My View of Life on the Dock
If you haven’t stopped into Carol McKenna’s gallery recently, you should go by and see her work and work by new artists: Kathy Chapman, Lisa Courtney, Alice Gardner, Jane Keddy and Eileen Patten Oliver.
Also, if you have been wondering what the future might hold for you, stop by for a reading with psychic, Joy Kasmer. I’m no psychic, but I see a visit to Carol McKenna’s Gallery in your future.
E.J. Lefavour
Thursday, August 1st – Nights on the Neck – always fun for the whole family.
Saturday, August 3rd – Stop by Khan Studio and the GMG Gallery, 77 Rocky Neck Ave., Gallery 3 for Audi Souza’s Opening Reception for her exhibit Cape Ann Views and North Shore Gardens from 6-8:00, then head over to the Beaux Arts Ball at the Center. And if that’s not enough, Chowderhouse is back at Sailor Stan’s with music by Kitt Cox’s Sunny Fishcakes Review 5-8:00pm. Chowder & Chilli ($5 Cup/$7 Bowl).
E.J. Lefavour
Always a great time on Rocky Neck. Here are some photos from July NOTN on Madfish Wharf, with Sol y Canto putting on a great performance for a rapt audience. See schedule of performers for our August 1st and September 5th Nights on the Neck below.
E.J. Lefavour
August 3rd, 6-10:00 pm – Don’t miss it! The 2013 Rocky Neck Beaux Arts Ball. Dig out some old threads and make them into something new. Turn your recyclables into a trendy fashion statement. You’re not expected to look like the model here – go for something uniquely you. See you there.
E.J. Lefavour
Rocky Neck Gallery’s Summer Artists Series: Marsh as Metaphor –
New paintings by Brenda Cirioni.
Wednesday, July 24 – Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Marsh: Pool
mixed media on panel
24 x 24
$1600.
Rocky Neck Gallery is pleased to announce the fourth show of the Summer Artist Series featuring artist Brenda Cirioni and her exhibit Marsh as Metaphor. This dramatic new show opens Wednesday, July 24 and runs for three weeks until August 13. Meet Brenda Cirioni and learn about her intriguing creative process at an artist’s reception on Saturday, July 27 from 5-7 PM.
Cirioni’s paintings, consisting of mixed media on panel, are energetic, thought provoking and beautiful depictions of nature. This new series is inspired by her family home burning to the ground when she was sixteen. While touching upon utter destruction, her paintings are celebratory, bursting with color and regeneration.
In this series she explores the tension between nature and the elements. Her work is about the power of transformation within nature and within us. Cirioni paints the background composition, then draws, splatters and drips with acrylic ink and paint creating a surface rich with texture, color and movement. She enlarges on the composition with torn paper scraps, feathers, fiber and other debris. Her method of layering and juxtaposing disparate materials draws attention to the multiplicities and mysteries of nature and life.
Please join us and meet Brenda Cirioni on Saturday, July 27th from 5-7 PM for a reception. Hear her talk about her work and process around 6 PM. Delicious refreshments will be served. Rocky Neck Gallery is located on 53 Rocky Neck Avenue, Gloucester. The hours are: Sunday – Wednesday: 11 AM – 6 PM, Thursday – Saturday: 11 AM – 8 PM. Free parking is available.
There will be an exciting exhibit of Audi Souza’s acrylic paintings at Khan Studio, 77 Rocky Neck Ave., Gallery 3 from July 27 – August 9 with an Opening Reception on Saturday, August 3 from 6-8:00pm. Come over to Audi’s opening before steppin’ out to the Beaux Arts Ball.
E.J. Lefavour
www.khanstudiointernational.com
Last evening was the opening reception for the East Goes West exhibit of works by Rocky Neck artists at Castle Manor Inn. All I can say is, Castle Manor knows how to put on an event with a flair. The function space looked beautiful, as did every other space in the Inn and restaurant, and the grounds are peaceful and meticulously maintained. Appetizers and champagne served by a very professional and friendly staff were delicious. Attendees were treated to tours of the exhibit and a sampling of rooms in the Inn, which are lovely and tastefully appointed.
If you have a wedding, anniversary or other function coming up, or friends, family or business associates coming to visit, you owe it to yourself to check out Castle Manor Inn. On a more regular tip – check out Sea Glass restaurant or just stop by the pub for a drink. The exhibit will be up through August, so stop by any time and check out the artwork and Castle Manor Inn.
E.J. Lefavour
Eight of East Gloucester’s Rocky Neck artists exhibit 44 pieces of work throughout the reception area, lobby, dining rooms of Sea Glass Restaurant and function area of West Gloucester’s elegant Castle Manor Inn at 141 Essex Ave. The exhibit runs July 2 – September 2 with an Opening Reception on Tuesday, July 23rd from 5:00-7:00. A great reason to visit the Inn and Sea Glass Restaurant. Hope to see you at the opening being put on by the Inn – it will be great.
