Lowell Open Studios Photo

I was wonderfully suprised and impressed by Lowell Open Studios–held this weekend in the old milltown about 45 minutes north of Cambridge.  Two huge old mill buildings, five floors each, at 122 Western Avenue,  have been transformed to include  beautiful artist’s studios, a museum, sound studios and a cafeteria, with artists’ living quarters in the works.

My friend Mark and I enjoyed seeing friend Adrien Bisson’s nature and portrait photography (unsolicited plug: they’re fabulous; he’s available to shoot  corporate, family, and educational events).      .

We then drove to the center of town, where  mills and artists are showcased in what has become  Market Mills and the Lowell National Historic Park.    Across the courtyard outside the reception center, we found the Brush Art Gallery and Studios, where  a photograph by friend Paul Weiner was displayed  in an all-cat exhibit.

We enjoyed the show which, eclectic in form if not content, included a patchwork quilt, sculpture, photography, and painting, with proceeds donated to homeless kitties. A  highlight was that these cats did not make me itch.

Anita M. Harris

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group of Cambridge, MA. We also publish HarrisCom Blog.

Karen Davis and Mark Orton–Cantabridigians until this summer–invite all to  a reception and opening celebration for  their new gallery on Saturday, September 12, 5:30 to 7:30  pm at 114 Warren St. in Hudson, NY.  

Called–not surprisingly–the Davis Orton Gallery, it’s located on an architecturally rich street famous for its antique shops, galleries and restaurants. 

 The first Davis Orton exhibition will feature  Meg Birnbaum’s series of black and white photographs of county fairs throughout New England made using a plastic toy camera.

These evocative images with their antique quality and timeless subjects present a wistful look back while revealing clues that remind us of their contemporary origins.

 Birnbaum is an award-winning fine art photographer and graphic designer based in Massachusetts. She has work in the permanent collection at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the corporate program of the DeCordova Museum and other private and corporate collections. ‘Corn Dogs and Blue Ribbons …’ has recently been exhibited at the Griffin Museum of Photography.

The exhibit will also include  photographs by  Moira Barrett, Karen Davis, Ellen Feldman, Cassandra Goldwater and Frank Tadley.

The Davis Orton Gallery exhibits contemporary photography, mixed media and a growing number of artist-published photobooks, Davis said.  The goal of the gallery is to present mid-career artists and emerging artists whose work deserves a broader audience.

Davis and Orton have taught at Lesley College. While I miss having them close by, I’ve visited them in Hudson and am excited that they’re moving through art into action.

–Anita M. Harris

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group of Cambridge, MA.  We also publish HarrisCom blog.

Last night, Ed, Sheila and I were having a lovely dinner outside on the water at Boston’s Institute of Contemporary Art after a “tasting” event that I’d give mixed reviews..or, even, a pan (so to speak).

It was the third of  four gourmet “tastings”   sponsored by the national law firm Eckert Seamans, which has an office in Boston.  

 In June, Ed and Sheila had enjoyed a tasting given by Ana Sortun, owner of Cambridge restaurants  Oleana and Sofra,  who, the ICA says,  is one of the country’s “best creative fusion practitioners.” Combining farm-fresh, organic ingredients from Siena farms, and eastern Mediterranean spice blends, Sortun prepared wonderful samples that, Sheila said, “you could die for.”

I’d been to a tasting the previous week, which featured cocktails and commentary by   “Drink”  bartender John Gertsen, (who could write a PhD thesis on the history of the martini) and canapes from Barbara Lynch Gruppo, with Colin Lynch. Both are new establishments founded by restaurateur Barbara Lynch.

Last week’s  tasting  featured Deirdre Heeking and Caleb Barber,  the author and chef, respectively, who own and run  Pane e Salute in Woodstock, Vermont, which the ICA billed as  “a stylish, classic Italian tavern, inspired by and celebrating the regional variations of Italy. Using local ingredients, they present surprising, marvelous, and essential dishes full of the spirit of Italy and the bounty of each season.”

•  The first sampling was dandellion greens with olive oil and lemon juice.
• The second sampling was dandellion greens with oil, garlic, and something that made the greens taste  less tart.
•  The third sample was dandellion greens with olive oil, and topped with pancetta.
• The fourth was… you guessed it: dandellion greens–this time  with cheese, tomatoes, salt, pepper, garlic, and white wine, which Caleb cooked as he spoke rapturously about Italian meals designed to lengthen life and  olive groves in the town where he and his wife had often stayed.

I liked the romantic, if  “overbaked”, passages  Deirdre read from the owners’ new book.  Ed was taken with the discussion and enjoyed the food.  Sheila and I  agreed that the price of both the greens and admission,  for members, was right (free). We  liked the  bread, but thought  that the samples all  looked like overcooked spinach and tasted like…um… kale.

