Colleen shares a nice note of thanks to GMG and the community, and forwards a thank you with an important update & message from the Friends of Sawyer Free:
Thank you (Catherine / GMG) again for all you do for us at the Friends of the SFL we greatly appreciate the work that you do to help us connect with the community.
Colleen Hogan-Lopez, January 2021
Dear Members,
As we begin the New Year, with the development of COVID-19 vaccines, we are all hopeful that soon we will be able to gradually return to safer, less restricted lives. As with any major disruptions, we often look back to see what we can learn from it and what changes we can make that will not only improve our own lives, but also the lives of others. We reflect on the good things, the things that are truly important, that perhaps in the past we have taken for granted. We adapted as a community, making an effort to help others in whatever way we are able. Neighbors helping neighbors and supporting service and charitable organizations, that continue to help those in crisis.
The Sawyer Free Library also adapted to maintain a connection with the people of our community by finding ways to continue services. The staff and administration developed virtual, on-going programs for adults and children and offers curbside service, so patrons can safely pick up books and materials. The Friends of the Library resumed gently used book sales in a new location on the main floor of the library, we now call The Book Nook.
Members like you continued to support our efforts by making a donation during our recent membership drive. Our 2020-2021 membership drive was our only avenue this year to raise the funds needed to support programs, purchase technology and fulfill other requests from the library. Your generosity made this year’s drive one of our most successful drives. We are thankful for our faithful current members and also for all of our new members. We want to thank you again for making it possible for us to continue fulfilling our mission; to enhance the patrons’ experience at the Sawyer Free Library. Without your generosity, our goals would not be attainable.
-Rebecca Aliberte, President Friends of Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library
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Sawyer Free upcoming January 2021 events are highlighted in a wonderful newsletter:
Prudence Fish lecture on January 9th
Learn more about Gloucester homes from your home!
Author and authority on antique houses, Prudence Fish, is a 2021 invited speaker at Sawyer Free Library. Her lecture about the oldest houses in Gloucester, showing Saturday, January 9th, from 2-4pm, is sure to be informative and entertaining. Because of Covid-19, the library has specially pre-recorded the event in order to bring a fresh, new talk directly to you. More about Pru Fish here
Cook a Book – January 12, 1pm
Matz Gallery Exhibitions- January 2021 Carol Dirga
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Touring the Sawyer Free Library grounds with Linda Bosselman on the occasion of her last day at work*, we receive a garden pep talk peppered with small gestures and comforting words. We almost forget that it’s her last day. Isn’t that typical of time spent with Linda? Her professional and unassuming smarts earned the trust of her colleagues, and make it a joy to learn from her experiences. An avid local history buff, photographer and community volunteer, she’ll be busy as ever. Still, it’s a big change with her having worked at Sawyer Free for the past three decades.
*Like other milestones during the pandemic, retirement (early) celebrations are altered.
happy retirement MESSAGES FOR LINDA –
Christy Rosso, Sawyer Free Library Director of Children’s Services, writes:
We have so many happy memories together, laughing over a huge display we had to do in a hurry — you frantically ironing hundreds of yards of blue fabric, me looping and winding it around City Hall for what seemed like days. It emerged as a beautiful and thoughtful addition to the event. Mischief managed. We designed many more wonderful displays and programs together, gardened, crafted, photographed, and grew a wonderful library and book collection together for our city’s children and families. Thank you so much for all of that. You have been a wonderful part of this library for 29 years. We are warmly appreciative for everything. We wish you happiness and more adventures ahead as you retire. Always,
Through her 29 years of service to the library, Linda has provided support in so many different areas; managing and circulating the collections, organizing and photographing programs, creating beautiful displays and brochures and answering every possible question about all things Gloucester. The list is endless. We love her and will miss her dearly but she has promised to fill in at the library every once in a while and that’s a comfort to us.
September 3, 1991- how lucky were we that day to have Linda Bosselman start working at Sawyer Free Library? She’s worked upstairs and downstairs, with adult’s and children’s services, with different co-workers and directors, for three decades. Helping generations of patrons. I mean it when I’m saying congratulations and thanks. Also all I really want to say is, “No, don’t leave!”
Justine Vitale, Librarian, Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library
“These are beach tree saplings, not weeds. People can nurture descendants from this great gorgeous tree!”
