04/01/2009
Category: General

Landscape Alchemy

RiverCulture Grant Awarded for Pathway Project

From the Montague Reporter

By David Detmold
Turners Falls - A cool project is about to take shape on one of the run down concrete pathways leading from the Hill to downtown Turners Falls. After a request for proposals was evaluated, the Turners Falls RiverCulture project has awarded a $4500 contract, which the selectboard signed on Monday, to Sebastian Gutwein and associates of Greenfield, to design and build a ‘Woven River' art installation that incorporates natural elements like stone and living trees with historic relics and of course, bricks and mortar, woven together with living willow and a wattle hurdle flowing downhill, to connect the entire pathway project in a fluid representation of the past giving birth to the future. The installation will hang above, take root and be built beside the town-owned pedestrian walkway that connects the curve of 7th Street with High Street, at the intersection of Avenue B.

Gutwein, reached by phone on Tuesday, said the installation was "all about the love for the past, and bringing the past into the future."

That sentiment may resonate well with local residents who recall the walkways that once led them up to school on Crocker Avenue from their former homes downtown. Though many of them have moved in adult years to newer homes on the Hill, a younger generation of downtown children still makes their way up the crumbling, trash-strewn paths to school, in every weather, gripping the cable balustrades when the sidewalks are slick with ice, or walking slowly with their backs bent diagonal to the ground by the weight of bookbags.

Sheffield parent Diane Ellis proposed the idea of an artistic makeover of the pathways to RiverCulture coordinator Lisa Davol two years ago, and, after a process of finding funding and advertising the concept to area artists, Gutwein's proposal emerged the winner. Ellis, a resident of Stevens Street, led a brigade of students and scouts on Earth Day last year to pick up trash around the pathways. She said at the time she hoped the improved walkways would encourage a two-way flow of foot traffic, with new shops, bakeries, and eateries acting as a magnet to bring folks back downtown again.

Gutwein, a Greenfield resident who grew up in the midwest, has also found downtown Turners to be something of a magnet. "The bones of the town are pretty amazing," he said. He spent time walking and exploring the town as he developed the concept for the pathway installation.

The design is anchored at the top by a sitting wall, to be made up of rocks from different eras of the area's geologic past. A railroad lantern will hang from a branch of one of the great oak trees that form a natural tripod above the path, with the lantern symbolizing the railroad that once ran to the mills. "The trains killed the river traffic," that made the locks and canal from Montague City to the Great Falls a commercial thoroughfare. "But the same sense of striving for efficiency and moving materials to long distances also led to the displacing of industry to the South and overseas and the changing of Turners Falls," Gutwein said.

Live willow stakes will be woven into an urn at the bottom of the path, "an urn to put your thoughts into and influence the growth of the future." In a synthesis of metaphysics and whimsy, Gutwein imagines bypassers placing "small pieces of paper - sort of like a prayer - in the living urn, and next time it rains, the ink and paper would dissolve into the soil, fueling the growth of the future." In case school children and others who use the path do not naturally think of placing written prayers into the willow urn, "A sign will engage unsuspecting gazers to make this symbolic gesture."

A concrete wall and brick pedestal will evoke the brute force of the dam that holds back the river, and the industrial buildings made possible by the strength of that dammed power. The wattle wall flowing through from top to bottom "acts as a thread to pull everything together," evoking "the past growing into the future," as a coppiced tree uses the energy of its roots to pump back into the cutting.

Stenciled onto the actual walk, a poem by Greenfield poet Maria Williams-Russell will gradually wear away as pedestrians walk on it, and be renewed with new paint year by year.
Here is the poem:

This is a village
We are woven bricks
Mudstone and fish
Train rails and intention
We are arrowhead and industry
Water flying over cliff
We are shad bush and oar
Artist and bridge
A village
A quiet cradle of churches
Chestnut and shoal
Lantern and flicker
We are sewn
Brothers and sisters
Soil, song and river

Gutwein will begin work on the installation once the ground thaws completely. Volunteers to help weave the wattle fence, out of apple cuttings from a local orchard, plant the crabapple, hybrid chestnut, or shadbush which will grace the ends of the pathway, or involve themselves in other ways, are encouraged to write Gutwein at: baswein@gmail.com.  Visit Sebastian's website here.

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New events and programs

Do you have an idea for an event or art project?  Would you like to hold it in Turners Falls?  Email us and we will see if we can make the process easy for you as well as see how we can help involve the community in your project.