Although the handout suggested serving sample #4 as a main course, Sheila said: “Maybe it would be better to  serve it in small batches, along with other things.”  I asked, “Why would you serve it at all?”

 After Deirdre described two luscious-sounding wines that we never got to taste,  we decided to skip the question period and head for the cafe.

Sheila loved her “naan of the day” (an Indian bread served with spiced beef ), Ed his  sandwich (roast turkey with lettuce, tomato, avocad0, mustard aoli and cheese )  and I my Arctic char salad, with lettuce, tomato cumber salad  (each $9.oo before the 10% member discount).

 We were happily watching the sun set over the water,  a tall ship making its way across the harbor, and party cruisers against the beautifully lit Boston skyline when Ed, who had so enjoyed the samples (hey–or should I say “hay”– he loves kale) suddenly remembered that he’s allergic to dandelions–as he found once out the hard way when drinking dandellion tea .   (It can cause diahrrea).  At that point, we hit the rest rooms (just in case),  then  headed home.

None of us had any adverse reactions.  We do wonder at Heekin and Barber’s choice of samples…which were not the greatest promo for what is probably a wonderful restaurant. 

But we’re  looking forward to next week’s tasting with John McClellan, proprietor of  Boston’s award-winning L’Espalier and Sel de la Terre–both of which, the ICA Web site says,  feature  regional ingredients combined with the culinary traditions of France. 

c. Anita M. Harris

More on dandelion greens:

 I checked the Web and found the following , which I’ve lifted from http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art9837.asp: because I wasn’t able to find the info at the US Department of Agriculture Web site.

 According to the U.S. Dept of Agriculture, dandelions are more nutritious than broccoli and spinach, contain more cancer-fighting beta-carotene than carrots, and are a rich source of calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, thiamine, riboflavin, lecithin, and dietary fiber.

Dandelions cleanse the bloodstream, liver and increase the production of bile. A natural diuretic they  reduce serum cholesterol and uric acid. They help functioning of the kidneys, pancreas, spleen and stomach, and can be  useful for abscesses, anemia, boils, breast tumors, cirrhosis of the liver, fluid retention, hepatitis, jaundice, age spots and rheumatism.

Dandelion flowers are an excellent source of lecithin, a nutrient that elevates the brain’s acetylcholine, a substance that helps maintain brain function and may play a role in slowing or even stopping the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Lecithin also helps the body maintain good liver function, so it is no surprise that dandelion is widely recommended by herbalists and naturopathic physicians for liver detoxification.

Native Americans used it to treat kidney disease, indigestion, and heartburn; traditional Arabian medicine prescribed it to treat liver disease; and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) uses dandelion in combination with other medicines to treat hepatitis and upper respiratory tract infections, including bronchitis and pneumonia

However (my ital) dandelion may cause allergy to certain people. People who are allergic to chamomile, yarrow or other related plants should use dandelion with caution. If you are taking lithium, insulin, anti-coagulation, anti-diuretic or blood-sugar controlling agents, consult with your doctor,  first.

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Commmunications Group of Cambridge, MA, as is www.harriscomblog.wordpress.com.

 “Lorne Beach: Fantastical Rock Formations on Australia’s South Coast”
Photos by Anita M. Harris with annotation by Australian Geologist Avi Olshina
 June 5-September 7, 2009                                         Salem Arts Walk Friday-Sunday June 5-7
                                   Reception  3-5 Sunday June 24
                                              Treasures Over Time
                                                139 Washington St.
                                                       Salem, MA
                                                    978-745-2330
                                     www.treasuresovertime.com

 

I recently had the good fortune to attend two unusual and exciting networking events.

The  first,  sponsored by New England Women in Energy & the Environment (NEWIEE),  featured  Federal Energy Regulatory Commissioner Sudeen Kelly.  

The second, at Seltzer Design, featured Senior Designer Annie Smidt  of Seltzer and  Rachel Hayes, Vice President of the Wellesley Hills Group branding firm, both of whom focused on what Seltzer calls “Brandparenting.”

                                                                               *

At WIEE  on April 28,  founder and executive director Judy Chang introduced  Kelly, who, to everyone’s surprise, said that instead of speaking about energy, she would talk about women–basing her remarks on Why Women Should Rule the World,  the 2008 book by former White House Press Secretary Dee Dee Myers.

While  one might have hoped that things would have changed by the time Bill Clinton entered office, given what we now know about him, it’s hardly shocking to learn that Myers ran into sexist treatment –nor did Kelly have much new to report on  male/female leadership styles.

