Around Cape Ann: White-Ellery House host arts event

Cape Ann Museum's White-Ellery House, a First Period structure built in 1709 on Gloucester's historic Town Green, now the Grant Circle rotary, will be open for guided tours as part of the museum's 17th Century Saturdays, an Escapes North program.

The program opener this Saturday — at the house's modern location at 244 Washington St., just north of the circle — will feature the first in a series of one-day contemporary art installations, focusing on the works of artists Rose-Marie Glen and Juni Van Dyke.

Rose-Marie Glen presents "Chrysalis" in celebration of the rebirth of the White-Ellery House. Consisting of six banners painted on eco-friendly fabric spun from recycled plastic soda bottles, the piece will cover the exterior of the building and chronicles the cycle of the butterfly. Glen is a painter and installation artist whose work references historic buildings, craftsmen and locations.

Juni Van Dyke presents four works by senior citizens involved in the art program at the Rose Baker Senior Center in Gloucester where Van Dyke is the arts coordinator. These large-scale pastel works utilize a grid technique to recreate the paintings of Milton Avery, Winslow Homer, and Edward Hopper. Van Dyke will also be exhibiting her own pastel works.

The White-Ellery House is one of a handful of surviving First Period buildings in the state. Recent stabilization work of the roof and clapboard siding was completed this spring.

The house was built for the Rev. John White, Gloucester's first settled minister, while the second owner of the house was James Stevens, who kept it as a tavern until 1740, at which time it was sold to the Ellery family.

In 1949, when plans were unveiled showing Route 128 traversing the Town Green, the house was taken by the City of Gloucester by eminent domain, turned over to the Cape Ann Historical Association, and moved safely out of the path of the highway.

Funding for these programs was made possible through a grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, which promotes excellence, access, education and diversity in the arts, humanities and interpretive sciences, in order to improve the quality of life for all Massachusetts residents and to contribute to the economic vitality of our communities.

For more information call 978-283-0455 or visit www.capeannmuseum.org.

Chelsea Berry plays CD at DogBar

Chelsea Berry previews and performs songs from her recently produced CD tomorrow at 9 p.m. at the DogBar on Gloucester's Main Street.

The new CD was produced during the spring by local producer Bradley Royds, and features some of Cape Ann's finest musicians, including David Brown on slide guitar, Allen Estes on mandolin, Pete Koeplin on percussion, Vinny Briguglio on bass, Julian O' Brien on keyboards, and Pete Lindberg on accompanying guitar, mandolin, vocals and percussion.

Admission tomorrow is free. For information, visit www.myspace.com/chelseaberrymusic or www.dogbarcapeann.com.

Local music

Dave Saginario performs his regular gig tonight at the Rhumb Line with Lisa Marie. Backing her up will be keyboard octopus Cliff Spencer as well as Forrest "Frosty" Padgett on the drumbulators, Greg Tower and "Sag" himself. Saturday night, Saginario will hit the stage at Latitude 43 with the Mike O'Connell Band. On Sunday, he appears at Glenn's Cool Bar and Restaurant in Newburyport with Justin Quinn and his band from 6 to 9 p.m.

Cape Ann's classic rock band Garfish will be performing Saturday night at Elliott's At the Blackburn from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m. Garfish will be performing music from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s along with some contemporary songs at the historic landmark which once housed the Blackburn Tavern.

Old Cold Tater performs Thursday evenings from 7 to 10 p.m. at the newly renovated Tom Shea's in Essex. Old Cold Tater has been entertaining Cape Ann audiences for more than 20 years, with a mix of Bluegrass, Celtic, jazz and originals. Call (978) 768-6931 for reservations, or visit www.TomSheas.com.

Elegant Trash is playing at Cameron's in Gloucester on Saturday night.

Jazz at The Studio on Rocky Neck this Sunday features special guest Berklee Music College professor Jeff Stout on trumpet. This week he joins Jack Senier on piano, Mark Carlsen on bass, Al Boudreau on drums and vocals and Barbara Boudreau on vocals. The music starts at 5 and will go to 8:30 p.m.

Talk to Hand, a women's a cappella quartet, will perform Sunday morning at the Seaward Inn in Rockport from 9 a.m. to noon. Their music covers a variety of pop, rock, and country artists. For more information, visit www.seawardinn.com. or call (978) 546-3471.

Nights on the Neck

Rocky Neck Art Colony is hosting its first 2009 Nights on the Neck, an evening of gallery receptions and entertainment.

The event tonight from 5 to 9 features:

Three Sheets to the Wind: The Schooner Adventure organization spawned Three Sheets to the Wind, a group of local musicians and Adventure crew members who are preserving the history of maritime work songs (chanteys) and forebitter songs.

Rick Berlin: Berlin sings honest narrative songs. His past credits in the Boston music scene include work with Orchestra Luna/Luna, Berlin Airlift, Rick Berlin - The Movie, Rome is Burning, Rick Berlin - The Awful Truth, and The Shelley Winters Project.

Eoin Vincent: In November 2007, Vincent visited and photographed 18 orphanages, schools, and hospitals near Arusha, Tanzania, and will present a slide show and a talk about his book about the trip and his experience. Proceeds from the book will benefit the Tanzania Hope Fund, EPIC Change, and other organizations designed to improve the lives of the people of Tanzania.

Gordon Baird: A local theater veteran, Musician Magazine founder and Times columnist, Baird will bounce around between show tunes and comedic renditions of familiar classics.