“Volunteers could weed a little in between the landscaping crews; just toss under the hedge until they come through. And share their expertise helping point out weeds from the special native plants.”
“In the winter, I love to photograph the library from Middle Street with City Hall in the background. I climb up on the (YMCA) wall across the street, right there.”
“The tomatoes need to be picked soon or they’ll split.”
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Sharing message from Colleen Hogan-Lopez on behalf of the Friends of the Sawyer Free Library
Dear members of the Gloucester community,
As we, the Friends of the Sawyer Free Library, open our 2020-2021 Membership Drive, we must acknowledge the profound changes that Covid-19 has made in our lives here in Gloucester and across the nation. Our lifestyle and the way that we are able to connect with others in our families and community, has changed in ways that we could never have imagined.
The Covid-19 virus has impacted the library significantly, including the Friends’ ability to raise money on which the library depends for programs, equipment and services that are beyond the library’s annual budget.
Our major sources of income, our Book Shop and our annual Art Auction, are suspended. With the library closed, patrons have not been able to access the books for sale in our Book Shop.
Also in light of public safety concerns and Covid-19 restrictions, we thought it wise to postpone our annual Art Auction until Spring 2021*.
Our mission is to enhance the patrons’ experience at the library. Now, this year, with the shortfall in revenue, our Membership Drive becomes even more crucial to the ability of the library to continue to serve patrons at the same level as in the past. The Friends of the Sawyer Free Library are reaching out to ask that you please consider becoming a member of the Friends at whatever level of membership you are able. Your donation will allow us to continue our support of the library, and, in turn, allow the library to continue serving all patrons to the fullest extent possible during this unprecedented time. Here is the link to render payment via PayPal for Oct. 2020- Sept. 2021 annual membership, or print out the membership form here (see below) and mail a check to the address at the bottom of the form. We thank you for your consideration.
“…Coughlin said the building, which was built in 1969, needs to be updated but is in good shape structurally and will not be demolished. “It’s too good of a building (to demolish),” he said.”– John Coughlin Gateway Realty Trust quoted in Gloucester Daily Times, Paul Leighton article 1/7/2020
What a beautiful spot! The building was designed by architect Donald F. Monell for the Beverly Newspaper Offices and Factory in 1968 (built 1969) and consolidated with the Salem News in 1995. Monell worked and resided in Gloucester Massachusetts and designed residential, public and busieness projects including the Gloucester Daily Times (1956), Newburyport Daily News buildings, Sawyer Free Library addition, and the Cape Ann Museum.
photos – winter views January 2020
photos: Spring views
Will Build to Suit (978) 768-4511
About the architect
Excerpt from a prior post I wrote about Donald F. Monell back in May 2019 with photos of extant designs both residential and commercial:
“Donald F. Monell ( 1917-2002) earned multiple degrees: Bowdoin (BS, 1937) , Royal College of Edinburgh (1938), Tekniska Hogskolan in Stockholm (KTH Royal Institute of Technology), and M.I.T. (MS in city planning,1941 and MS in architecture, 1950). He was a research assistant in City Planning at M.I.T. (1940-41), and a Research Associate in solar energy at M.I.T. from 1949 to 1951. During World War II he served as a Captain with the 333 Engrs. S.S. Regiment in the US Army Corp of Engineers from 1942-46. Prior to setting up his own firm in 1952, he worked as a community planner in Tennessee and for various architectural establishments. His son Alex Monell said that his father declined positions with larger international firms. “He preferred working on a smaller one to one relationship with clients.” Monell’s tenure at M.I.T. coincided with I.M. Pei and Buckminster Fuller; Monell set up his eponymous business two years prior to I.M. Pei. I asked Alex if his father worked with architect Eleanor Raymond. She built her home in Gloucester and had similar interest in sustainable design. She is credited with designing one of the first solar heated houses in 1948 “I know he worked with Maria Telkes (who invented a means to store heat in melted crystals that stored more than water could) on one of their solar homes and now that I looked her up I see the home was designed by Eleanor Raymond! So they knew each other.”
