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."
Art Haven’s Executive Director Traci Thayne Corbett and Cathy Kelley are doing a fantastic job managing the fabulous buoy painting taking place daily after school. Today they were joined by volunteers Michael Kelley and Lianna Sours. The finished buoys are gathering in great piles all around the studio. Today’s ernest artists were representing from West Parish Elementary. Saturday, December 2nd, buoy painting continues, and is open studio day for any young person.
Michael and Cathy Kelley, Lianna Sours, and Traci Thayne Corbett
West Parish Elementary: Friday – 12/1 – 3:30-5:00pm Open Day for Everyone: Saturday – 12/2 – 10:0am – 1:00pm Rockport Elemenary School: Monday 12/4 – 3:30-5:00pm O’ Maley Middle School: Wednesday – 12/6 – 3:30-5:00pm Open Day for Everyone: Wednesday – 12/6 – 3:30-5:00pm Manchester/Essex Elementary: Wednesday – 12/6 – 3:30-5:00pm
Lobster Trap Tree Lighting and Party at Art Haven after
December 9th, 4:30 pm, Main St at Lobster Trap Tree
Buoy Auction
January 26, 5-8pm, Cruiseport
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Two hundred year old Armenian olive trees, Yalova, Turkey, 2015. I found myself looking for living things I could touch and photograph that witnessed the Armenian Genocide. It is said that the olive tree was first brought to the Mediterranean region from Armenia in 4000BC.
Scars of Silence: Three Generations From The Armenian Genocide
a film by Nubar and Abby Alexanian
2017 has been a very productive year for our film, Scars of Silence. Our first ever multimedia art installation opened in September at The Armenian Museum of America in Watertown MA and runs through January 27, 2018. Curated by Jennifer Liston Munson, Senior Designer at the MFA, the show includes excerpts from our film and a selection of beautiful black and white prints by Nubar from his last trip to Turkey. The gallery talk we did at the opening was very moving, with poignant audience questions and family stories paving the way to a memorable evening. We’re planning a second gallery talk in January and hope to show a couple of additional scenes in addition to the current seventeen minute assembly. More on this soon.
We plan to release our film in 2018. But in order to do this, we need a hefty blast of wind in our sails. As you may remember, we’ve received grants and strong positive feedback in the past for our earlier 10 -17 minute assemblies from foundations (including MacArthur). What we’ve learned from foundations is that they want to see where we’re taking this film: what is the narrative arc of the film and what are our cinematic options. Before we apply for the funds from them to complete post production, we need to hire our editor, Sabrina, to create a rough cut of the entire film that will give the funders and places like Sundance and PBS, an idea of the story we are telling and how we plan to tell it.
The good news is that Sabrina’s schedule has an opening in January & February, so we need to raise $15,000 by the end of December to engage her. We’ve made it this far thanks to you, our generous supporters, and we hope you can continue on this journey with us by making a tax-deductible contribution that will bring us where we need to be to complete Scars of Silence.
So please, if you can, help us with a tax-deductible donation by clicking HEREHERE
Earlier this month, the Board of the Gloucester Stage Company received information about an allegation of sexual assault by Israel Horovitz. We cancelled plans to produce a Horovitz play in 2018 and agreed that under no circumstances would he continue to serve on the Board, ex officio, as artistic director emeritus. Mr. Horovitz denied the allegation and requested a meeting, but then resigned. We deeply regret that past complaints were mishandled. On behalf of the Board I apologize to the brave women who came forward in 1992 and 1993 but were not heard. We are individually and collectively appalled by the allegations, both old and new. Such behavior cannot be tolerated and our thoughts are with the women who were victimized. We are committed to making sure that GSC is a place where people are safe, free to do their best work, and to speak out without fear of reprisal.
Art Haven was filled with the joyful sounds of happy painters. Today, Veterans and East Gloucester Elementary School kids participated in Gloucester’s traditional buoy painting. Tomorrow, Plum Cove and Beeman students:)
Common Milkweed (Ascleipias syriaca) is the essential food plant for populations of the Northeastern and Atlantic coast Monarchs. During Colonial times, the silky floss found in the dried seed heads was used to stuff quilts and pillows. In the 1860s, in Salem Massachusetts, Common Milkweed silk was used as a mattress filling.
During WWII, Common Milkweed became the substitute for kapok, a soft cottony material from the kapok tree that was the preferred filling for life vests. Japan cut off the supply of kapok from Java, the main source of the material, and part of the wartime effort included children sent to fields to gather millions of pounds of Milkweed seed heads for the armed services.