Still,  in closing,  Kelly made a refreshing suggestion: rather than “network” to achieve a purpose,  she said, we should “just talk.”  Which we did–often, quite openly.

While most women waxed enthusiastic about their rapidly growing field, one senior consultant confessed that she  was tired of  her work;  a government worker was frustrated with the state’s environmental bureaucracy;   another said that she had given copies of Myers’ book to members of her husband’s family who complained to her that Hillary (Clinton) is “shrill.” 

Hoping for equally frank comments from Kelly, I asked her about her impressions of the Obama administration; she diplomatically pointed out that her commission does not make policy, but that, the Obama team does, at least,  listen.

                                                              *

At a breakfast session (held May 8 in Seltzer’s downtown office at the ungodly hour of 7:30 am ) ,  we participants were invited to introduce ourselves–including one way in which we nurture  that does not include tending to children or plants.  This was a first for me–at a business meeting.

An administrative assistant said she works with hospice patients; a lawyer gives time to nonprofits;  another had taken up painting. I mentioned my clients, my artistic spirit and my upcoming photo show (more on that, soon).

Smidt showed  photos of herself, growing up, to outline the phases of  brand development–and what’s required for care and feeding as a  company grows.

Hayes defined “brand” as “the sum of activities that cause people to kmow your name, articulate what you do, and  have the impression that because of interactions they want to hire you”. 

She described the results of a Wellesley Hills study showing the elements most often used by potential clients in choosing professonional service firms. (Referrals, presentation and the Web site were the top three; more at http://www.raintoday.com).

My favorite line was a quote  Hayes borrowed from St. Francis Assisi, via James Carville:  “Go Forth and teach the gospel–speak, if necessary.”

After the meeting, Seltzer emailed a followup note thanking the participants for attending–and included a notice about my upcoming photography exhibit.

Because the people at both meetings were open and supportive, I came away feeling  enlightened,  energized and enthusiastic about bringing nurturing and community spirit to  my own marketing and client work–and wondering if (hoping that) inspirational new ways of doing business can prevail–despite the economic downturn.

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group of Cambridge, MA.

Anita Harris is the author of Broken Patterns, Professional Women and the Quest for a New Feminine Identity.

Ann Carlson and Cow

On a  recent visit to the DeCordova Museum in Lincoln, MA,   I was amused at seeing a toddler sitting on a bench as he watched, with rapt attention, a huge wall-to-wall video of a naked middle-aged woman who was wearing a transparent raincoat partially filled with dollar bills, in a large, hay-filled stall. The woman seemed  to be trying to get the attention of a disinterested cow who did nothing for 8 minutes but chew its cud.  The toddler and the 10 or twelve adults sitting on a long bench opposite the video wall seemed fascinated. My friend Sheila and I were vaguely amused, but on the whole, thought the cow had it right.

Carlson/Strom: New Performance Video is composed of four room-sized video installations–the first major museum presentation of the collaborative work of choreographer and performer Ann Carlson and video instalation artist Mary Ellen Strom.

In what a DeCordova writeup describes as “elegant, sharply executed and humorous”, the artists present recent performance videos that serve as “critical re-evaluations of cultural and historical narratives”  fusing visually spectacular video and the medium’s legacy as a tool for social change. One video– footage of real lawyers mugging it up in front of an elevator,  is relatively funny.

Others, focused on “the moving body within a range of “lasndscapes:” the physical western vista, the economic terrain of late-capitalist America–Guatemalan workers on a beach, seemed sad, even tragic.

No doubt the  artists  are breaking artistic barriers, making important statements in order to get us think about society and our relationships to it. The videos are beautifully done–and maybe I’m being unfair, but I wonder whether, given the reality of life today,  Carlson and Strong might be telling us more about their own removed attitudes than than eliciting new understanding on our part.

The installation, curated by Dina Deitsch, is worth seeing, but Sheila and I  were more taken with”Face to Face, “ presented as a challenge “to our conventional understanding of portraiture by asking us to reevaluate the complexity of the genre and, by extension, representation itself.”

Face-to-Face/ Lebowitz-Young Dyptich

In a diptych, photgraphers  Dick Lebowitz and Tom Young show, in one photo,  three women on a beach; in the other, the photographer who is taking the picture. ” In another photo, “Karl Baden violates the singular ‘I’ by fragmenting his own body. Multiple mouths and eyese suggest that the human subject is a composite rather than a finite whole.”

I agree with curatorial fellow Nina Bozicnik that the images bring up questions of identity, portraiture and representation. But, meaningful as they may be,  most of the photos are actually fun/interesting/pleasing  to look at.

We had a harder time with Tabitha Ververs’ “Narrative Bodies, “ which includes sixty (!)  paintings and sculptures highlighting  ” the artist’s feminist engagement with tradition and myth.