Monell was licensed to practice in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York and was NCARB certified. He was a member of AiA and Boston Society of Architects. He served on Gloucester’s Civic Art Committee beginning in the 1960s. He was a trustee of the Cape Ann Symphony Orchestra, an incorporator of AGH and Cape Ann Savings Bank, and a Vice President of the Cape Ann Museum (then Cape Ann Historical Assoc.). Monell’s office was located in the Brown Building, 11 Pleasant Street. His son remembers visiting his dad on jobs and admiring the hand made scale models. Local residents may recognize the names of Monell hires: Kirk Noyes who preserved Central Grammar and other award winning developments, was a draftsman, and Craig Toftey helped Monell
Don Monell and Lila Swift should rightly be included on any Massachusetts #MassModernism trail. courtesy image: portrait of Lila and Don Monell ca.1951 at Sarah Fraser Robbins (photographer unknown)
Don Monell and Lila Swift, co-founders and collaborators of their own wrought steel furniture design firm in 1950, Swift & Monell, husband and wife, architect and artist, were the Charles and Ray Eames* of Gloucester for a time. Original examples of their woven leather, metal and enamel stools, tables, and bins are rare and placed in collections. The furniture was exhibited at Current Design (now ICA) and Furniture Forum. They operated the business in upstate New York when Monell worked for Sargent Webster Crenshaw & Folley. They built a studio for their business in their home when they moved back to Gloucester in 1952. Initial prototypes and editions were inspired by touring Lawrence Mills with Monell’s brother in law, who worked in the textile industry. Alex clarifies: “I do not know what mill my father’s brother in law was involved in or to what capacity, I just remember my parents toured it and found the source of leather. A Cambridge firm sold them for awhile. And later my parents gifted them as wedding presents to close friends and relatives. Ray Parsons a blacksmith from Rockport often made the frames and later I made some at Modern Heat.”
*footnote- Ray Eames in Gloucester: Before Hans Hofmann (1880 – 1966) settled into teaching in Provincetown, he was invited to teach summer classes at the Thurn School of Art in Gloucester, Massachusetts, in 1933 and 1934. Thurn was a former Hofmann student. Ray Eames studied painting with Hofmann in Gloucester and was a student of his for years. Decades later (during an interview with Ruth Bowman, who I knew, was wonderful, and friends with Rita Fraad who had a great Hopper) Eames mentioned 1940, a later date, for when she first learned about Hofmann. On an architecture timeline- Charles and Ray Eames were born in 1907 and 1912 respectively, and Monell in 1917. They were married about a decade before Monell & Swift and west coast rather than east. Yet they were contemporaries. Art & Architecture case study homes began in 1945 (Eames house, 1949) Eames lounge chairs were manufactured in 1956 (after years of prototypes). Gropius House in Lincoln , Mass., landmark Bauhaus residence now museum was built in 1938, same year as MoMa Bauhaus exhibition. The Graduate school at Harvard designed by Gropius was a TAC (The Architects Collaborative) build in 1950. TAC was founded in 1945 with the clout addition of Gropius who continued with the firm until his death in 1969. Original 7 founders were Norman Fletcher, Louis McMillen, Robert McMillan, Ben Thompson, Jean Fletcher, Sarah Harkness and John Harkness. Twenty years later, Monell’s Plum Cove elementary school design in 1967 was leveraged by partnering with The Architects Collaborative. Gloucester’s Plum Cove school is a TAC build. Wikipedia lists several commissions. The school could be added…”
Read my full piece here and see more examples of his buildings. “Many of his commissions are heavenly sites where buildings serve the surroundings, whether built or natural.”
February 26, 2018 Gloucester Daily Times
Writing for the Gloucester Daily Times, Paul Leighton wrote that Salem News was looking for a new space because the operations no longer required such a big building. Various production and departments had already been relocated by this time. You can read the full February 2018 story here. The article mentions that it’s a 60,000 square foot property. Recent descriptions indicate that it’s 37,000+. I’m not sure why; perhaps, the greater figure encapsulated the grounds.
2019 Commercial listing description
“32 Dunham is a 37,502 square foot building on 6 acres of land. Zoned for industrial, research and office, with high visibility on route 128. Less than 30 minutes from downtown Boston and Logan airport.”
January 7, 2020 Gloucester Daily Times
Salem News moving to Danvers article by Paul Leighton Staff Writer about the status of the building now
excerpts:
“The Salem News is moving out of its longtime home in Beverly and heading to a new location in Danvers. The newspaper will move into its new office suite at 300 Rosewood Drive in Danvers on Sunday, according to Karen Andreas, regional publisher of North of Boston Media Group, which includes the Gloucester Daily Times.