“What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not been discovered.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
An innovative Canadian clothing manufacturer, the Quartz Company and Altitude Sports, has created the first modern insulated jacket using milkweed silk. Hundreds of acres of Common Milkweed have been planted in Vermont and Quebec. Particularly noteworthy is that the fields of Milkweed are not harvested until after the Monarchs have left.
#GivingTuesday is a global day of giving. Everyone, anywhere can participate! By supporting the documentary Beauty on the Wing, your fully tax deductible gift directly enables us to create a final cut, contributes to the music and map rights, to the cost of festival submissions, promotion, and publicity. It’s easy to make a donation, just click the link above, which will take you to the Filmmakers Collaborative, my film’s fiscal sponsor.
Why does a documentary need a fiscal sponsor? A fiscal sponsor, in this case, the Filmmakers Collaborative, is a non-profit entity that enables a documentary filmmaker to raise funds and operate through an exempt sponsor. The sponsor manages the project’s money and reports to funders and tax agencies. Most importantly, contributors to the film can see how their gifts are being utilized towards the creation of the film.
Your voice is powerful. If you are unable to give this Giving Tuesday, please help support Beauty on the Wing by spreading the word through a Facebook share or a retweet.
“Drawing from over 100 hours of never-before-seen footage that has been tucked away in the National Geographic archives for over 50 years, award-winning director Brett Morgen (Cobain: Montage of Heck and The Kid Stays in the Picture) tells the story of Jane a woman whose chimpanzee research challenged the male-dominated scientific consensus of her time and revolutionized our understanding of the natural world. Set to a rich orchestral score from legendary composer Philip Glass, the film offers an unprecedented, intimate portrait of Jane Goodall – a trailblazer who defied the odds to become one of the world’s most admired conservationists.”
New York Times – Jane will delight those familiar with Ms. Goodall and provide a vibrant introduction for newcomers.”
Boston Globe – “The film confronts not just the expected issue of environmentalism but also explores themes of survival, separation, loss, and death.”
Los Angeles Times – “Meeting a chimpanzee’s gaze, the pioneering researcher says she encountered ‘a thinking, reasoning personality.’ With Jane we see what she saw.”
AV Club – “A scripted biopic may still happen someday, but Jane’s candid portrait of her Gombe years arguably makes such a project redundant.”
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As of Friday afternoon, and in preparation of building the Lobster Trap Tree, the base of the tree was aligned in a circle. Many more traps were stacked neatly in piles around the perimeter.
David Brooks and the Art Haven crew began building the tree Saturday morning. Around and around and around the crew worked stacking traps all day, carefully securing each and every pot with ties. As the tree grew taller and taller, the man on the ground passed the lobster trap to the next person in the chain, hand to hand, to the top of the tree. By early evening Saturday the last lobster trap was in place and the tree construction complete.
The Lobster Trap Tree lighting ceremony takes place December 9th on Saturday afternoon at around 4:30.
Unlike in previous years where our local lobsterman have generously donated their working traps, this year’s brand spanking new traps were donated by Three Lanterns Marine & Fishing. The lobster traps are deep green, with lighter bright green nets, and red plastic escape vents. As Joey Ciaramitaro and lobster boat Captain Mark Ring explained, modern lobster pots are designed with in-trap escape vents, which allow for freedom of movement in and out of the trap by lobsters that are too small to catch legally. The larger in-trap escape vented lobster traps are one of the many ways Massachusetts lobstermen work together to insure a sustainable lobster fisheries for future generations.
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Iconic architecture of Gloucester ~ The photos were taken early Thanksgiving morning and the post was meant for later Thanksgiving Day, as a thank you for our Gloucester community, but I just got too involved with family and cooking.
Thank you Gloucester ❤
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THE BEST LOBSTER TRAP TREE YET! Art Haven’s David Brooks and Crew have created a masterpiece. Shout out to Three Lantern Marine and Fishing for contributing the gorgeous (in holiday co-ordinated colors of red and green) brand new lobster traps. The lobster traps will be auctioned off after the holidays.
Despite the somewhat sad lyrics, Darlene however, calls “Baby Please Come Home” “a joyful song.” She said in a New York Times interview: “When I’m singing it, I’m telling everybody to come home to their loved ones. I’m inviting families to get back together again. This is the time to do it.” That’s my takeaway too from the song when she is singing. I imagine most people share those thoughts and is why “Baby Please Come Home” is considered one of the greatest rock and roll Christmas songs of all time.
