Encompassing the history, arts and culture of Palestinians, the Museum of the Palestinian People located at 1900 18th St. NW, near Dupont Circle is the newest museum to open in Washington, D.C. Work by contemporary Palestinian artists and artifacts illustrating the history and culture of Palestine will be displayed, including paintings by Palestinian artist Ahmed Hmeedat and a video, “Borders & Promises,” by renowned videographer, Haya Zaatry. The museum will host its opening ceremonies on Saturday, June 15, from 3–7 p.m. and Sunday, June 16, from 12–6 p.m., featuring tea and Palestinian sweets, contemporary visual art, historic artifacts and performance. The reception will include folk dancers performing the Dabke (meaning “stamping of the feet”), an Arabic folk dance first created in the villages of the Levant to remember the line formed by villagers joining hands and stomping … [Read more...] about Washington D.C.’s Newest Museum
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CAMBRIDGE ARTS RIVER FESTIVAL RETURNS THIS SATURDAY JUNE 1
The recent Memorial Day weekend, with its golden sun and warm weather, was a welcome respite after the long New England winter and a cold and rainy spring. I spent the weekend kayaking on the Charles, picnicking in my local park, and strolling the suddenly green streets of my neighborhood. Everywhere I went, I encountered other Cantabrigians out and about and enjoying the sunshine. Now that we are out, we don’t want to go back in. Thankfully, there are many free outdoors art events to look forward to as we slide towards summer. Coming up this weekend, don’t miss the 40th annual Cambridge Arts River Festival, now in its new location in the Central Square Cultural District. The festival, which will take place on Saturday, June 1, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., will bring the neighborhood alive with four stages of music plus dance, theater and vendors selling crafts, international foods and … [Read more...] about CAMBRIDGE ARTS RIVER FESTIVAL RETURNS THIS SATURDAY JUNE 1
PLANS FOR MMAS ARTS CENTER AT GREAT WOODS ANNOUNCED
Ken Butler, executive director of Mass Music & Arts Society, and his board of directors, encourage us to give financially to the expansion plans for an art complex envisioned for a property that they own directly across the street from the Xfinity Center. The destination will be called “MMAS Arts Center at Great Woods.” It will be a multi-faceted arts facility and will include a state-of-the-art Theater, well-equipped classrooms for theater, dance and music training, a banquet facility and several galleries. Beautifully situated, the three-acre land parcel abuts Norton Reservoir. World class outdoor sculptures will be sited throughout its landscape and the building’s facade will be embellished with murals to intensify this emerging art center’s sense of place. Many interesting videos concerning fundraising populate the “Support Us” section of the MMAS website: … [Read more...] about PLANS FOR MMAS ARTS CENTER AT GREAT WOODS ANNOUNCED
‘Dream in Sculpture, Dream in Rhyme:’ La Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris
On Monday, April 15, and Tuesday, April 16, the world watched in horror as the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris was transformed into a matchbox filled with fire. "Watching the spire on fire fall in real time is something that, as a medieval art historian, I could barely stomach," Dr. Emily Guerry Sr. Lecturer in Medieval European History at the University of Kent told an American news reporter.¹ We can all share Professor Guerry’s shock and anguish, but Notre Dame isn’t meaningful only for Medievalists. In fact, it is arguably not only a medieval edifice—it’s also a modern one. Built in the 13th century, Notre Dame was updated, renovated, restored, and vandalized throughout the ages that followed. It’s difficult to tell what proved more destructive: the loving modernizations it underwent early in the 18th century or the destruction wreaked upon it by French Revolutionaries during the … [Read more...] about ‘Dream in Sculpture, Dream in Rhyme:’ La Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris
Notre Dame Burning
APRIL 15 AND 16, 2019 --- Notre Dame de Paris, the famous world heritage site, began burning early Monday evening, local time (noon EST), minutes after it closed to the public. As of late afternoon, EST, fire had poured into the empty space left when the iconic spire toppled into the nave of the cathedral, threatening the wooden frame, flying buttresses and famous rose windows. The Île de la Cité had been evacuated, but acrid black smoke, possibly due to the burning of the 250 tons of lead topping the spire, was visible and pouring soot and smoke on people standing safely across either side of the Seine watching the catastrophe unfold. The Cathedral’s construction was ordered by Maurice de Sully, the Bishop of Paris, in 1160, during the reign of Louis VII with construction beginning in 1163, completed in 1345. The flying buttresses invented to hold the eaves of the Cathedral together … [Read more...] about Notre Dame Burning
UNIFYING A CREATIVE CITY: THIS YEAR’S NEWTON OPEN STUDIOS
On April 6 and 7, the first beautiful weekend of the spring season, the city of Newton, Massachusetts, hosted their annual Newton Open Studios event. Now in its 22nd year, the event brought in over 150 artists showing and selling their work at 45 locations across the city. Host locations included the Newton City Hall, First Baptist Church in Newton Centre and various studios and homes, sharing spaces and showing their dedication their community. These locations, many of which are historic, were all marked by red balloons outside of the entrances. Beyond getting to know and explore the artists’ work, attendees were able to experience the love that Newton’s residents have for their city. These pop up exhibits and sales showed the creativity the people of Newton have to bring to the Boston area. Newton City Hall provided information about the event as you walked in the doors past the … [Read more...] about UNIFYING A CREATIVE CITY: THIS YEAR’S NEWTON OPEN STUDIOS