“The Salem News has been located at 32 Dunham Road in Beverly since merging with the former Beverly Times in 1995. The company moved its press and printing operations out of Beverly years ago and consolidated several other business functions, such as the finance and customer service departments, in the North Andover offices of its sister paper, The Eagle-Tribune. Therefore, Andreas said, the Salem News no longer needs a building of that size.
“This building is 37,500 square feet, and way too big for us,” Andreas said. “It doesn’t make sense for us operationally.”
“Gateway Realty Trust of Essex has signed a purchase-and-sale agreement to buy 32 Dunham Road. John Coughlin, a project manager for Gateway Realty, said the company plans to preserve the building and lease it.
“Coughlin said Gateway does not have a tenant lined up yet but said the building, which has a mix of office and warehouse space and more than 100 parking spots, would be good for many types of businesses.
“Ideally it would be one tenant that would want to take the whole building, or we can sub-divide it,” he said. “It lends itself to a lot of potential users.”
“…Coughlin said his company, which owns several buildings on the North Shore, was attracted to the building due to its location next to Route 128. Dunham Road has been the site of several new office complexes built by Cummings Properties as well as a new manufacturing headquarters built by tech company Harmonic Drive. The road is also home to North Shore Music Theatre.
“…The Salem News building, which includes six acres of land, was listed for sale at $3.5 million.
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Middle Street Walk Gloucester, Ma. – Friends of Sawyer Free and Gloucester High School National Honor Society students helped with bustling stations of Harry Potter themed crafts and treats from creative librarians.
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just a few photos of many beautiful libraries in Massachusetts (Boston, Gloucester, Quincy, Beverly, Middleton)
As do towns! The proposed new building (Dore & Whittier/Matt Oudens) related to the Sawyer Free Library is landing at the tail end of the visioning trend called out in this Atlantic article by Alia Wong:
“College Students Just Want Normal Libraries: Schools have been on a mission to reinvent campus libraries—even though students just want the basics.”
“Yet much of the glitz may be just that—glitz. Survey data and experts suggest that students generally appreciate libraries most for their simple, traditional offerings: a quiet place to study or collaborate on a group project, the ability to print research papers, and access to books.”
“So-called digital natives still crave opportunities to use libraries as libraries, and many actively seek out physical texts—92 percent of the college students surveyed in a 2015 study, for example, said they preferred paper books to electronic versions. (Plus, a growing body of evidence shows that physical books and papers are more conducive to learning than digital formats are.) The dean of learning and technology resources at one of the six campuses of Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) recently told me about a student he had met: Upon learning that her campus library had only the e-book version of a text she needed to read, the woman opted to make the trek to another campus a nearly half-hour commute away that had the hard copy. A 2016 survey of students at Webster University in Washington, D.C., also illustrates limited use of digital resources, finding that just 18 percent of students accessed e-books “frequently” or “very frequently,” compared with 42 percent who never used them.
“Duke University’s 2016 survey of its students drew similar conclusions, finding that book delivery was one of the most important services to students; fancy library services such as instant messaging or data-visualization help fell much lower on students’ priority lists. A separate, years-long project on community-college students by the NOVA dean and a team of researchers found that respondents “most often view the library as the service provider they would likely go to” for an array of bread-and-butter needs, such as help gathering research for a paper, registering for classes, or applying for financial aid. Demand for access to devices such as 3-D printers and virtual-reality headsets was relatively low; respondents tended to highlight the need for reliable Wi-Fi instead.
“Many college libraries are reinventing themselves, but perhaps they’re trying to fix an institution that isn’t, in fact, broken…”
Please join us for the September artists and writers Cape Ann Reads reception 6-8pm September 19th, 2019 on the main floor at Sawyer Free Library. The event will feature Claire Wyzenbeek, the Invited Artist for the Gloucester venue. Wyzenbeek will kick off the opening with a brief overview of her work, especially the beautiful and enigmatic Water and Lunar series on view for this exhibition.
Installation
CLAIRE WYZENBEEK
Cape Ann Reads Invited Artist
Selections from Lunar and Water series
New paintings 2018-19
“Water is the wellspring of life. Living near the sea in Gloucester, where the moon calls the tides to rise and fall, where my garden is parched or flooded by the rain, I feel the water is everywhere around and within me.