Darlene Love and Phil Spector
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Original, enchanting, and magical, Disney-Pixar’s Coco is an animated film for all ages. Only just released in the U.S during Thanksgiving weekend, Coco has been at the top of the charts in Mexico for over a month. The filmmakers traveled to Mexico during a period of six years to create a beautiful film about a young boy coming of age that is both culturally authentic and deeply moving.
We love the Gloucester Cinema for the friendly staff, convenience, and delightfully comfortable new seats. Without criticizing Gloucester Cinema in any way, Coco is being released in the U.S. with an absurd short featurette, Olaf’s Frozen Adventure, as though the only way to see a film set in Mexico is to be force fed a horrendously confusing short film, vaguely about Nordic traditions. After you get over the utter incongruity of the two films paired (or just go late so you don’t have to watch the twenty minute short), sit back and get ready to swept up in the magical world of Miquel and his journey to the Land of the Dead.
Gloucester Cinema is located at 74 Essesx Avenue. For tickets and information, visit their website here.
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Where can you shop for yummy, daily fresh baked bread, cookies, scones, and whimsically wonderful gifts? At Alexandra’s Fabulous Bread! Alexandra’s is located at 265 Main Street in Gloucester. Shop Local for Small Business Saturday!
Miniature button bouquets, holiday linens, Folly Cove Deigns, original and handmade gifts galore!
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Saturday morning, November 24th, Present Gloucester is unveiling their beautiful selection of handmade ornaments. I was fortunate to have a sneak peak today. Created by eighteen local Cape Ann artists, I assure you, these treasures will go quickly. Get to Present this weekend, while supplies last! Present Gloucester is located at 261 Main Street.
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Snowy Owl at Captain Joe and Sons, East Main Street, Gloucester
Audubon “Birds in the News”
By Leslie Nemo
November 17, 2017
Will this winter bring an irruption of the Arctic raptors to the continental U.S.? A few clues from up north have Project SNOWstorm predicting yes.
Four years ago, thousands of Snowy Owls stormed the northern United States, taking up posts in surroundings drastically different from the flat Arctic tundra over which they typically preside. Some whiled away the hours peering at dog walkers from suburban fences; one learned to hunt around a Minnesota brewery with mouse problems. In a typical winter, around 10 Snowies visit Pennsylvania, but in 2013 the state was graced by 400. They were part of the largest Snowy Owl irruption, or influx of a species into a place they don’t usually live, the U.S. has seen since the 1920s.
If you missed it, you might be in luck. Project SNOWstorm, a volunteer-fueled Snowy Owl-tracking organization founded after that irruption, predicts another wave of Arctic raptors will hit North America this winter, according to their most recent blog post.
Scott Weidensaul, one of the directors of Project SNOWstorm, says the clues point to a big irruption, but the group also fully admits there’s no way to definitively know how big it could be or if it will even happen at all. “There’s a little bit of voodoo and black magic in all of this,” Weidensaul says. Though Snowy Owl migration patterns are mostly mysterious, there have been some tell-tale signs that the birds are on their way.
For one, some Snowy Owls already seem to be retracing the last irruption’s process. Data are sketchy and variable, but it appears that big southward movements occur about once every four years. That’s because lemmings, their preferred prey, go through regional population explosions at about the same interval. In 2013, those little Arctic rodents had a banner year on the Ungava Peninsula in Northern Quebec, fueling a highly successful breeding season for the owls that flocked to that area. Sure enough, this past breeding season, Canadian wildlife biologists studying caribou reported an unusually high number of owls flapping around the same area, reports others have confirmed.
Mr. Swan and the Young Swan were seen again at Niles this past week, without incident, and seemingly quite comfortable with one another. I wish we could see the Young Swan take a sustained flight; she (or possibly he) will have a chance of surviving the winter if she can.
Art Haven’s Executive Director Traci Thayne Corbett and Cathy Kelley are doing a fantastic job managing the fabulous buoy painting taking place daily after school. Today they were joined by volunteers Michael Kelley and Lianna Sours. The finished buoys are gathering in great piles all around the studio. Today’s ernest artists were representing from West Parish Elementary. Saturday, December 2nd, buoy painting continues, and is open studio day for any young person.
Good Morning Gloucester 