Documentary filmmaker, photographer, landscape designer, author, and illustrator. "Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly" currently airing on PBS. Current film projects include Piping Plovers, Gloucester's Feast of St. Joseph, and Saint Peter's Fiesta. Visit my websites for more information about film and design projects at kimsmithdesigns.com, monarchbutterflyfilm.com, and pipingploverproject.org. Author/illustrator "Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities! Notes from a Gloucester Garden."
Joey’s featured in the latest issue of North Shore Art*Throb
Media Mogul
By Lou Mandarini
Joey Ciaramitaro didn’t necessarily set out to revolutionize the media landscape on Cape Ann, but that’s the way things have turned out since he started his blog Good Morning Gloucester, nearly five years ago.
Subtitled My View Of Life on the Dock, the website is first and foremost a community blog, but describing Good Morning Gloucester so simply is kind of like describing Jackson Pollock as just a painter. Such a perdestrian description doesn’t do justice to the kind of sensory overload at work. To read the article in its entirety, click here, and go to page 26.
Congratulations Chief!
“At its essence, Good Morning Gloucester is a Technicolor love letter to the city where Ciaramitaro grew up.”
North Shore Art*Throb, based out of Salem, is a free publication that incubates a regional movement of sustainable communities invested in the arts, a local economy, and cultural engagement. NS Art*Throb covers Boston’s North Shore including Gloucester, Salem, Beverly, Lynn, and Marblehead.
Joey and Craig at the Kahn Studio and Good Morning Gloucester Gallery
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I stopped by Captain Joe’s to pick up my lobster order this morning and Frankie says, “You here to pick up your little slice of heaven?”
That’s right Frankie!–I only get my lobsters from Captain Joe and Sons–the sweetest, freshest, most delicious lobster–bar none, without a doubt, BOOM!, no contest, we got that!
What’s your “summer slice of heaven?”
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From this morning while setting up the GMG tent–I arrived at 9:30 while supplies of the GMG drinking cup mason jars made by Sister Felicia and Jill were still abundant. They were going fast…
The eager sales force
Custom made T-shirts for the sales force
Madeline and Eloise exhibiting Joey’s bedazzled greeting cards, bedazzling courtesy of Amanda
Open Door Good Food Farm Kids
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For Devera, who wrote in yesterday asking how to tell the difference between a male and female Monarch Butterfly ~
Click photos to view large.
The first photos shows all male Monarch Butterflies necatring at Seaside Goldenrod. Notice the pair of little black pockets, or dots, on the inner vein of the hind wings. These are pockets of pheromones, or what scientists actually refer to as “love dust,” which the male sprinkles on the female during courtship.
The female Monarch Butterfly lacks the the black pockets on her hind wings. Notice too that her wing veination is thicker and smokier.
During courtship, male and female join, and he carries her to higher ground. This photo shows the male and female mating, with the male above.
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From our garden ~ Newly emerged female Monarch Butterfly drying her wings. Monday a male emerged, Wednesday a female–looks promising for another batch of Monarchs before summer’s end!
Newly Emerged Female Monarch Butterfly
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Look what Fred Bodin from Bodin Historic Photo shared!
Julia Lane, later Julia Wheeler, posed for Alice M. Curtis on August 12th, 1915, in Gloucester.
Fred read my post about Dutchman’s Pipevine and Pipevine Swallowtail Butterflies titled Plant, and They Will Come! I mentioned in that post that the Dutchman’s Pipevine had it’s heyday in gardens in the previous two centuries. Pipevine was planted to climb porches and arbors in pre-airconditioning days, providing shade and cooling the rooms within. The Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly is rarely seen in our region today because the Dutchman’s Pipevine is rarely planted.
Thank you Fred for taking the time to find this delightful vintage photo showing the Dutchman’s Pipevine growing on the porch in the background!
Dutchman’s Pipevine is the host plant for the Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly and makes a wonderful addition to the garden. Back when it was in vogue (and practical) to plant Dutchman’s Pipevine, Pipevine Swallowtail Butterflies were a regular occurrence in the northeast.
4-day old Pipevine Swallowtail caterpillars, and recently molted. Notice their spiny discarded skins.
Note: the flower in the second photo of the Dutchman’s Pipevine is a Rose of Sharon, not the flower of the vine.
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Nearly five years ago in late September 2007, I photographed a male Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly (Battus philenor) nectaring in my garden. I found mesmerizing its dark beauty, with black wings punctuated by brilliant orange spots and shimmering iridescence. The wings flashed electric blue in the fading late day sunlight and I became completely captivated!
