We are getting to the time of year when you may get family visitors, as we did recently. And if there are children, you may be wondering how to entertain them. This post continues to discuss the activities we experienced recently with a 9 year old and a 3 year old. We drove into Boston to visit the New England Aquarium. Normally I would recommend taking the train, but for various reasons we drove this time and paid to park in the garage next to the Aquarium. Not a deal breaker, but you do what you have to do.
They were experiencing some issues with the 3D offerings so we just got “Aquarium” only tickets. It’s a little on the pricey side but definitely worth the joy and amazement demonstrated by the entire family. We were lucky that is wasn’t that crowded and there was easy access to all the exhibits and talks. Of course, the featured aquarium tank that spans all the floors is the main attraction, along with the penguins. But there are plenty of other informational and attractive areas to explore. The sea lions were especially entertaining. It took us an afternoon to make this visit without rushing through so it’s a wonderful way to spend half a day and experience a little bit of Boston for a fuller day if you choose. Seal of approval from 2 kids and their parents as well as the grandparents!
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Free and fun for all ages taking place at 20 and 21 Main Street in downtown Gloucester!
Gloucester Zine Fest presented by the Sawyer Free Library is taking place this Saturday, April 27, from 11 am to 3 pm at both 20 and 21 Main Street in Gloucester, MA. The festival, in celebration of the Library’s new zine collection, zine- making, and zine culture, promises a day filled with artistic expression, community engagement, and fun for all ages. It is free and open to everyone to attend and enjoy with free giveaways for the first 200 attendees.
Attendees can look forward to a vibrant and engaging lineup of hands-on activities and workshops for all ages, including inspiring speakers and live music with a special performance by Gloucester Student Band, with the highlight being the Zine Marketplace at 20 Main Street. Participants of all ages can also unleash their creativity by crafting their own zine with local community partners Cape Ann Art Haven and Cape Ann Museum. And what’s a festival without some delicious treats? Attendees can indulge in some Holy Cow Ice Cream while immersing themselves in the world of zines.
The Sawyer Free Library would like to thank 20 Main Street, LLC, for the generous use of their space.
If you’re asking, “what’s a zine?” that’s ok. Zines are small-batch, DIY publications that provide a powerful platform of expression for underrepresented perspectives and voices.
We had family visiting a while ago and it was nice enough to go to one of my favorite places to take visitors: the Zoo! We are blessed with 2 Zoos in the area and decided to visit Stone Zoo in Stoneham. Since it’s kind of early in the season, some renovations are still under way in some areas which is very normal. But it was the perfect day for many of the animals to be out and relatively active. We were especially thrilled with the flamingos and the active black bears. The children in the group remain (mostly) engaged but the adults were totally enthralled. We have a membership that allows guests so we paid nothing extra at the gate. I think this is a good investment as we go a few times a year and it pays itself off. The drive and the parking are relatively easy so it makes for a great family activity.
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The Gloucester Education Foundation and Gloucester Public Schools are thrilled to bring back the Gloucester Student Arts Festival for its 14th year, a daylong celebration of the arts in the Gloucester Public Schools! The festival will feature indoor exhibits of student work at City Hall and the Cape Ann Museum, and an outdoor block party on Warren Street and in the CAM Courtyard with performances, live music, art-making workshops, and food trucks. Visual and performing arts from grades Pre-K-12 will be showcased, with the goal of every student in Gloucester represented in at least one way. All 3rd, 5th and 8th graders will also have work on display at the Cape Ann Museum, and GHS seniors will be highlighted in a curated show at City Hall, with an opening reception on Friday 5/17. A closing concert by Dis n Dat, a band selected by GHS students, will take place from 3-4pm in the CAM Courtyard. This all-ages event will be a destination for families, community members, artists, and visitors. Join us for a day of joyful creativity and art! Visit http://www.thinkthebest.org/news1/artsfest24 for details. Final schedule will be posted 5/1/24.
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Manship Artists Residency is pleased to announce THE NET WORKS: a multi-sensory installation built upon the narrative of Gloucester’s fishing community, opening May 10th and running through May 27th. The exhibition was envisioned by artist Erika Senft Miller during the pandemic and her consequent virtual residency with the Manship Artists Residency in 2020. The installation at 52 Commercial Street, is located in the heart of Gloucester’s working waterfront in a building that was a former seafood processing plant. The fishing net serves as a literal and metaphorical symbol in an immersive exhibit that includes scents, sounds, and tactile experiences, where visitors, like fish, move through a passage of netting. The Net Works honors Gloucester’s iconic working waterfront and its generations of fisherman with the net symbolizing the interconnectedness of man and sea and the community itself.