Our bodies and feelings are fluid. The elation of floating in a calm bay, the release of tears flowing in grief, the vaporous clouds pregnant with rain all appear in my work as symbols of multiple experiences. Rising Tides and Beneath are about climate change, but also about emotions and relationships. The Rain paintings were responses to the sorrows of loss. My figures and landscapes reflect life’s juxtapositions of love and suffering, awe and anguish, that flow through our internal and external worlds.”- Claire Wyzenbeek
Claire Wyzenbeek is the invited artist for the Gloucester venue of the “Once Upon a Contest” travel exhibition presented by the four libraries of Cape Ann. Wyzenbeek wrote and illustrated an original children’s picture book, Henrietta’s Moon Egg, a distinguished Cape Ann Reads Gulliver book. Wyzenbeek works in a variety of media with a current focus on building up layers of acrylic wash. She maintains two studios; one at her residence in Gloucester and a second in Beverly where she teaches art classes.
Story time
Next week at the library, Wyznebeek will bring her award-winning children’s book Henrietta’s Moon Egg to a special Story time with Christy, Director of Children’s Services, September 25, 2019.
Last Chance! These must see 2019 shows are closing soon: Don’t miss ICA Watershed Purple (installation view above) closing September 2; DeCordova New England Biennial and the Provincetown Art Association & Museum’s 1945 Chaim Gross exhibition close September 15; and catch Renoir at the Clark before it’s gone September 22nd.
A few of the listed upcoming exhibitions to note: the NEW building and exhibits at PEM are opening September 2019; Homer at the Beach is on display at Cape Ann Museum thru December 1 (and catch a Richard Ormond lecture on John Singer Sargent’s Charcoals Sept.28 at Cape Ann Museum (ahead of the Morgan exhibition opening October); three new shows opening at MFA; Gordon Parks at Addison; and Alma Thomas at Smith. A Seuss-focused experience was pronounced destined for Boston, ahead of its TBD venue, by the LA entertainment company co-founders. Some shows I’ve already visited and may write about, mostly from a dealer’s perspective as that is my background. Exhibition trends continue to evolve and reveal new directions. A few patterns I see in the exhibition titles: what’s annointed for display and how it’s contextualized (corrective labels); immersive exhibits; revisiting colonial methodologies and themes; major solo surveys; women artists (and this upcoming season boost underscoring womens’ suffrage and 100th anniversary of the ratification of women’s right to vote); illustration; environment; and issues of humanity and migration. The list is illustrated with images of the sites. All photographs mine unless otherwise noted. Right click or hover to see info; click to enlarge. – Catherine Ryan
The guide – Massachusetts Museum Guide, Fall 2019
Note from author: The list below is alphabetized by town, and details upcoming exhibitions at each venue as well as some that are closing soon. Click the word “website” (color gray on most monitors) for hyperlinks that redirect to venues. For a list alphabetically sorted by venue, see my Google Map (with a Candy Trail overlay) “Art Museums in Massachusetts” hereand embedded at the end of this post. I pulled the map together several years ago. No apps to download or website jumping. Easy scroll down so you don’t miss an exhibit that’s closer than you think to one that you may already be exploring.A few are open seasonally (summer) or weekends only–call first to check before visiting. Major new architectural building projects are underway at BU (closed) and MIT. The 54th Regiment Memorial on Boston Common will undergo restoration. Get ready for close observation of conservation in process. – Catherine
AMESBURY
1. John Greenleaf Whittier historic Home and Museumwebsite
18. Boston Harbor Islands National and State Parkwebsite
(photos show info gateway on the Greenway near the ferry access to Boston Harbor Islands)
Summer 2019 public art: Boston Harbor [Re]creation The Project: Artists Marsha Parrilla; Robin MacDonald-Foley; Brian Sonia-Wallace more(Jury: Luis Cotto MCC; Lucas Cowan, The Greenway; Celena illuzzi, National Parks; Caroly Lewenberg; Denise Sarno-Bucca DCR; Courtney Shape, City of Boston; Rebecca Smerling Boston Harbor Now; Kera Washingon; Cynthia Woo, Pao Arts Center)
Unveiled 2019 – Super A (Stefan Thelen) Resonance, 2019, latex and spray paint
Note to Greenway (see photo notes below): food trucks by the stop should be relocated to other food truck areas (and maybe one tree) to optimize and welcome sight line to the Greenway and public spaces from streets, sidewalk, and South Station. There are pauses elsewhere along the lattice park links, and a generous approach past the wine bar. The temporary commissioned mural could extend verso (or invite a second artist) so that the approach from Zakim Bridge/RT1/93North is as exciting as the approach from Cape Cod.
