September 2013

Bedford Day

What is your personal map of Bedford? Visit the BCA booth on September 21 to make your individual map

and/or add your significant places, memories, and thoughts to a big map meant for community participation.

For a head start, print out the map of Bedford included on the last page of this issue of the Blast.

Members’ News

BCA Fall Offerings:

The Art of the Pencil- Saturdays, September 28 through November 9, 1:30 to 4:00 pm in the BCA

space. Maureen Oates, instructor. Fee: $100.

Gelatin Printing Workshop- Wednesday, October 2, 10:30 am in the BCA space. Doris Smith,

instructor. Fee: $5 for supplies. This workshop is limited to 5 people.

Play Reading- First Tuesdays of the month with the exception that the first session of the year will be

on the second Tuesday, September 10, at 1:30 pm in the BCA space; Lois Pulliam, fearless leader. The

first play of the year is Noel Coward’s Hay Fever. Plays are read in one sitting. Characters are not

assigned; instead, parts are read sequentially around the table so that everyone gets a chance at

multiple roles and plummy parts.

SNAP (Special Needs Arts Programs)- Saturday mornings through October in the BCA space.

Golden Art Supplies, Demonstration- Wednesday, November 20, from 7 to 9 pm. Adria Arch, a

representative of Golden Art Supplies, will talk about acrylic basics, including how mineral and

Mike Milicia will be the guest speaker at the monthly meeting of the Photographic Society of Parker River

National Wildlife Refuge on Saturday, September 13 at 1:30 pm. The meeting is free and open to the public

and will be held in the auditorium at the Refuge Headquarters in Newburyport. For directions, go to

http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Parker_River/visit/directions.html

And don’t forget Mike’s Audubon-worthy 2014 Poster and Desktop Calendars, now available for ordering on

his website: http://www.michaelmiliciaphotography.com/ordering.php.

modern pigments relate to clean color mixing, glazing and the creation of new colors. She will also

speak on the unique properties of Fluids, Heavy Body, and slower drying OPEN acrylics, on the unusual

effects achieved by using Interference and Iridescent Paints, and on the use of gels and mediums to

change texture, saturation and intensity. Using new grounds for preparing contemporary surfaces for

painting, drawing, pastel and mixed media will also be discussed. Admission is free. For more

information about Adria, go to: http://www.goldenpaints.com/artist/wap/artist.php?uid=70

Fundamentals of Digital Photography- Wednesdays, September 11 through October 9 in the BCA

space, Mike Milicia, instructor. Fee: $195.

Opera Series- Monday, December 9, from 7 to 9 pm. David Collins will speak on Verdi’s Falstaff at

First Parish Church. Future lectures will be on Rusalka by Dvorak, February 27 and La Bohème by

Puccini on March 31. Fee: $15/lecture for BCA members, $20/lecture for non-members.

Other Workshops? Do you have a workshop or class you would like to teach? Is there a topic you

would like to see BCA offer? Let Doris Smith know at dorsmith@mac.com.

Photo Group

The BCA Photo Group will resume monthly meetings on September 10 and continue to meet thereafter on

first Tuesdays, 7 to 9 pm, in the BCA Space in Old Town Hall. The Group now consists of approximately 30

members from Bedford who hear invited speakers and share images with one another in response to a “photo

challenge” theme.

The featured speaker for the September meeting will be Mark David Bailey, a BCA member who has previously

amazed and entertained the Group with his pictures of rock balancing. Mark will focus on panoramic

photography for the upcoming meeting. Following Mark’s presentation, photos taken over the summer by

Photo Group members will be shared in a discussion led by Erin Carey, Director of the Garner Center at the

New England School of Photography.

Future meetings of the Photo Group:

October 1: Guest Jay Philpatrick, portrait and wedding photographer

November 5: Member Ben Thomas will talk about photography in cold and wet weather

December 3: Guest John Gates, lighting designer

In addition to the meetings on first Tuesdays, the Group is beginning a new series on third Tuesdays dealing

with technical issues in photography and post-processing of images. Look for listings of featured topics in The

Bedford Minuteman and The Bedford Citizen. Guests are always welcome.

Membership in the Photo Group is $50/calendar year, prorated.

More About Mark David Bailey

Mark David Bailey believes that singular moments can transcend time and space. His work intends to

challenge assumptions about what is possible and affirm the power of positive thought. He delights in turning

the appearance of permanence on its head. Bailey's images explore themes of ephemerality, possibility, and

intention.

Bailey is best known for his images of balanced rocks. The rock balance sculptures are usually as precarious as

they appear to be, sometimes taking an hour or more of careful adjustment before they stand. Stones range

in size from just 10 or 20 pounds to 200 pounds or more. Bailey lives in Bedford, MA with his wife and two

young daughters. Photography, and especially balancing rocks, is a meditative act for him. It is a celebration

of the power of visualizing positive outcomes in a precarious world. See http://www.markdavidbailey.com.

