One of the most difficult aspects of wearing a mask during the pandemic is the limitations the mask places on something that is natural — breathing freely, unobstructed. I’ve worn a mask daily since March when the CDC directed people to do so, but on almost every occasion, I’ve mumbled under my breath about the annoyance — until after the heartbreaking videos of George Floyd’s killing on the street; until George Floyd’s plea, “I can’t breathe.” It was impossible not to think of those words in any other context, especially later on when street protests repeated those words en masse. The connection between the private miseries of confinement, social isolation, fear of a deadly virus and the public outcry for recognition, acknowledgment and resolution of social and racial inequities came full circle in an unprecedented way. “Unprecedented?,” the current exhibition at Burlington City Arts … [Read more...] about ALLOWING TIME TO BREATHE: UNPRECEDENTED TIMES, ARTWORK IN BURLINGTON
Review
ARTS FOR EVERYBODY: ATTLEBORO MEMBERS’ SHOW HAS ART FAIR FEEL
Open to the public during COVID- 19 as well as partially accessible in virtual formats, the Attleboro Arts Museum is presenting its annual Member’s Exhibition through January 29 with artworks by participants from across New England and the United States. At this year’s show, audiences will encounter a well-balanced blend of narrative and abstract styles, which AAM’s director, Mim Fawcett, has installed to create provocative sightlines from one artwork to another. The show demonstrates high quality across genres and also reflects this museum’s tendency to exhibit 2D and 3D art forms with equal emphasis. AAM’s motto, “Arts for Everyone,” translates here into an exhibition opportunity for artists of any age. The show’s guidelines explained that a member could bring up to three works to the museum with the guarantee that all would be included in the show. It is a sweeping promise … [Read more...] about ARTS FOR EVERYBODY: ATTLEBORO MEMBERS’ SHOW HAS ART FAIR FEEL
SPLENDIDLY UNCOMMON: POLLANS & SWAN SAIL AT BOSTON SCULPTORS
I like to think the lights never go out in the Boston Sculptors Gallery. It’s a place I’ve loved to haunt from where I’m situated in Cambridge by either floating down Mass. Ave. by car then turning left on Harrison Ave. or taking the Red line to the Silver Line to SoWA, or South of Washington — then enjoying multiple galleries. Margaret Swan and Larry Pollans, whose works are currently on display there, seem to make it look so easy. Just vision, knowledge of materials and application in the studio — over the years. (To read more, pick up a copy of our latest issue! Find a pick-up location near you or Subscribe Here.) … [Read more...] about SPLENDIDLY UNCOMMON: POLLANS & SWAN SAIL AT BOSTON SCULPTORS
TIME-BENDING PUPPETRY: B. LYNCH’S SCI-FI WORLD COMES TO LIFE
I entered the College of the Holy Cross’ Cantor Gallery to see B. Lynch’s “New Gilded Age: A Theatrical Installation” with the expectation of seeing a collection of work unlike almost anything I’ve seen before. Built around what Lynch calls, “My fictive universe,” one filled with puppets depicting “the Reds and Greys,” I’ve been trying to fully grasp the concept of her work for years. Having watched a number of the online presentations tied to the show since it opened on October 13, I knew I’d be experiencing a multi-media treat for the senses, the culmination of many years of creative experimenting in how to best present her ideas. I knew I’d be seeing something I’d never forget, and even before entering the gallery doors, that observation came true. The main focal point of “Fisherman on the Lonely Sea” was an exceptional piece in its own right; its placement over fabric intended to … [Read more...] about TIME-BENDING PUPPETRY: B. LYNCH’S SCI-FI WORLD COMES TO LIFE
CREATIVE SOLUTIONS FOR AN ONGOING CRISIS: MAINE CRAFTS ASSOCIATION’S EAST END VEND IN PORTLAND
It was an extremely windy day in Portland and across the northeast. By the time I arrived at the city’s east end it was close to 12 p.m. and many artists at the show had already packed up their things and left, the wind having put their artwork, tents and equipment at risk of flying away. Nonetheless, the vendors that remained were in good spirits and excited to speak with me. I spent the next hour wandering from “shop to shop,” appreciating the varied crafts and talking with the local artists in attendance. I spoke first with a woman selling Ash Cove’s “Double Double Dip Dinghies,” mugs, figurines and more — the earthy pottery was hearty and stayed steady against the wind. She explained to me that these events (put on by Maine Crafts Association and aptly named “East End Vend”) came about as the Association worked to respond and adapt to the coronavirus pandemic, and have ultimately … [Read more...] about CREATIVE SOLUTIONS FOR AN ONGOING CRISIS: MAINE CRAFTS ASSOCIATION’S EAST END VEND IN PORTLAND
VANITY FAIR, AN (IM-)MORALITY PLAY AT CENTRAL SQUARE THEATER
For my money, the Underground Railway Theater’s presentation of “Vanity Fair, An (Im-)Morality Play,” at Central Square Theater through February 23, couldn’t be a more timely and engaging burlesque of the surplus of hypocrisy and disguised cruelty that runs just below even the most distinguished of civilizations. In this case, the narrative is based on novelist William Makepeace Thackery’s mid-19th century novel, “Vanity Fair," which, judging from this dramatic adaptation, looked minutely and scathingly at an England nearing the height of an empire so globally broad that upon it, “the sun never sets.” The directing and the acting were, in this reviewer’s perception, superb. It was a delight to see hypocrisy so fully inflated with its own pomposity it seemed to float like a gas-filled balloon across the narrow stage with only its tiny, well-shod feet showing — the more pleasure to … [Read more...] about VANITY FAIR, AN (IM-)MORALITY PLAY AT CENTRAL SQUARE THEATER