Skip the app AI download– swamped my phone battery despite free WiFi on the Greenway.
See complete list of 2019 public art currently on view at The Greenway here
The Greenway packs a lot of punch in a compressed area; its lattice of dynamic public spaces and quiet passages are an easy stroll into the North End or along the HarborWalk to the ICA, roughly similar in size and feel as walking Battery Park and Hudson River Park in New York City.
Through September 15, 2019 BIG PLANS: Picturing Social Reformmore
Through October 20, 2019 Contemporary Art Joan Jonas: i know why they left more
Through January 14, 2020 Anne H. Fitzpatrick Facade Laura Owens: Untitled
October 17, 2019 – January 20, 2020 In the Company of Artists featuring Sophie Calle, Bharti Kher, Luisa Lambri, Laura Owens, Rachel Perry, Dayanita Singh, and Su-Mei Tse
Through September 28, 2019 Annual Regional Juried Exhibition 2019 Winners announced September 21, 2019. The 2018 gold winner, Leon Doucette of Gloucester, exhibiting again, and Melissa Cooper. more
Through September 2, 2019 at The Water Shed, ICA Boston John Akomfrah: Purplemore
What’s coming in 2020 to The Water Shed? Still TBA
Through September 22, 2019 ICA Less Is a Bore: Maximilist Art & Designmore
Nice installation with a few surprises and thoughtful connection to other exhibtions on view. (The LeWit and Johns selections triggered what about that work or artist? I wish May Stevens and Harmony Hammond were included and my list grew from there. That’s part of the fun of the exhibit.)
September 24 – February 7, 2021 ICA Yayoi Kusama: Love is Callingmore
September 24 – February 7, 2021 ICA Beyond Infinity: Contemporary Art after Kusamamore
October 23, 2019 – January 26, 2020 ICA When Home Won’t Let You Stay: Migration through Contemporary Artmore
Through December 31, 2019 ICA 2019 James and Audrey Foster Prize Boston area artists: Rashin Fahandej; Josephine Halvorson; Lavaughan Jenkins; Helga Roht Poznanskimore
41. Museum of American Bird Art at Mass Audubon website
Through September 15, 2019 Under Pressure– Birds in the Printed Landscape: Linocuts by Sherrie Yorkmore
Through September 29, 2019 The Shorebird Decoys of Gardner & Dextermore
CAMBRIDGE
Harvard –
42. Harvard Art Museums (Fogg; Busch-Reisinger; and Arthur M. Sackler) website
Why do any of the Harvard museums charge an entrance fee?
Through January 5, 2020 Winslow Homer: Eyewitness (in conjunction with Cape Ann Museum Homer exhibition) University Research Gallery
Through January 5, 2020 Early Christian Africa: Arts of Transformation
Through January 5, 2020 Critical Printing
Through January 5, 2020 Crossing Lines, Constructing Home: Displacement and Belonging in Contemporary Art
Through November 14, 2021 On Site Clay — Modeling African Design
43. Harvard – Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts website
Through September 29, 2019 Anna Oppermann: Drawings
The Carpenter Center was closed for an event on the day I scheduled to see the Oppermann exhibition – good reminder to call first for the must see shows on your list.
