fellow of the American Watercolor Society.

T.M. Nicholas, a student of the Montserrat College of Art, studied with his father as well as with the respected Rockport painter John Terelak. Working out of a studio in Essex, Mass., T.M., like his father, exhibits widely, has paintings in museum collections, and has won many awards.

As part of the exhibition’s related programming, T.M. Nicholas and art historian Judith Curtis will give separate gallery talks. Curtis is a freelance writer specializing in art-related themes and is a past curator of the Rockport Art Association and Museum’s Permanent Collection. She lives on Cape Ann and is a regular contributor to the American Art Review. She has also written several books including Anthony Thieme, The Life and Art of Paul Strisik, N.A., W. Lester Stevens, N.A., (1888-1969), Harry A. Vincent and His Contemporaries, Rocky Neck Art Colony (1850—1950), A. T. Hibbard, American Master, and two Charles Movalli exhibition catalogues. More recently, she curated – and wrote the catalogue for –Polly Thayer Starr and the Alchemy of Painting. She was also co-curator of the Strokes of Genius: Women Artists of New England, for which she also wrote the catalogue.

Cape Ann has long been recognized as one of this country’s oldest and most important art colonies and the Cape Ann Museum’s collections contain examples of works by many of the artists who came to this region, including Winslow Homer, Edward Hopper, Marsden Hartley, Cecilia Beaux, Nell Blaine, Stuart Davis, Milton Avery, John Sloan and Anna Hyatt Huntington. At the heart of the Museum’s holdings is the single largest collection of works by early 19^th century artist Fitz Henry Lane (1804-1865). A native of Gloucester, Lane was a lithographer and a painter and his works displayed at the Cape Ann Museum capture the town’s busy seaport in its heyday.

The Cape Ann Museum is dedicated to illuminating the diversity of life on Cape Ann by collecting, preserving and presenting the interconnected stories of art and industry during the past 400 years.  Building on the popular and critical success of the 2019 Homer at the Beach exhibition, 2020 marks an exciting year for the Museum with the opening a new campus in June 2020 at the gateway to Gloucester.  This new campus, along with other Museum initiatives is aimed at building greater audiences and awareness of the institution regionally, nationally and internationally in anticipation of the Museum’s 150th anniversary in 2023.

As part of the Nicholas exhibition, related programming events include:

Opening Reception
Saturday, January 11, 3:00 to 5:00 p.m.

Lecture by T. M. Nicholas & Stapleton Kearns about The Cape Ann School of Painting
Saturday, February 15, 3:00 p.m.

Gallery Talk by Judith Curtis    
Saturday, March 14, 9:30 a.m.

Gallery Talk by T. M. Nicholas
Saturday, April 4, 9:30 a.m.

Rockport Art Association & Museum’s Experimental Group Opens Thirteenth Show

The Rockport Art Association & Museum’s Experimental Group opens its thirteenth group exhibition, “Unexpected No. Thirteen – The Experimental Group Small Works Holiday Show” at Rockport Art Association & Museum, 12 Main Street, Rockport, MA, 978.546.6604. This juried show features artworks of both the RAA&M’s artists and contributing members. Works on view in the exhibition range in medium to include paintings, mixed-media, graphics, sculpture, digital art and photography, but all pieces of artwork must be smaller than 12 x 16 inches.

The exhibition runs from: December 7th through December 31st

Artist Reception on Friday, December 6 from 6-8 pm.

Gallery hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 1-5 pm
or by appointment. Closed Monday.

The Experimental Group is a creative forum, its main mission is to increase public awareness and to foster self-expression by bringing artists together to explore and share ideas that cultivate creative freedom. The EG is encouraged and supported by the Rockport Art Association & Museum. 

If you would like more information about the exhibition, would like to schedule an interview and a walk through, or need additional promotional images please contact: Nella Lush, Experimental Group, Chair, 978.886.4582 or via email experimentalgroupraa@gmail.com 

The Rockport Art Association & Museum (RAA&M) is one of the oldest and most active art organizations in the country. The Association has a long and distinguished history that has spanned 96 years.

Karen Tusinski One-Artist Show

December 7 – 31, 2019
Opening Reception: Saturday, December 7th, 2 – 4 PM

Tusinski – Cambridge Poppies

Tusinski – Enclosed Poppies

Tusinski – Let it Roll

Tusinski – Nor’Easter

An exhibition of oil, acrylic and mixed media paintings by artist Karen Tusinski will open in the Marguerite Pearson Room of the Rockport Art Association & Museum (RAA&M) on Saturday, December 7th with an artist’s reception from 2 – 4 PM. The exhibition will be on view Saturday, December 7 – Tuesday, December 31.

Karen Tusinski subscribes to the natural contrast found in our world.  Geometric and organic form play together in each piece, combining in an energized abstraction. Common themes include bright poppies in a variety of color schemes, pebble strewn beaches with tranquil seas, and reoccurring circular patterns in both abstracts and expressive still lifes. Tusinski’s work offers pleasing tonal relationships through common motifs and patterns inspired by nature. Her keen observation of the seemingly ordinary allows the viewer a new lens to hold against everyday images.

Karen Tusinski is the owner of the Tusinski Gallery in Rockport and is an artist member of the Rockport Art Association & Museum and the Newburyport Art Association. She received a B.F.A. in Painting from Montserrat College of Art in 1998 and attended Montserrat’s Viterbo, Italy Summer Program. Tusinski is a featured artist at Jules Place in Boston and also exhibits her artwork in numerous galleries throughout the country.

Karen Tusinski’s website:  https://www.tusinskigallery.com/

For more information on this and other exhibitions, please visit the RAA&M’s website at www.rockportartassn.org




RAA&M December Hours:  Open Tuesday – Saturday, 10 AM – 5 PM; Sunday 12 – 5 PM.