Watercolor open house

Gloucester artist Margaret Laurie will celebrate her 40th annual open house featuring watercolor paintings from near and far Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 4 Blake Court.

Laurie has painted all over the world, traveling with her husband and has exhibited in galleries around the country. She has received awards for work hanging in public and private collections.

Her watercolors also have been published in three international books, including "Best of Watercolor 2," "Best of Watercolor 3" and "A Gallery of Marine Art." She also teaches and presents demonstrations. For more information, call 978-283-3773.

New show at Sawyer Free Library

"Bone-buoyant Earth," a new show in tribute to Gloucester's Poet Laureate John Ronan, features paintings and prints by Coco Berkman. The works are hanging at Sawyer Free Library through June.

Berkman approached Ronan with the idea of creating some images inspired by his poetry.

"From the beginning of the project I determined not to 'illustrate' the poems I'd chosen. I wanted my visual images to have a sense of the poetic and to come through my own experience, yet use the eloquence of John's poetry to jump-start my imagination," she wrote in an artist statement titled "Drawing a Poem."

"John notices these things that others pass over," she said. "By spending time reading these poems I can almost glimpse the processes he invokes in composing a poem and I reiterate to myself why I'd rather paint than write."

Free writers workshop

Members of the Salem Mystery Writers Group will discuss the art of writing good beginnings next Wednesday at 7 p.m. as part of the Meet the Author series at Rockport Public Library.

Anyone who has struggled to write an opening sentence or who enjoys a good literary discussion is welcome to join the panel for a lively debate about what makes a good beginning. Members of the Salem Mystery Writers Group include Margaret Press, Susan Oleksiw, Joy Seymour, John Urban, William Joyner, Larry Griffin and Rae Francoeur.

The Meet the Author series is sponsored by Rockport Public Library, Friends of the Library, and Toad Hall Bookstore. For more information, visit ww.rockportlibrary.org.

Halibut Park full moon

Saturday visitors to Halibut Point State Park in Rockport are invited to view the full moon in this informative and fun program about the moon's significance, from 8:15 to 9:15 p.m.

The program appropriate for children, and will include an explanation of moon phases and moon cycle.

All children must be accompanied by an adult.

Art show at Unitarian

The Unitarian Universalist Society of Rockport will open its first ongoing art exhibit tomorrow, with the works of artist Charles Francis.

Francis works in oil and paints landscapes, flowers and still lifes. He is an associate member of the North Shore Arts and Rockport Art associations. He is also an artist member of the Newburyport Art Association.

Gallery hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

'The Mystery of Picasso'

Little Art Cinema in Rockport is showing "The Mystery of Picasso" tomorrow through June 11 with shows at 7 and 8:30 p.m. The film by Henri-Georges Clouzot was declared a national treasure by the French government in 1984. Picasso was a friend of the filmmaker and the two teamed up to create this new kind of art film. The films are shown at Spiran Hall, at the corner of Broadway and School Street in downtown Rockport. For film schedules or ticket information, call 978-546-2520.

Museum guided tours

The Cape Ann Museum has announced daily guided tours led by docents trained in teaching the public about the museum's art, history, and material culture collections.

Through Aug. 30, guided tours will be offered Tuesdays through Saturdays at 11 a.m., with additional tours on Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m. Tours include highlights of the collection (including the Captain Elias Davis House), the Fitz Henry Lane Collection, and tours of this summer's special exhibition View from the Terrace: The Paintings of Charles Hopkinson.

Tours are free with the price of museum admission.

The museum also provides tours to private groups through advance reservation. For further information on booking a private tour please contact Jeanette Smith at 978-283-0455, x.11. The museum is located at 27 Pleasant St. in Gloucester. For more information call 978-283-0455 or visit www.capeannmuseum.org.

Muniz art group

The North Shore Artists, a group of oil painters who get together weekly, are having a show at the Hall-Haskell House, at 36 S. Main St. in Ipswich from June 5 to 7.

Gloucester's Carleen Muniz, the teacher and mentor of the group, will be attending the opening Friday from 5 to 8 p.m.

Health Project celebration

The North Shore Health Project will celebrate "20 Years Plus One" Saturday at the Trinity Congregational Church, 70 Middle St., Gloucester.

The public is invited to join us for a commemoration of 21 years of service with music by the Karen Ristuben Trio, and refreshments. There will be a short program at 2:30 p.m. Tours of the Health Project begin at 3:30 p.m. For information, call 978-283-0101.

Local guitarist in N.H. gig

Gloucester's Ken Bonfield and Peter Janson will perform "Artistry of the Guitar" tomorrow at 7 p.m. at the Sunapee Community Coffeehouse in Sunapee, N.H. The "coffeehouse" is at Sunapee Methodist Church. This is a free concert with a pass-the-hat suggested donation of $15.

Montgomery, Geils at Woodman's

A "Blues & Rock Legends Night" will be held at the Essex Room at Woodman's on Friday, June 19.

The event will feature the James Montgomery Blues Band with special guest guitarist J. Geils.

The Cape Ann band Bingo Fridays, headed by lead guitarist Jake Pardee from Rockport, will be the opening band.

Doors open at 7:45 p.m. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased in advance at Gloucester Music and Seasons On Main in Gloucester. For more information, call 978-979-2224.

Around Cape Ann is a column devoted to events happening on Cape Ann and artists from Cape Ann performing elsewhere. If you would like to submit an item, contact reporter Gail McCarthy at 978-283-7000, ext. 3445 or gmccarthy@gloucestertimes.com. Note: All items need to be sent 10 days before the event.

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