Jonathan Berger: An Introduction to Nameless Love
Harvard Film Archive weekly film series
44. Harvard – ‘The Cooper Gallery’ / The Ethelbert Cooper Gallery of African and African American Art website
September 16 – December 13, 2019 The Sound of My Soul: Frank Stewart’s Life in Jazz photography, curated by Ruth Fine
the Gordon Park exhibition that recently closed was on my list of top shows for 2019
Through October 20, 2019 Wrestling With Angels Icons from the Prosopon School of Iconology and Iconographymore
November 15, 2019 – March 8, 2020 Emil Hoppe: Photographs from the Ballet Russesmore
CONCORD
64. Louisa May Alcott Orchard House 399 Lexington Road, Concord, Massachusetts 01742, United States (978) 369-4118 guided tours year round plus special events
Through October 20, 2019 Ship of State…Paintings by Robert Henry
Through December 21, 2019 Interpreting Their World: Varujan Boghosian, Carmen Cicero, Elspeth Halvorsen and Pual Resika
DUXBURY
71. The Art Complex Museum (Weyerhaeuser collection) website
August 18 – November 10, 2019 Steve Novick: Approximation
September 15 -January 12, 2020 Draw the Line
September 15 – January 12, 2020 Rotations: Highlights From the Permanent Collection Nocturne including Lowell Birge Harrison (American, 1854–1929), Suzanne Hodes (American, b. 1939), Kawase Hasui (Japanese, 1883–1957), George Inness (American, 1825–1894), Johan Barthold Jongkind (Dutch, 1819–1891) Martin Lewis (American, 1881–1962), and Henri Eugene Le Sidaner (French, 1862-1939)
November 17 – February 16, 2020 George Herman Found Paintings
EAST SANDWICH
72. Thornton W. Burgess Society Green Briar Nature Center & Jam Kitchen website *may join Cape Cod Museum of Natural History in Brewster to combine and become the Cape Cod Museums of Natural History
Through September 1, 2019 84th Regional Exhibition of Art and Craft
Through September 1, 2019 Broad Strokes: American Painting of the Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries from the FAM collection
September 7, 2019 – January 5, 2020 Sage Sohier/David Hilliard: Our Parents, Ourselvesmore
September 21, 2019 – November 10, 2019 Adria Arch: Reframing Eleanormore
September 21, 2019 Daniela Rivera: Labored Landscapes (Where Hand Meets Ground)more
September 21, 2019 – January 12, 2020 David Katz: Earth Waresmore
Ongoing Evoking Eleanor; Discover Ancient Egypt; Thurston sculpture by Douglas Kornfeld
FRAMINGHAM
76. Danforth Museum of Art, Framingham State Univ. website
September 7 – October 13, 2019 Populux Steven Duede | Sean Sullivan on display in the works on paper gallery
September 7 – December 30, 2019 Dressed! Exhibiting artists include Catherine Bertulli, Jodi Colella, Merill Comeau, Mia Cross, Nancy Grace Horton, and Marky Kauffmann
September 7 – May 2020 Highlights from the Permanent Collection
Sawyer Free Library Children’s Services shares the flyer for this fun family program with special guest, Mary Rhinelander. A surprise friend may make an appearance 🙂🐾🐶
Mark your calendars for this Wonderful storytime September 11 2019 10AM
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On August 15, 2019, Sawyer Free Library hosted a beautiful celebration for Once Upon a Contest. A second reception for the artists and writers will be held on September 19th with an opening talk by Claire Wyzenbeek, the invited artist for this leg of the show. Also, look for upcoming special morning programs featuring Kim Smith, Mary Rhinelander and Claire Wyzenbeek.
Special thanks for photos: credit mostly Linda Bosselman and Justine Vitale, SFL
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Save the date for my upcoming Monarch Butterfly program for kids at the Sawyer Free Library on August 21st at 10am. This program is free and held in conjunction with the Cape Ann Reads exhibit on display at the Sawyer Free.
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Summer reading, new books, ongoing weekly programs, and special summer events: Sawyer Free children’s department is impressive! Families time regular visits to check out and return books with an array of fun plans. Rick Roth and crew engendered smiles and gasps with snakes from New England and the world on July 27, 2019.
Ssssecurity!
Captures from Assistant librarian and wonderful photographer Linda Bosselman
With the crowds at capacity year round, the children’s library is ideal on this level.
Imagine using stairs and the elevator to access the crush of ongoing and popular children’s programs on a proposed top floor of a proposed new building (review plans here). Sawyer Free has appropriated $935,000 from the endowment for a fundraising firm to assist with the capital campaign to raise 20 million of a 26 million plus project. Preliminary plans displayed at the annual meeting can be seen here
The childen’s department needs renovation and expansion, and access to its outdoor space again. The future planned terracing limits the public outdoor space and will impact the rich flexibility of so many outdoor options, running around and programs this department made use of since the Monell build.
Reminder – Pop UP Planetarium at City Hall tomorrow July 29,2019 summer 2019 a Universe of Stories (separate reminder post coming)
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Sawyer Free Library (SFL) Children’s Services shares photographs from Curious Creatures program (July 25, 2019), one of many special summer 2019 events amidst regular weekly busy & fabulous children’s programs. Photo credit: Linda Bosselman. Christy Russo is the children’s services director.