E.J. Lefavour
Hi Joey,
A shot of B’s ice cream today – vanilla with those red jellied fish as a topping from Kiss on the Neck. It made me think of Bertha’s, a penny candy shop that used to be directly across the street. That was the first place I encountered those fish as a boy. Every kid in East Gloucester knew about Bertha’s, and you could buy actual penny candy there – a penny per piece. You would collect the candy from bins using a small basket, then bring the basket to the register, where Bertha would tally your loot with you and ring it up on and old mechanical register. She would then put your candy in a small paper bag to carry home. I could go in there with a quarter and leave a happy customer!
She also had toys, nic-nacs, ice cream and drinks too. Bertha was a kind old lady, who loved animals, kids and seemed happily married to her artist husband Ollie. Looking back, she was a pretty effective math teacher, too!
Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid
Editors note from Joey C:
Bertha’s was a special place. Sista Felicia and I used to ride our bikes from Harriett Rd over in East Gloucester down Grapevine and to Bertha’s on Rocky Neck where we would spend the $1 a piece our mom gave us to buy penny candy. 100 pieces of candy for $1- it was like heaven.
There was also the East Gloucester Fire Barn (now closed) where the firemen would sell penny candy too and the Yarn Shop where Ciolinos barber Shop is now used to sell Penny candy as well.
Do you have a spot where you would go as a kid for Penny Candy?
It is coming up fast, the 2013 Rocky Neck Beaux Arts Ball. This year the theme is recycled, repurposed, revived. Put on your creative thinking cap and come up with a fun, unique costume (plastic bags, newspapers, empty cans or bottles, fish net, a recreated second hand outfit – like our poster model Katharine Worth created and is wearing – from Bananas, Second Glance, Madcap Style or any of our many vintage, second hand and thrift shops, etc.). Have fun with your costume, and then come and have fun at the Beaux Arts Ball at the Rocky Neck Cultural Center on Saturday, August 3rd from 6-10:00 pm.
There will be no mug up this Sunday morning, but do come by Sunday afternoon from 2-5:00 pm to the Opening Reception for Marion Hall’s truly wonderful watercolor exhibit, Life is a Beach. Marion is from Manchester and is a member of both the North Shore and Rockport Art Associations. If you love well executed traditional watercolor paintings of our beautiful area, at incredibly reasonable prices, you don’t want to miss this exhibit.
E.J. Lefavour
Saturday, July 13 – Friday, July 26th Manchester watercolor artist, Marion Hall, will be exhibiting her beautiful beach and seaside watercolor paintings at Khan Studio and the Good Morning Gloucester Gallery, 77 Rocky Neck Ave., Gallery 3.
There will be an Opening Reception on Sunday, July 14th from 2-5:00pm.
E.J. Lefavour
www.khanstudiointernational.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Stevie Black/ Marketing Director
marketing@rockyneckartcolony.org
617-872-5296
The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck Presents An Exhibition entitled, “twentythirteen” Selections by Ms. Blythe Hazen, of Montserrat College of Art, on view through August 4, 2013 June 10, 2013 – Gloucester MA – Works by eighteen artists in a wide variety of media have been selected for the “twentythirteen” exhibition on view from July 11 through August 4 at the Cultural Center at Rocky Neck, 6 Wonson Street, Gloucester. Hours are from 12–6 PM, Thursday through Sunday and the public is invited to a reception on Saturday, July 13 from 4-6 PM.
Juror Blyth Hazen, professor of art at Montserrat College of Art, selected the work for
“twentythirteen” from submissions to an open call for entries sent to artists from Boston to the North Shore. 18 works of art were selected from more than 130 submitted. Works on view are those by Beverly Arsem, David Barber, John Carney, Kathy Chapman, Anne Cowman, Nicole Dahlmer, Nina Fletcher, Margaret Furlong, Kim Gulino, Bob Hesse, Susan Johnson, Jane Keddy, Elynn Kroger, Katia Mason, David McCoy, Leila Namin, Lois Tarlow and Juni Van Dyke. Seven of the artists are from Gloucester, but most are new to the Cultural Center; some hail from as far away as Jamaica Plain, Newton and Worcester. Four artists will be honored with gift certificates, compliments of Blick Art Materials.
Professor Hazen was “drawn to work that articulated or played with space and the related qualities of light and scale.” She revealed in a juror’s statement, “While the works I selected for this exhibit are not particularly about seaside life, they are all in some way about how the ocean has impacted my awareness of space and place.”
She continued to observe, “I am attracted to the abstract space formed by the colors and grays in Beverly Arsem’s quilt and the macro-micro worlds of Lois Tarlow and Juni Van Dyke’s 2D compositions. I have a similar interest in Katia Mason’s paper constructions. There are atmospheric spatial plays in both Elynn Kroger’s abstract landscape and Bob Hesse created a fantastical space composited from images of real places. Lelia Namin’s woman knitting, invites a rather odd yet intriguing psychological space.”
