Author: Matthew Green

I am a translator, origami artist/teacher, and photographer, a blogger, former philosophy professor, and I love to sing. You can see my photos on Flickr and buy prints of some of them on Fine Art America. You can find me on Instagram, Twitter (@mehjg), and in various and sundry other social media sites on the web.

Luminous French architecture

Posted on by Matthew Green

 

Several people have recently mentioned how much they enjoy my photos from Paris. Here are a few more!

Gothic architecture often gets a bad rap as being dark and gloomy. It can be dark and gloomy at night, but during the day it can be gloriously illuminated by the sunlight streaming through the high stained glass windows. Here are some photos I took in the church of St. Eustache in Paris last October which help illustrate that fact.  It was built after the Gothic period properly speaking (as the Corinthian columns attest), but still follows the overall style.

 

 

Although the nooks and crannies can still be dark by our standards, the progress made in building technology at that point in history allowed Gothic buildings to make better use of natural light in large buildings than had been done in centuries.

– Fr. Matthew Green

Cape Ann Museum After Hours

Posted on by Matthew Green

Last Friday, the Cape Ann Museum had one of its “After Hours” events, featuring custom-made music installations in three galleries, refreshments from The Azorian restaurant, a raffle, and an artistic scavenger hunt! A good crowd showed up for the event.

There were lots of familiar faces in the crowd.

Rev. Bret Hays (left), rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Gloucester, was chatting with CAM’s Curatorial Assistant (and talented artist) Leon Doucette (on the right, with the beard, which – alas! – he has since shaved).

Nathan Cohen, who teaches music in Rockport public schools, designed (composed?) the music installation for Gabrielle Barzaghi’s exhibit in one of the galleries.  Gabrielle told me she loved what Nathan had put together, and posed for this photo with him and his magnificent beard:

I also ran into Ken Steiner, who I photographed at the museum before while he was playing the bass as part of a jazz trio in the museum courtyard. Here he is with Sue in front of some work by the Folly Cove Designers:

 

 

I only noticed afterwards that all three photos I picked to post had men with beards in them… Perhaps my own facial foliage adds a subconscious bias to my selection process?

Any event at the Cape Ann Museum is bound to be interesting, because of the amazing art collection and friendly staff.  It’s even better because of the great Cape Ann community that meets there to enjoy the art and each other’s company.

“At the shrine of friendship never say die, let the wine of friendship never run dry” – Les Miserables (Victor Hugo).  The wine didn’t run dry last Friday night!

 

I hope someone ate the wine-soaked fruit afterwards…

– Fr. Matthew Green

 

Yet another glorious sunset!

Posted on by Matthew Green

From last Saturday. Click on the photo to see it on Flickr where you can see a larger version:

 

– Fr. Matthew Green

 

Caveman Chili!

Posted on by Matthew Green

What hot food do they sell at The Cave? Caveman chili, of course!

_chili info

If those ingredients look good to you, you’ll love the way they taste!

_Caveman Chili

This chili is NOT your run-of-the-mill generic chili. I tried some the other day, and found that it has a more well-rounded flavor than most chili I have tried.  Maybe it’s the combination of the high-quality meat and the cheese… or the wine! I just know it’s really tasty. Only mildly spicy, which is the way I like it. I’m sure it would also be great with some Tabasco or your favorite hot sauce, if you want more kick to it!

When I stopped in, they were out of their 4-cheese macaroni and cheese, which sounds amazing too.   I have to stop by some morning before it sells out and get some! I’m betting that the chili and the mac-and-cheese go together really well.

Get it at The Cave, 44 Main St. in Gloucester.  Plus, they always have tasty samples of cheese and/or other goodies available.

_The Cave façade

 

– Fr. Matthew Green

More sunset photos

Posted on by Matthew Green

I think that’s a big ship on the ocean in the distance, in the photo below:

A really big ship!

– Fr. Matthew Green

Class on origami boxes and containers at The Hive!

Posted on by Matthew Green

Plain boxes, fancy boxes, boxes with lids from one sheet of paper, boxes made from multiple units…. I will be teaching these and/or similar models, according to the skill and interests of the students (teens and adults), on Thursday, January 24 at 7PM, at The Hive (on Pleasant Street).

 

Call to reserve a space: 978-283-3889
students: $15
adults: $20

Also, if there is interest in classes on additional themes, please let me know! I would like to do one class a month at The Hive, but that depends somewhat on how busy I am at the parish and on the level of interest and participation.  I can probably find material to cover  just about any theme (dinosaurs, flowers, dragons, horses, frogs, insects…) although how much we can do depends somewhat on the experience of the students.