In & Around Bedford—September, 2013

Bedford Cultural Council Seeks Funding Proposals

Proposals for community-oriented arts, humanities, and science programs start on September 1 and are due

October 15.

The Bedford Cultural Council has set an October 15 postmark deadline for organizations, schools and

individuals to apply for grants that support cultural activities in the community.

According to Council spokesperson Barbara Purchia, these grants can support a variety of artistic projects and

activities in Bedford – including exhibits, festivals, field trips, workshops, lectures and short-term artist

residencies or performances in schools..

The Bedford Cultural Council is part of a network of 329 Local Cultural Councils (LCC) serving all 351 cities and

town in the Commonwealth. The LCC Program is the largest grassroots cultural funding network in the nation,

supporting thousands of community-based projects in the arts, sciences and humanities every year. The state

legislature provides an annual appropriation to the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency, which then

allocates funds to each community.

Last year, the Bedford Cultural Council distributed about $4,000 in grants. Previously funded projects include:

the Lane School Maker Day, the Bedford Citizen Website Upgrade, Arts and Crafts for Transitional Housing

Families, and a Historical Musical Performance at the Bedford Council on Aging.

For specific guidelines and complete information on the Bedford Cultural Council, contact Barbara Purchia at

781-275-2464 or via email at bspurchia@aol.com. Application forms and more information about the Local

Cultural Council Program are available online at http://www.mass-culture.org/lcc_public.aspx. Information

about the Bedford Cultural Council is available online at http://www.mass-culture.org/Bedford and at

http://www.bedfordma.gov/cultural-council.

Submitted by Barbara Purchia, Bedford Cultural Council

Bedford Arts & Crafts Society

The Bedford Arts & Crafts Society will hold its 14th Regional Art Exhibit on Friday, September 20 from 8 am to 4

pm and on Bedford Day, Saturday 21, from 10:30 am to 3 pm in the Bedford Town Center (yellow building).

Professional and non-professional artists must be beyond high school and may submit two pieces of creative

artwork. Framed artwork may not exceed 30”x36” and sculpture may not exceed 36” in any direction, nor

may it weigh more than 50 pounds. All entries must be delivered to Town Center, second floor, on Thursday,

September 19 between 9:30 am and 12:30 pm. Artwork will be judged on Thursday, September 19 by a

professional artist.

Entry categories are: painting (oil, watercolor, acrylic), drawing (pen and ink, charcoal, pastel), sculpture and

three-dimensional (ceramics, stained glass, metal, woodwork, basketry, fabric art, needlepoint), and

photography (film and digital). Cash awards for the first and second prizes in each category will be presented

at 1:00 pm on Saturday, September 21. Honorable mentions will also be awarded. Winners will be notified

before Saturday.

Fees: Members of the Bedford Arts & Crafts Society: $10/submission; non-members: $12/submission. Works

can be sold (as priced by the artist) or registered as not for sale (NFS).

For more information call Jeanne Reidy at 781-275-8983 or Laura Wallace at 781-275-5498.

Bedford Historical Society

The first event of the Bedford Historical Society’s 2013-2014 program year will be held at the First Church, 25

The Great Road on Wednesday, September 25 at 7:15 pm. The Society will recognize the achievements of

Bedford High School students at the National History Day competitions. There will also be a presentation by

local author Lee Yates whose book Bedford, from the popular Postcard History Series, was just released this

summer.

Portraits: FACE TO FACE – In the Bedford Library’s Atrium Gallery

The September 5 through November 6 exhibit at the Bedford Free Public Library atrium gallery illustrates the

rich variety of methods and styles in portraiture, from contemporary to early American Folk Art, painting to

sculpture. The featured artists are photographers Meg Birnbaum and Zoe Perry-Wood, painters Dianne Levine

and John Wood, pastel artist John Kirk Smith, folk art painter Nicole Stewart, and ceramicist Delanie Wise. A

reception to meet the artists will be announced.

Some of the works to be featured in Portraits:FACE TO FACE, left to right: Miss Audrey, by Nicole Stewart, Jane and Jack,

by Delanie Wise, Brandon by Zoe-Perry Wood; Acoma Woman, by John K. Smith, The Bar at Balthazar, by John Wood;

Self-portrait, by Dianne Levine, and Charlotte Persona, by Meg Birnbaum.

Concord Chamber Music Society

The Parker String Quartet opens the 14th Season of the Concord Chamber Music Society with a performance at

3 pm on September 29, 2013. The concert will be held at the Concord Academy of Performing Arts Center at

166 Main Street in Concord, MA. The concert is preceded by a free lecture by renowned musicologist Steve

Ledbetter. Tickets and season subscriptions are available online at

http://concordchambermusic.org/index.php/concerts/15 or by phone at 978-371-9667.