Scroll below to see photographs from the teen program held later that day, Galaxy Tie Dye.
Snakes of New England with Rick Roth scheduled tomorrow! Mark your calendar for more summer fun.
Snakes of New England Coming Saturday July 27, 2019
Not to miss ongoing weekly programs PLUS Summer Reading 2019 A Universe of Stories special events
Scenes from Sawyer Free Library teen program yesterday, Galaxy Tie-Dye, programming inspired by the 2019 summer reading theme “A Universe of Stories”.
Now that security help is squared away, let’s open that side door back up to its open space and make it easy on these outdoor programs (and patrons) to set up and go.
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Selections from Amy Kerr’s I Am More series on view in beautiful Matz Gallery, Sawyer Free Public Library July 2019. Learn more here
The ongoing series has grown and been displayed in different configurations and groupings at numerous venues, encouraging repeat visits and consideration. Here is an installation view from the iteration at Cape Ann Savings Bank May 2019.
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Today is the anniversary of the first moon landing on July 20, 1969. When I think about this momentous day, I mostly remember the artist Robert Rauschenberg, one of the established artists paid a tiny honorarium to travel to see space launches first hand. NASA gave artists total freedom to create any visual response if so awed. They were. Decades later, Rauschenberg agreed to loan rare works of art inspired by the space program for a solo exhibit that I co-curated. It was a big surprise when he scheduled a visit. He spent a morning at the show with me, closely observing each and every piece, some he hadn’t seen since he made them. Many were created long after his residency. He was flooded; it’s very emotional.
Where were you on this day? I was in Plymouth, MA.
As i’m in a wishing and reflective mode, may I add that I look forward to the day when all Massachusetts newspapers are scanned and searchable. In the meantime, the Gloucester Daily Times coverage of that inspiring moon walk is on microfilm at the Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Library. Enjoy the headlines and some local quotes from 1969.
“Older folks take moon in stride–They’ve seen a lot, but this one…” by Henry Meyer, Gloucester Daily Times
article excerpts including quotes from Arthur Jones, Mrs. Bertha Silva, and John Bordreau (91)
This moon shot business: Can you dig it? Arthur W. Jones, 67, who lives at the Huntress Public Medical Institution can. Jones and some of his fellow residents on Emerson Avenue have seen the entire panorama of the development of aircraft… “This is one of the greatest things that has happened to our country.” The moon shot had helped to “unite people together,” he said…“When this country gets together, they do things right. No matter what they start, they finish it.”
Mrs. Bertha Silva said that Lindbergh’s flight was exciting back then. However she agreed with Jones that the landing of the first man on the moon really outdid all other flying feats…
John Bordreau, 91, also a resident of the institution was delighted by the whole affair. Boudreau predicted that astronauts soon will be flying all over the solar system…”We’ll just have to wait and see where they’re headed.” Both Jones and Boudreau said they had heard there was oil and gas on the moon. Boudreau remarked, “That’s kind of a long drive for just a couple of gallons of gas. Jones predicted that within 10 years men will be living on the moon. Some scientists said over the radio that there were eaves on the moon where people might live. He said there was oil up there and that they might be able to extract water from rocks.”…One person said that at her age she tended to be leery of these things…Others expressed confusion at the speed at which this generation seems to be moving…
excerpts from Our men on the moon: ‘A long day’…a hazardous return, by Edward K. Delong, Space Center, Houston, UPI article ran in the Gloucester Daily Times.
Mrs. Stephen Armstrong, Neil’s mother who watched her son on television from her home in Wapakoneta, Ohio, noticed this: “I could tell he was pleased and tickled and thrilled,” she said.
“Magnificent desolation,” commented Aldrin. “It has a stark beauty all of its own. It’s much like the desert of the United States.”
“It’s different, but it’s very pretty out here,” said Armstrong, who lived in California’s Mojave Desert when he was flying the X15 rocket plane. Armstrong and Aldrin, both about 5’11” cast 35 foot shadows…Zint said he was surprised by the emotion in Armstrong’s voice when he stepped onto the moon. “That was more emotion than I’ve ever heard him express before. Even when he talked about things he was excited about like space travel he always had a calm voice.”
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