Triple S at Nina's Nook

Erotic art by area artists - Sexual, Sensual, Smut

February 1- March 10, Reception Feb. 4!
Nina's Nook - 125 A, Avenue A

In celebration of the "Love Month" of February and in honor of Valentine's Day, Nina's Nook presents inspiring artwork by over a dozen artists. There will be sculpture, paintings, drawings, and ceramics that range from mild to wild on the "SSS" scale. Details here. Artists are:

Amina Silk, Edite Cunha, Wednesday Nelena Sorokin, Peter Monroe, Patrick Bogart, Christin Couture, Dan Cheney, Nina Rossi, Glenn Ridler, Nicol Wander, Joseph McCarthy, Tim DeChristopher, Kathleen Anderson, Camille, Leslie DeGraffe, Marvin Paige, Tony Palumbo.

Great Falls Coffeehouse: Austin & Elliott!

Local singer-songwriter duo, Chris Elliott and Lisa Austin have been performing together in a musical partnership across the northeast from Vermont to New Jersey since 2003. They tap into traditional folk with a modern outsider's sensibility. Elliott's songs reach for both scathing irony and genuine beauty, and along with Austin's blended harmonies, they are "two voices telling tales of love gone wrong and death done right". Elliott performs guitar and vocals while Austin adds energetic vocal harmony, guitar, 6-string banjo, bass, and percussion.

Coffee and homemade baked goods are available. The museum and museum store are open during intermission. Suggested sliding scale donation $6-$12, free for children. Donations help the Friends of the Discovery Center provide free nature programming for the public.

Friday Feb 10, 2012, 7pm - 9pm, Great Hall of the Great Falls Discovery Center, 2 Avenue A, in downtown Turners Falls. Doors open at 6:30 pm. The Discovery Center is wheelchair accessible. For more information, please call the Discovery Center at (413) 863-3221

Treasure Island at the Shea

Robert Louis Stevenson's classic tale adapted for the stage by Ken Ludwig and performed by New Renaissance Players. The story follows Jim Hawkins on his unforgettable journey that starts with his encounter with the pirate Billy Bones at the Admiral Benbow Inn, and takes him on the adventure of a lifetime. This high energy show is filled with humor, action, and spectacle. The play features some of Stevenson's most celebrated characters, including the clever and charismatic Long John Silver. Like all other NRP shows 100% of the profit will go back to the operating budget of the Shea.

The show dates are...

February 17, 7pm
February 18-19, 2pm
February 23-24, 7pm
February 25-26, 2pm

$10 for adults, $7 for children 12 and under, Shea Theater, 71 Avenue A, Tickets can be reserved through calling The Shea Theater's Box office (413) 863 2281, or online http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/221781

"Imitating Art" A Student Photo Exhibition

 Through April 1, 2012 at The Gallery at Hallmark

For this assignment, Hallmark students study the history of art, and attempt to photographically reproduce an original work of art. To create their image, students must study lighting, color, gesture and propping to analyze their roles in the original piece. Meticulous attention must be paid to the small details; the curve of a hand, the tilt of a head, the drape of a fabric. Finding specific props and understanding their importance in the overall image leads to a journey of discovery and growth.  Visit the Gallery at Hallmark here.


 

Franklin County Falls Pumpkin Fest

October 20, 2012

 

The third annual Pumpkinfest will be held on Saturday, October 20, 2012 on Avenue A in Turners Falls. The event is FREE to the public. Just bring cash for food, beer, and fun! The event runs from 3-9pm, with FREE shuttling from Turners Falls High School and Sheffield School!  More info on how you can get involved here.

 

Missoula Oblongata in Food City Photos

 

 

 

Many thanks to Food City, Missoula Oblongata, local food producers and RiverCulture's Producers committee for this most recent Producers performance which truly re-imagined and re-engaged a beloved Turners Falls institution - FoodCity.  Details on the show here and more photos on our facebook page.  

RiverCulture goes to Hamburg, Germany

RiverCulture Director, Lisa Davol, participated in a cultural exchange to Hamburg, Germany as part of the Riverscaping project. The goal of the trip was to learn about the processes by which the progressive, environmentally conscious and artistic community of Hamburg achieved its goals so we can then bring these experiences back home to better our own communities. Details here.

Strathmore Mill Opportunity

The Strathmore Mill Redevelopment Project will result in the restoration of a picturesque brick mill complex and adjacent grounds to its place as a cornerstone of the community and downtown economy in the historic village of Turners Falls, Massachusetts. The Town of Montague seeks an innovative partner to serve as master developer for this unique redevelopment opportunity in a location that boasts both natural beauty and the conveniences of an urban area. Details here.

RiverCulture Wins the Commonwealth Award!

RiverCulture is the proud recipient of the 2011/2012 Commonwealth Award, honoring exceptional achievement in the arts, humanities, and sciences. The Massachusetts Cultural Council presents the award every two years to individuals and organizations that have made extraordinary contributions to education, economic vitality, and quality of life in communities across the state.

 

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