Range Map of Pipevine Swallowtail (Battus philenor)
Although the Pipevine Swallowtail is not rare in its southern range, this exotic looking butterfly is quite an unusual occurrence in the northeast, and even more rarely found on the eastern outer reaches of Cape Ann. Mine was a stray, carried in on a southerly breeze. I imagined that if a male can drift into our garden, so can a female. And if a visiting female found in my garden her caterpillar food plant, she would deposit her eggs. The following spring we planted the Dutchman’s Pipevine (Aristolochia macrophylla). Four years later, and our pipevine has grown well. With emerald green enormous heart-shaped leaves, she is quite a showstopper clambering over the back fence. The plant is named for its flower, which resembles a Dutchman’s pipe, although when ours flowers, the blooms are so small, so few, and so lost in the foliage, I barely know when it is in bloom. Our pipevine took several years to become established, but once firmly rooted, it grew vigorously, but not invasively. At the end of the growing season, or the beginning of the next, I cut the vine hard, down to the ground. Dutchman’s Pipevine grows in full sun and partial shade and is hardy in zones 4 to 8.
Aristolochia macrophylla had its glory days in gardens during the two previous centuries, prior to the invention of air conditioning. It was planted to cover porches and treillage; cooling and shading the rooms within. When looking through old photos you can easily spot the porches and arbors that are embowered with pipevine because of the distinctive heart-shaped foliage. I imagine Fred Bodin may even have a few pictures of pipevine shrouded porches in his treasure trove of vintage photographs.
Pipevine Swallowtail Egg Clutch
About a week ago Saturday while doing chores in our backyard I noticed the rapid movements of a dark butterfly investigating the pipevine. I immediately paused because say, for example, if it was the more common Eastern Black Swallowtail, which deposits eggs only on members of the carrot family, it would not show the least bit of interest in the pipevine. Upon close investigation, it was a Pipevine Swallowtail and, without a doubt, it was a she! After first zooming in and out of the house to grab my camera, I observed her as she fluttered from tendril to tendril. She deliberately chose the tenderest leaves, pausing briefly several times to curl her abdomen to the underside to deposit her eggs. After she departed I ran in the house to tell anyone who would listen of the Great News. In our household my butterfly news is pretty much the family joke, although my husband kindly offered to get the tallest ladder from the basement. He held tight while I climbed to the top rung in search of eggs. I struck gold! Unlike the female Monarch and Eastern Black Swallowtail butterflies, which deposit eggs singularly, the Pipevine Swallowtail oviposits eggs in clusters. I counted somewhere between 25-30 eggs (very approximately) in the clutch we cut from the plant. I hope we have enough pipevine to feed this many hungry Pipevine Swallowtail caterpillars!
Pipevine Swallowtail Caterpillars Several Hours Old
One Day Old Pipevine Swallowtail Caterpillars
Map courtesy NABA
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My deepest thanks to everyone who has written with their kind concern for Cosmos. He’s not doing so great today, but he is one tough little kitty. And to everyone who read the story in the Herald and called with well-wishes–thank you–I guess the Herald reads GMG, too. Link to Herald Death-cheating Kitty Survives Second Attack
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Last night outside my office window I heard that horrid screaming-yelping noise unique to coyotes. I leapt up and ran hollering and flailing my arms wildly toward the ruckus, not knowing, but hoping, the coyote would be so terrified he would drop whatever was in its clutches. The coyote’s jaws were wrapped around my cat’s head. I came within a foot and finally he released him. The coyote tore up the street as Cosmos ran in the opposite direction toward the wooded lot next to our home. We spent the next several hours searching for him when at long last he appeared dazed and disoriented at the back kitchen door.
He stayed in my lap all night, disappeared briefly again this morning, and then we headed over to North Shore Veterinarian Hosptilal. You could see the two teeth holes near his eye and on top of the skull and Dr. Heaney showed me where the bottom row of the coyote’s teeth had punctured his jaw. He will survive and will hopefully not lose his eyesight or have a brain injury. Doctor Heaney has been out pets’ vet forever–and we love her and the staff at the North Shore Veterinarian Hospital–it was she who stitched Cosmos up from coyote encounter #1, when his belly was ripped open, from the tip of his throat to the top of his pelvis.
Our Cosmos has survived two coyote attacks, near death from ingesting my neighbor’s rat poison, and twelve hours trapped in a lobster pot during a winter storm.
Why would a coyote want a skinny old man cat like ours, without a lick of meat on his bones. They must be very, very hungry. Once they know of an animal, they will pursue it relentlessly. In my discussion with Dr. Heaney about coyote attackes in general, she said that the state agencies don’t even acknowledge that coyotes are killing cats. Why do we all have to live in terror over our pet’s safety. There has to be a solution. Everyone on our street, and the next, and all over Cape Ann, and Massachusetts have lost beloved pets– cats, dogs, chickens, and more. I think the problem is out of control. I’d like to know of any GMG reader’s experience with contacting local, regional or state agencies in regard to coyote attacks.