“Knives carved out of bone become the surface on which female perpetrators of violence throughout history are incised using the scrimshaw techniques.”

Work from a  more recent series of meticulous acryllic paintings on canvas challenges  gender roles by depicting women with tails,  “human” creatures with four legs and male and female anatomy, a mermaid with a split tail and the like.

Another series, exploring the relationship of humans to the sea, is painted on shells in an ancient and intricate Japanese tradition.

Vevers’ pale blues, pinks, peaches, and gold prolific are  lovely but the exhibit, curated by Nick Capasso,  is,  ultimately, disturbing–and no doubt, meant to be.

Sheila and I were most  impressed by a retrospective of the work of the late  Boston University  art professor Harold “Red” Tovish, (1921-2008), curated by Bozicnik.

Tovish self portrait-drawing

We especially liked a display of six bronze sculptures showing the artist’s face and head in a range styles including cubism, surrealism and  what the DeCordova describes as “contemporary biomorphic abstraction.”

Our only disappointment was that by late Sunday afternoon,  the cafe had closed so we were too late to sip  peach iced tea on the deCordova’s lovely terrace.

But  the  provocative art, gardens, outdoor sculptures and view on this early spring day were well worth the trip.

The DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park is located at 51 Sandy Pond Rd
Lincoln, MA 01773 781/259-8355. All four exhibits will be up through May 17.

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of the Harris Communications Group, www.harriscom.com.

A lovely, eclectic show called “Float”  at the Clark Gallery,  145 Lincoln Road, Lincoln, MA, exhibits works on nautical themes by 24 artists.

Pieces range from a model wooden ship, c. 1900 by an unattributed  artist  to  Wendy Jean Hyde’s video installation showing a polar bear swimming back  and forth on a large plasma screen.

A few of my other  favorites included:

Rebecca Kincaid’s  oil, fabric & mixed media painting “Winter Sailor,” Chris Armstrong’s  oil on alumninum  “Whiteout,”

and Patricia Burleson’s Springmelt 6,. It’s an 18″x24″x18″  “boat” composed of wire, lace, bones, shredded tire, vine buttons, found metal and wood including saw blad, barbed wire, springs, strainers, whisk, scissors, sticks spoon and found objects including purse, balls, harmonic, baseball glove, clothes, pins nail clippers and fan.

I was impressed by Rob Napier’s tiny model ships, and  by Jerry Beck’s “The Dreams of Small fish (from his Secret Art of Loon Park, Oaracle Series).

My friend Mark H. noticed the playful spelling of “oaracle,”which makes sense because the work is a floor-to-ceiling=sized  oar (136x15x3″). Its shaft is a 3” clear acryllic tube filled with dried, shellacked fish and mushrooms.

It’s a fun show; I wish I could write up every piece but you can see them at the gallery through April 30 or view more photos online.

AMH

New Cambridge Observer is a publication of  the Harris Communications Group of Cambridge, MA.

Much enjoyed the Concord Art Association’s New England Impressions III,”  the Unique Print,  March 21-May3, 2009.”

Peik Larson, Red Tree

The show,  presented on two floors in  the CAA’s lovely colonial home at 37 Lexington Road in Concord Center,   is a colorful collection of monotypes, monoprints and experimental prints composed of  fabrics, hand quilting, stamping, sandpaper, and pastel, on wood, metal, ink and paper, and combinations of the above. In the words of curator Dorothy Thompson,   the show is one in a series celebrating New England artists and printers “trying something new, breaking the rules.”

All of the works–with photos of each work and a video of the opening reception available at www.concordart.com, were stunning. My  favorites included:

Inner Courtyard

Roz Karal Ablo’s Interior Courtyard--a dramatic collage and pastel work in vibrant blues, mauves, with a little red and green thrown in. It seemed to embody the splitting of space into time, a la Duchamp, a rushing, perhaps, through what might be a structural, village courtyard composed of buildings, streets and sky– or, perhaps, an inner personal one.

Randy Garber, Cognitive Dissonance

Randy Garber’s elegant Cognitive Dissonance, composed  composed of hard and soft grand spit bite etching, wood cut transfer, monoprint on piano player scrolls.

Pastel colors, different on each side of the scrolls, are printed with abstract shapes, hands, gears, heads and other forms. The scrolls, though still,  seem to undulate, mesmorizing the viewer as s/he comes to realize that words, presented in reverse order, actually make some sense. Appear may love where ing tell no there’s.

Michael Mazur, Rocks and Water

Debra Olin, Gliki's Flight

Jeanne Williamson, Orange Construction

Jan Arabas, Bird Flu.