“I selected three photographs, each with a different twist. Susan Johnson’s “Swampscott”, pops in and out of deep and flat space. Nicole Dahlmer’s photograph is of an object of unknown scale. Kathy Chapman’s “Essex Garden” is seen as if in compressed space/time. Kim Gulino and David Barber both present more humorous works that play with the notion of bodies in space. Jane Keddy’s painting of a shoreline hints of space by overlapping and downsizing distant objects but at the same time flattens space with solid color. Anne Cowman and Margaret Furlong’s simplified landscapes use color and light to make us feel the distant horizon or overpowering sky. Last but not least the sculptures of John Carney, David McCoy and Nina Fletcher, though made from very different materials cut through and carve out interesting places in actual spaces.”
The Rocky Neck Art Colony is honored to show such diverse work. Viewers will find sculpture and prints, quilts and photographs; the range of media make the show interesting in itself and well worth the trip to Rocky Neck this summer.
EXHIBITION LISTINGS
“twentythirteen”
Sculptures, Prints, Quilts, & Photographs
Exhibit runs from July 11 – August 4, 2013
Thursdays – Sundays, 12–6 PM
Meet The Artists Reception
Saturday, July 13, 2013, 4–6 PM
The Cultural Center At Rocky Neck
6 Wonson Street, Gloucester MA 01930
Check here for Rocky Neck Art Colony exhibitions and special events.
About Rocky Neck Art Colony
The crown jewel of Gloucester’s harbor community, Rocky Neck is home to mostly year-round residents and has a thriving summertime population of artists, art galleries and restaurants, and the Rocky Neck Art Colony, one of the oldest working art colonies in the United States and a 501(c)3 arts organization since 1973. Rocky Neck recently became one of the first five “Designated Massachusetts Cultural Districts” in the state of Massachusetts; this designation denotes past traditions and contemporary vibrancy along with the area’s orientation towards a local creative economy. The mission of the Rocky Neck Art Colony is to nurture excellence in the visual arts and to celebrate the artistic culture of Rocky Neck and the entire Cultural District.
Local Cape Ann buses and seasonal trolleys serve the area and the Gloucester Harbor Water Shuttle makes it easy to visit East Gloucester by water.
Judythe Evans Meagher celebrates the fifteenth anniversary of her
gallery at 37 Rocky Neck Avenue with new paintings of Rocky Neck
scenes on July 12, 13 & 14, noon to 8 pm. Opening Reception is
Friday, July 12th 4 pm to 8 pm. All are welcome.
This shot was taken from aboard the M/V Lady Jillian, Gloucester’s Harbor Water Shuttle and Tour. The water shuttle is a great way to get around and see Gloucester’s inner harbor for short money ($10 for adults, children 6-12 $5 and under 6 free). Hop on/Hop off all day (daily during the summer noon – 6:00pm; last depart at 5:00pm). Pick ups on the hour at Harbor Loop/Jacobs Landing, 15 minutes after the hour at St. Peter’s Landing, 30 minutes after the hour at Rocky Neck Art Colony and 45 minutes after the hour at Cripple Cove, Cruiseport and Head of the Harbor (on request). Leave your car and hop aboard the Lady Jillian for a nice tour and refreshing trip around Gloucester Harbor.
E.J. Lefavour
On Friday night, I stopped by the opening of Art on the Rocks at the Cultural Center at Rock Neck (in the downstairs area). I was already familiar with some of the work of the artists, so I was really looking forward to seeing this show. It was well worth it! Stop by while you still can!
Here are some photos of the artists and their work, in a slideshow.
Sarah Rasmussen and Mark Miller of Ride on Transportation, a livery service on East Main Street, represent in front of Joey’s awesome giclees. Sarah and Mark have been operating Ride on Transportation for three years. They take people to the airport, medical appointments, shopping, etc. If you have a livery need, call them at 978-879-9973.
E.J. Lefavour
This Sunday, July 7, is the last day of the “Griffin Museum’s Photography Atelier 17” show at the Cultural Center at Rocky Neck. I twill close with a special event: form 5-6PM, the director of the Griffin Museum will give a free gallery talk! The photos are remarkable, so I am sure the gallery talk will be well worth attending.
Gigi Mederos has again agreed to host Mug Up at her beautiful space, Aquatro Gallery at 77 Rocky Neck Ave., G4. 9:30 am Sunday, July 7. Join us for a nice new tradition this year – moveable mug ups. All are welcome. Feel free to bring along something to share. Can anyone guess what I’m bringing?
E.J. Lefavour
www.khanstudiointernational.com
Good Morning Gloucester 