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I loved this Macy Gray song from the moment I first heard it. The lyrics are full of hope. I found the song to be perfect for creating a montage of my favorite clips, filmed in and around Gloucester over the course of the past month. The footage is from works-in-progress butterfly films, 2012 Greasy Pole shorts, and random footage from a family picnic. Is it too kooky–butterflies and Greasy Pole Walkers–you tell me because I see beauty in everyone and everything.
Filmed at Niles Beach, Pavilion Beach, Good Harbor Beach, Eastern Point, Brace Cove, Gloucester Harbor Walk, and Plum Street. Created for Good Morning Gloucester. Dedicated to Joey and his beautiful family and to our beloved Gloucester community.
Thank you Ciaramitaros for your help with my Monarch film!
Thank you to my darling daughter Liv; as Craig said, “a trifecta–beautiful, smart, and funny!”
Beauty in the World Sung by Macy Gray
Featuring:
Liv
Eloise Ciaramitaro
Madeline Ciaramitaro
Joe Ciaramitaro
Stew McGillivray
Ross Carlson
2012 Sunday Greasy Pole Walkers
“Beauty in the World” is by American singer Macy Gray from her album The Sellout, which is Gray’s fifth album and first since her under-performing 2007 album Big. The Selllout is her return to musical form after almost conforming when her last album didn’t take off. “I thought after Big flopped maybe I should do what everyone else was doing,” she said. “Go out and hire the hottest producers, the best writers, get real skinny. But none of those people called me back.”
The song was inspired by hearing her daughter’s laughter on a down day. “I didn’t even know what she was laughing at. I thought ‘at least she’s happy.’ And I felt at least I hadn’t failed there, because my daughter’s happy.” -wiki
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Last night I met my friend Lyda and her associate produce Erin at Passports Resturant for a glass of wine and an appetizer before Lyda’s screening of Love and Other Anxieties. They both loved Eric’s popovers (who doesn’t?) and we were all stunned by the enormity of the crabcakes, which were simply perfect. Golden brown and a tiny bit crunchy on the outside, and within, very nearly all crabmeat, with just a very small amount of breading to hold the crabmeat together; served on a bed of fresh greens and roasted red bell peppers.
We then walked the two short blocks to the Cape Ann Community Cinema. Movie tickets included dinner. That struck me as a little odd and I didn’t quite understand how they could pull that off. Dinner is prepared by none other than neighboring Virgilios–a piping hot concoction of pasta, chicken, and broccoli in a creamy cheese sauce along with a lovely garden salad and ginormous chocolate cupcake. And Cape Ann Community Cinema recently acquired their liquor liscense. You can enjoy a glass of wine while dinning, sitting on a large comfy sofa, all while viewing the movie.
Kent, Lyda, Erin, and Rob
Lyda’s screening went beautifully and her movie played to a crowd of enthusiastic and engaged attendees. The audience stayed for about 45 minutes following the film for an informal talk with Lyda. I think we all found the discussion highly informative and inspiring. Special thanks to Rob for hosting Love and Other Anxieties.
Erin and Lyda
Check out Cape Ann Community Cinema’s summer long schedule–what a fabulous events venue Rob has going here. By the way–any leftover dinner goes straight to our local shelter.
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Lighthouse Beach and Ipswich Bay Panorama ~ Click to view full panorama
Last night we had a beautiful dinner at the home of one of our dearest friends, the Gale Family. Mom Kristina and daughter Sarah prepared a gorgeous dinner of salmon poached with a medley of vegetables, in parchment paper. I was too busy having fun and socializing and wish I had taken a photo of the salmon. We had sunset dessert on their west-facing porch, with its amazing views of Lighthouse Beach and Ipswich Bay.
Ben called it a Mackerel Sky
Living the Good Life!
Click to see larger image.
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Love and Other Anxieties is having it’s Gloucester premier at the Cape Ann Community Cinema on Monday night. I loved the film–hearfelt, poignant, and funny–I think you will too! Come join us Monday night. Tickets include dinner and the screening of the movie with Lyda.
Kent, Lily, and Lyda
Kim Smith: We’ve been friends now for at least ten years, when I helped you with the interior design of your home.
Lyda Kuth: I had heard about you—you had been in the film business early on as a set designer, and then you turned interior designer. As soon as we met, I felt we had a shared sensibility, which made working together such a pleasure. I remember you encouraging me to use a fabric for a couch that I was afraid would be too “busy” for my taste. But you encouraged me to be bold, and you were absolutely right.
KS: When I saw Love and Other Anxieties in Somerville, I thought it was so beautiful and heartfelt. You speak about your marriage with Kent in such an open way. Everybody who is married asks the kind of questions you ask. It’s a story that everyone can relate to, certainly anyone who is married or in a long-term relationship.