– Fr. Matthew Green

Can we get this at the McDonald’s on Maplewood?

Posted on by Matthew Green

Wouldn’t it be nice if the local McDonald’s sold locally made Italian pastries? Something like this:

Yes, that’s a pastry counter at a McDonalds! More specifically, in the “McCafé” part of a McDonald’s in the Les Halles shopping center in Paris:

Lots of neat stores, but nowhere near as beautiful as the older architecture.  Here’s a McDonald’s sign in a more traditional setting in Paris, the Rue de Rivoli:

As you can see, I’m still working my way through the photos of my vacation last October…

– Fr. Matthew Green

Inside the church shown in my last post…

Posted on by Matthew Green

…it looks like this:

 

It’s St. Germain L’Auxerrois.  The one where there are Jelly Babies in a little park out front… Photographed during my vacation last fall.

– Fr. Matthew Green

Poll results

Posted on by Matthew Green

Well, the results of yesterday’s poll are pretty clear.  The vast majority of those who voted, were of the opinion that I should keep posting on GMG, perhaps including some disclaimer, or commentary when I disagree with something.  That’s pretty much what I was tending to think too.  Along those lines, I added a disclaimer of sorts to my profile description.

I hope that those who voted the opposite – that I should not be associated with the blog (two options to this effect were included in the poll, varying slightly on the reasons for leaving) – will understand my decision, which I think is pretty well explained by some of the comments that people posted.  Thank you for all your feedback, pro and con!

Speaking of juxtaposing very different kinds of content, here’s a photo I took of a statue of a family of Jelly Babies in front of the Gothic tower of the church of St. Germain L’Auxerrois in Paris.

Whatever, right?

– Fr. Matthew Green

A Poll from Fr. Matthew

Posted on by Matthew Green

Regular readers might have noticed that some of the posts on GMG have been getting a little… well… earthy, or edgy, bordering on NSFW according to some.  Joey is the founder and moderator of the blog, so he can post whatever he wants.  But it creates an interesting situation for me.

I love the GMG community – both the contributors and the readers – and I love the way the blog helps us to know each other and creates community spirit.  However, personally and as a Catholic priest, I can’t approve or agree with all the content.  Does my being a regular contributor imply that I think all the content is appropriate? Should I speak out when there is a post I disagree with, find morally reprehensible, or just plain gross?  Or is that not necessary, given that this is a very diverse blog, and it is not presumed that everyone agrees with everything that everyone else says?

I have gotten feedback of different kinds from different people. Some suggest I should withdraw from the blog so as not to be associated with the cruder content. Others disagree. I’ve been back and forth about it in my own head.  So, I have decided to pose it also to you, as Joey himself often does, in the form of a poll! I am not holding myself bound to act according to the results, but I’d really like to hear your opinion through the poll and/or comments.  (Please keep the comments civil and respectful even if you disagree with other people’s comments.  Sometimes people get hot under the collar when it comes to this type of discussion.)

Note: this poll is multiple choice, so you can pick more than one answer (hopefully you won’t pick ones whose contents are mutually exclusive).

– Fr. Matthew Green

Four-igami

Posted on by Matthew Green

four-igami

These are a few things I’ve folded over the past year or so.  I made this collage trying out a neat (currently free) app on my iPhone: Photo Collage. Credits, from top right going clockwise: dragon, designed by me, folded from an uncut square; crucifix, designed by me, folded from one uncut rectangle; dragon, designed by Won Park, folded from two uncut dollar bills (no glue either – you can unfold it and spend the money); Jack-in-the-box, designed by Max Hulme, folded from one uncut rectangle.

– Fr. Matthew Green

Art at Addison Gilbert Hospital

Posted on by Matthew Green

William Grillo has a show of beautiful paintings in the lobby at Addison Gilbert hospital!

Here’s a closeup detail of one of them:

IMG_3061All of the paintings are well worth looking at, and are often instantly recognizable local places.

IMG_3060– Fr. Matthew Green

 

 

Cafe Shalom at Temple Ahavat Achim

Posted on by Matthew Green

On Saturday night, Temple Ahavat Achim offered a Cafe Shalom event, with Henry Allen and the New Swingset as the opener and the Judith Murray Trio as the headliner.  It was an evening of beautiful jazz! Here are a few photos. The next Cafe Shalom is on February 9th at 7PM, with “The Blackwood Ramblers” and Daisy Nell.

David Wesson is the MC and organizer of Cafe Shalom
Henry Allen and the New Swingset

Judith Murray Trio
Judith Murray Trio

Click here for a slideshow of this and past Cafe Shalom events

– Fr. Matthew Green