Manship Artist Erika Senft Miller rowing in Gloucester Harbor with James Tarantino (photographer)
Multi-sensory artist Erika Senft Miller, who has coordinated other community-based, site-specific productions explains, “No matter where we are, we’re all connected. Whatever happens in the fishing community in Gloucester affects us all. The Net Works plunges us into this experience at a crucial moment in the life of America’s oldest fishing port.”
Senft Miller describes her vision for the exhibition as: “My team and I wanted to make something that you can touch, smell, hear, move through, and contemplate. We imagined an experience that entails walking through a full-scale fishing net and engaging with a mixed-media composition that incorporates the creaking of a boat, the voices of the fishermen, the sounds of blocks, lines and the sea, and scents of fishing life that have lingered for so many generations.”
Senft Miller’s team consists of the founder of Alice & the Magician Sensory Design, Aaron Wisniewski, to incorporate scent; media technologist and composer Miles Dean Ewell for sound as well as musician Neha Ewell; video by Menghan Wang; photographer Paul Cary Goldberg; glass blower Rich Arentzen; and Peter Waxdal of SenovvA, Inc., a designer and installer of interactive generative experiential features. Many members of the local fishing community contributed to this project, especially Gloucester native and former fisherman James Tarrantino, and commercial fisherman Captain Joseph Sanfilippo.
Collaborators Meghan Wang and Peter Waxdal testing an experiential feature of The Net WorksPaul Cary Goldberg photographer. Heading to PortPaul Cary Goldberg photographer. Mending NetsPaul Cary Goldberg photographer. Two Mackerel (Re-Imagined)Sound and Scent captureThe Net Works Cohort. Artists in Residence at Starfield, the Manship Artists ResidencyThe Net Works collaborator Captain Joseph Sanfilippo mending the net_photograph by Tsar FedorskyThe Net Works collaborator Paul Cary Goldberg tests a transparency of one of his photographs in placeThe Net Works collaborators_ Captain Joseph Sanfilippo, Peter Waxdal, Erika Senft Miller, Menghan Wang, Paul Cary Goldberg, and James Tarantino_photograph by Tsar FedorskyThe Net Works collaborators. Menghan Wang, Erika Senft Miller, Paul Cary Goldger, and Peter WaxdalThe Net Works research
Research for the project was supported by Prometheus Circle of the Manship Artists Residency, and a learning grant from the New England Foundation for the Arts. The project has also received grants from The Vermont Arts Council, The Bruce J. Anderson Foundation, and Awesome Gloucester. Support and contributions were also provided by Burlington City Arts, The Cape Ann Museum, and Maritime Gloucester. Owner of Intershell, Monte Rome, also donated the exhibition space.
The exhibition will run from May 10th through Memorial Day, opening Friday, May 10 at 5:30 pm. The exhibit will be open to the public Thursday through Sunday, 4:30 – 7:30 pm and by appointment. Register for your ticketed-entry time at tinyurl/TheNetWorks24.
ABOUT the MANSHIP ARTISTS RESIDENCY
The site of the Manship Artists Residency was once the summer retreat of Paul Manship, the sculptor of the Prometheus Fountain at Rockefeller Center. Many of the same opportunities and qualities that attracted Manship to Cape Ann are available to those who come here seeking solitude or community in this restorative landscape. Manship Artists Residency gives artists and the creative spirit time and space to flourish for the benefit of our community by welcoming artists and thought leaders from around the world to work in these serene surroundings steps away from the scenic northeast coast of New England. Our residents magnify the social capital and the cultural value of Cape Ann, and our innovative programming contributes to the health and vitality of our community and beyond. ManshipArtists.org
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April 22, 2024. Observance of the first night of Passover begins tonight. As families and friends gather at the table to celebrate may love and joy abound. Happy hopeful Passover!
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We visited Pauline to get a little preview of the upcoming season after improvements with the building and new stock added! It’s time to celebrate when Pauline’s reopens! Link to Pauline’s Gifts for additional info here.
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Car enthusiasts! Come bring your car or come and see cars from all over the region from exotics, collector, vintage, special, muscle….we are gathering at the Cruiseport Gloucester on April 28, 2024 from 9am – 12pm to enjoy sharing our autos but most important to donate to several local charities.
We will be raising money for Lifebridge, Amirah, Beverly Bootstraps, The Pelican Fund – all great causes to help others in less fortunate situations.
There is no cost to attend for your car or as a spectator but we are asking for everyone to make a donation to the Solomon Fund that will pay all net proceeds to these charities. We will also have a raffle.
Good Morning Gloucester 