LK: The film is intended to be provocative, and perhaps allow people to voice some things that don’t often get voiced.
KS: I love that your film has examined marriage so intently, by examining yourself, but in such a way that feels universal. One of these themes is wondering what life will be like after the kids leave home. Is anticipating the empty nest part of why you made Love and Other Anxieties?
LK: Yes, but what’s funny about that, this was largely unconscious at the outset. Over the course of making the film, which took five years from start to finish, it became blatantly obvious. I realize that one of the things I hope audience members take home is that there is a “second life” that starts to happen after your kids leave home, and it can be equally as rich.
KS: Seeing your daughter Lily on screen, getting ready for prom, reminded me so much of what it felt like for me, when my daughter Olivia was a senior and I was telling her how wonderful college would be but thinking, “Oh my god, she’s leaving and what will our family unit feel like with one is person missing? We’ll never be a whole family again.”
LK: Did any of your anxieties about this turn out to be true?
KS: I haven’t told this to many people, but at the same time that Olivia left for college, there was a massive Monarch migration through Gloucester– something that only happens every ten to twelve years. I was amazingly transported out of myself and began writing about and photographing the butterflies, which then led to my learning how to film as well.
LK: Isn’t it interesting how the title of your book, “Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities!” alludes to fresh beginnings and reflects what lay behind the creative work we each took on, in one way or another? I wasn’t consciously aware that the imminent departure of my only child was motivating me. And yet some part of myself was preparing me for this transition. It’s reassuring to know there is something at work, mapping the next step, at a deeper level than my “ruminations,” which are generally circular in nature!
KM: The other aspect of your life, which also finds its way into your film, is your long time role as director of the LEF Foundation, based in Cambridge. When we met, you had already been introduced to Gloucester and the Cape Ann community through having supported artists including Henry Ferrini and Dana Salvo.
LK: Yes, and what stands out for me is having the photographer Dana Salvo introduce me to the wonderful, rich tradition of the Feast of St. Jospeh, and being invited into people’s homes to see their alters and to be part of their tradition. I’ll never forget it.
KS: Yes, it is an extraordinary experience. And Henry Ferrini’s father was the poet laureate of Gloucester; and now Henry, in addition to making films–which is what LEF supported–has co-founded something right in my neighborhood, the Gloucester Writers Center.
KS: Do you foresee having chatting time after the screening at Cape Ann Community Cinema?
LK: Absolutely. The Cape Ann Cinema is just the right kind of place to screen my film– an intimate and somewhat informal setting that allows for conversation. I’m really looking forward to it!
Tickets include dinner and a screening of the movie with director Lyda Kuth. Love and Other Anxieties at the Cape Ann Community Cinema on Monday July 23, at 7:30 pm, 21 Main Street, Gloucester.
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Congratulations and thank you to Mayor Kirk, Sarah Garcia, Chris Muskopf, Jay Ramsey, and including everyone involved (there are many, many more than named here–these are the people I have had the pleasure to work with on the project) for having the vision, courage, tenacity, and talent to create Gloucester’s Harbor Walk.
Gloucester Harbor Walk ~ View of Gus Foote Park
The Harbor Walk is nearing completion. Despite the plethora of unforeseeable problems with the landfill at I4-C2, and current drought, the walk looks gorgeous. Come, take a stroll!
Gus Foote Park Last Year at this Time. What a difference–the build phase of the project was accomplished in only a few short months!
I will be bringing GMG readers more ‘before and after’ photos, as well as information about the native plants habitat gardens (and how you can translate that information to your own garden), in the coming months.
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I am in the midst of adding the background foley to my Black Swallowtail film, which is really fun and I love this aspect of editing, however I am completely frustrated using my husband’s headphones, which are 20 year old relics (at least 20) from his past life as a working musician.
He says I need noise-blocking headphones, which these are definitely not. Even with every window shut tight, along with the several doors leading to my office, these are still ineffectual. It is extremely uncomfortable working in front of a computer in a stuffy room for hours with no ac. If you have a spare moment, please write with your recommendation–and I would love to know why. Thank you.
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The guys are always working super hard down at Captain Joe and Sons so its’ great to see a lighthearted moment.
Frankie Ciaramitaro and Frank Ciolino share a laugh.
Have you treated yourself and your family to a lobster feast recently? Why not–it’s so inexpensive? The price and quality of lobsters from Captian Joe’s is UNBEATABLE–only $5. per pound!!! My daughter Liv and I were eating them “by the twos” when she visited recently!
What are you waiting for-the price to return to normal?
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Joey and Craig at the Kahn Studio and Good Morning Gloucester Gallery
Good Morning Gloucester 