Concord Orchestra

The Concord Orchestra, conducted by Richard Pittman, will open its 60th anniversary season with the world

premiere of a newly commissioned work, Fantasy Concerto: Concord Conversations, a triple concerto

composed by Eric Sawyer. The instruments in the concerto represent the voices of Ralph Waldo Emerson,

Margaret Fuller, and Bronson Alcott, all central figures in Concord’ s transcendentalist movement. Soloists are

members of the piano trio Triple Helix. They are Bayla Keyes, violin; Rhonda Rider, cello; and Lois Shapiro,

piano. Also on the program is The Unanswered Question by Charles Ives, whose writing was inspired by

Emerson; and the Symphonie Fantastique by Hector Berlioz, who was a contemporary of the Concord

Transcendentalists. Both performances are on Friday, October 18 and Saturday, October 19 at 8 pm at the

Performing Arts Center at 51 Walden in Concord. Tickets are $30 for adults, $25 for senior citizens, and $10

for students. For information, visit www.concordorchestra.com or call 978-369-4967.

Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month)

Closet novelists unite! Your chance to share the joys and challenges of writing a novel will present itself in

November, when you can join thousands of other participants world-wide in this “fun, seat-of-your-pants

approach to novel writing”. The goal is to write a 50,000-word novel in a month’s time. Writing begins at

12:00:01 on November 1 and ends at midnight on November 30. For more information, visit nanowrimo.org.

At least one BCA member is thinking of having a go at it–now may be your moment, too.

Local Arts Institutions

Emerson Umbrella Center for the Arts in Concord: Concord’s Emerson Umbrella Center for the Arts

enriches lives and builds a vibrant community through the arts: We inspire creativity, learning, and

personal growth through education, performing and visual arts, cultural events, and community

collaborations. Our community of over 50 artists adds tremendous vitality and inspiration. For additional

information, call 978-371-0820 or visit www.emersonumbrella.org.

Concord Art Association: The Concord Art Association, located in historic Concord, Massachusetts, has

been a home to the visual arts since 1917 when it was founded by American impressionist painter Elizabeth

Wentworth Roberts. Our goal and mission have always been to promote and support contemporary art and

artists through exhibitions and educational programming. www.concordart.org

Lexington Arts and Crafts Society: The Lexington Arts and Crafts Society is a non-profit cooperative based

organization, established in 1935, and consists of nine arts and craft guilds with almost 400 members. For

information on the Lexington Arts and Crafts Society, call 781-862-9696 or visit www.lacsma.org.

Note to Art Teachers: the LACS is an approved venue for the awarding of Professional Development Points

to teachers for Massachusetts Department of Education certification.

LACS Instructors Show 2013/2014: September 14-September 29; Opening Reception, September 15,

2-4 pm. The exhibit launches the 2013/2014 year of art instruction and includes the following

demonstrations:

September 14, 2 pm: Jane Layton, bird carving

September 15, 12:30 pm: Laurie Eaton, polymer clay

September 21, 2pm: Emily Passman, use of photography to create a painting

September 28, 2 pm: Cora Pucci, painting on pottery

Gallery hours: Tuesdays-Fridays and Sundays, 12-4; Saturdays, 10-4.

Fall classes and workshops: Art Parties for Everyone! “Re-create a masterpiece in one night.” One 16x20 canvas, paint and brushes will be provided. Make new friends or attend with a group. No painting experience needed. Members: $35, Non-members: $45. Friday, September 20, 6:30-9:30 pm: to re-create Van Gogh-“Starry Night”

Visit the website www.lacsma.org for a detailed listing of classes and workshops in drawing, painting, ceramics, jewelry making, bird carving, knitting or crocheting, basketry, photography, Chinese brush painting, decorative arts, or framing and matting.

6th Annual Lexington Open Studios:

Calling all Lexington Artists and Artisans and those with a Lexington affiliation to participate, Saturday and Sunday, April 26 and 27, 2014. To participate you may register by January 15, 2014 but if you sign up by November 30, 2013, your images will be considered by our Graphic Designers for use on all three Lexington Open Studios’ promotional material.

You can join with the more than 75 artists who live, work, teach or create art in Lexington!

Exhibit in the Preview Show, April 12-27, 2013

Open your studio to visitors from Lexington and beyond

Join another artist in his or her home studio

Exhibit in the Community Space at the Munroe Center for the Arts

LACS artists may exhibit in the studios at the Lexington Arts and Crafts Society

For more information visit: http://www.lexingtonopenstudios.org.

This program is supported in part by a grant from the Lexington Council for the Arts, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

What places and people in Bedford are important to you? Map your town! Bedford exists in space and time; in its roads, its buildings, its waterways; in its wild and tame places;

it exists in memories of what has been and dreams of what will be; it exists in this moment now.

This map is yours to create. Please add some or all of the places that “mean Bedford” to you so that a compilation of everyone’s maps will create a unique portrait of our town.

Please return your map by mail or in person from 2 to 4 on Sunday, September 29

Bedford Center for the Arts

Old Town Hall PO Box 440 / 16 South Road Bedford, MA 07130

www.bedfordarts.org to learn more: info@bedfordarts.org